Science of pressure cooking[edit]

In an ordinary, non-pressurized, cooking vessel, the boiling point of water is 100 C

(212 F) at standard pressure; the temperature of food is limited by the boiling point of
water because excess heat causes boiling water to vaporize into steam. In a sealed
pressure cooker, the boiling point of water increases as the pressure rises, resulting
in superheated water. At a pressure of 1 bar or ~15 psi (pounds per square inch) above
the existing atmospheric pressure, water in a pressure cooker can reach a temperature
of up to 121 C (250 F), depending on altitude. The boiling temperature of water (and
water-based liquids) is determined by the ambient atmospheric pressure. Pressure
cookers always require liquid in order to cook food under pressure. At sea level, the
boiling temperature of water is 100 C (212 F) and excess heat only increases the rate
at which water evaporates into steam vapour; more heat does not increase the
temperature of the water. At higher altitudes above sea level, the atmospheric pressure
is lower and thus the boiling temperature of water is lower, because the lower
atmospheric pressure pushing on the water makes it easier for the water molecules to
escape the surface compared to higher atmospheric pressure. [17] Inside a pressure
cooker, once the water (liquid) is boiling and the steam is trapped, the pressure from the
trapped steam increases and this pushes on the liquid, which increases its boiling
temperature, because it becomes harder for the water molecules to escape from the
surface as the pressure increases on it.[17] The heat applied to the liquid by the heat
source continues to create more steam pressure and the extra heat also raises the
temperature of the liquid under this increased pressure. Both the liquid and steam are at
the same temperature. Once the selected pressure level is reached, the pressure
regulator on the lid indicates this and now the heat source can be lowered to maintain
that pressure level and save energy, since extra heat will not increase the temperature of
the liquid if the pressure is not allowed to riseexcess pressure will only escape as fast-
flowing steam from the lid.
As a general rule, increasing the temperature of many everyday chemical reactions by
10 deg. C doubles the rate of reaction, halving the time for completion. Thus a pressure
cooker that can attain temperatures around 120 C (248 F) can complete cooking in a
quarter of the time that it would take using ordinary boiling.
In addition, because of a much higher heat capacity, steam and liquids transfer heat
more rapidly than dry air. As an example, the hot air inside an oven at, say 200 C
(392 F), will not immediately burn your skin, but the wet steam from a boiling kettle at
100 C (212 F) will scald skin almost instantly and 'feel' hotter, despite the steam (and
water) in the kettle being at a lower temperature than the air inside a hot oven. Thus the
internal temperature of material in a pressure cooker will rise to the desired value much
more quickly than if it were in a hot oven.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pressure_cooking