FAST SLOW COOKING:

hearty winter meals for your pressure cooker

1.4kg whole chicken (a boiler, if available) 4 fresh thyme sprigs 2 fresh bay leaves 2 fresh flat-leaf parsley stalks 1 litre (4 cups) salt-reduced chicken stock 1 medium (350g) leek, sliced thickly 2 celery stalks (300g), trimmed, cut into 5cm lengths 400g baby carrots, trimmed 6 shallots (150g), halved 50g angel hair pasta, broken in half 150g green beans, halved lengthways 1½ tablespoons lemon juice ⅓ cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley

1 Rinse chicken under cold water; pat dry with paper towel. Trim off excess fat. Place chicken, thyme, bay leaves, parsley stalks, stock and 1 cup (250ml) water in a 6-litre pressure cooker; secure lid. Bring cooker to high pressure. Reduce heat to stabilise pressure; cook for 20 minutes. 2 Release pressure using the quick release method; remove lid. Carefully remove chicken from cooker. Discard bay leaves, thyme and parsley stalks. Add leek, celery, carrot and shallots; secure lid. Bring cooker to high pressure. Reduce heat to stabilise pressure; cook for 3 minutes. 3 Release pressure using the quick release method; remove lid. Add pasta and beans; secure lid. Bring cooker to high pressure. Reduce heat to stabilise pressure; cook for 2 minutes. 4 Meanwhile, discard skin from chicken. Break chicken into large pieces. Divide chicken among bowls. 5 Release pressure using the quick release method; remove lid. Skim excess fat from soup. Stir in juice and chopped parsley. Season. To serve, spoon soup over chicken. Suitable to freeze. Not suitable to microwave.

SLOW COOKER OPTION

Place chicken, leek, celery, carrots, shallot, thyme, bay leaves, parsley stalks, 1½ litres chicken stock and 2 cups water in a 4.5-litre slow cooker. Cook, covered, on low for 8 hours. Remove chicken from cooker; discard bay leaves, thyme and parsley stalks. Skim fat from soup. Add pasta and beans to cooker. Cook, covered, on high, for 12 minutes or until pasta is tender. Proceed as per recipe.