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FROM THE DESK
Dried beans from my pantry normally take 45 minutes to an hour after soaking overnight. My pressure cooker does them in 25 minutes with no soak. That's beyond convenient. In a fuel-limited scenario where every propane minute counts, cutting cook time by 70% means your fuel lasts three times longer. The pressure cooker might be the most fuel-efficient cooking tool that exists.
Here's what I've got today.
THE BRIEF
Pressure Cooking: Maximum Food From Minimum Fuel
We covered cooking without power in Issue 29. This week adds a tool that dramatically improves fuel efficiency, which matters when you're cooking on a camp stove with a finite propane supply.
A pressure cooker works by trapping steam, raising the boiling point of water to about 250 degrees (versus 212 at normal pressure). Higher temperature means faster cooking. Rice in 4 minutes instead of 20. Beans in 25 minutes instead of 60. Tough cuts of meat tender in 30 minutes instead of hours.
For preparedness, the fuel savings are the primary benefit. If you're cooking on a camp stove with limited propane, a pressure cooker reduces fuel consumption by 50% to 70% compared to conventional cooking. A 20-pound propane tank that normally provides two weeks of cooking could stretch to five or six weeks.
Dried beans become practical without overnight soaking. In a disruption where you're eating from your stored food pantry (Issue 25, Issue 106), dried beans are among your densest, cheapest protein sources. Without a pressure cooker, they require 8 to 12 hours of soaking plus an hour of cooking. With one, they're ready from dry in 25 to 40 minutes.
Stovetop pressure cookers work on any heat source: gas stove, camp stove, wood fire, or propane burner. Electric pressure cookers (Instant Pot) are more convenient but require electricity, which limits their emergency utility. For preparedness, a stovetop model is the versatile choice.
Modern pressure cookers have multiple safety features: locking lids that won't open under pressure, pressure release valves, and backup safety plugs. The exploding pressure cooker is a relic of older designs. Current models are safe when used according to instructions.
One-pot meals work especially well. Rice, beans, and canned tomatoes with seasoning. Chicken and rice. Beef stew from canned or dried ingredients. The pressure cooker handles all of these from a single pot, which also reduces water usage for cleaning.
ONE THING THIS WEEK
Cook dried beans in a pressure cooker without soaking.
If you have a pressure cooker, add one cup of dried beans, three cups of water, and a pinch of salt. Cook at high pressure for 25 minutes. Natural release. You've just turned a dry pantry staple into a hot meal with minimal fuel and no advance planning.
ON THE RADAR
Two Utah Wildfires Now Top 100,000 Acres Combined as Evacuations Mount
Utah is fighting two fast-moving wildfires at once. The Cottonwood Fire near Beaver has grown to nearly 70,000 acres at 0% containment, with significant property loss reported at Eagle Point Resort. The Iron Fire near Eureka has burned more than 37,000 acres at 17% containment, forcing mandatory evacuations and closing Highway 6 between Elberta and Eureka — more than 600 people have left Eureka alone. Crews are bracing for dry lightning and high winds that could drive both fires further. The lesson: wildfire evacuation windows can close in minutes. During fire season, know your two exit routes, keep a go-bag staged by the door, and leave on the first warning rather than the last.
Source: KUTV (Iron Fire), KUTV (Cottonwood Fire)
LESSON FROM: CREEK STEWART
Creek Stewart's Build the Perfect Bug Out Bag makes the same point about fuel that drives this issue: in a real disruption, the food you can actually prepare is limited not by what you've stored, but by how much fuel you have to cook it. Any tool that cuts fuel consumption per meal extends your self-sufficiency timeline.
Stewart's whole philosophy is packing efficient, multi-use gear — and that thinking applies directly to cooking. A pressure cooker is a force multiplier for fuel. Pair it with a thermos (Issue 29) or a hay box cooker — an insulated container that keeps cooking food after it comes off the heat — and you can stretch a single propane tank from two weeks of cooking to over a month.
WHAT'S HAPPENING
A Montreal Officer Was Killed — and a Bystander Was Shot Amid the Confusion
On Monday, June 22, a man with a long gun opened fire in Montreal's Côte-des-Neiges neighborhood, near the headquarters of an adult-content company. Constable Mohamed Lamine Benredouane, 34, was killed and his partner critically wounded — the first Montreal officer killed in the line of duty in 24 years. A 68-year-old bystander, Michael Mizrahi, also died as he turned the corner where the officer was taking cover, and was following the same path that the gunman was about to take to turn that same corner. Police Chief Fady Dagher said he did not know who fired the fatal shot, and video circulating online appears to show an officer shooting the civilian amid witness reports of "two shooters" in camouflage. Quebec's independent police watchdog has taken over the investigation.
The takeaway for anyone caught near an active shooting: officers arriving in the first seconds cannot always tell a threat from a bystander. Don't run toward police or come around a corner toward them. Move away from the gunfire, keep your hands visible and empty, drop anything that could read as a weapon, and follow commands instantly, but first and foremost, seek cover(walls and objects that can block bullets) as opposed to only concealment(these do not block bullets).
WHAT I'M TESTING
Presto 6-Quart Stainless Steel Pressure Cooker
This is a classic stovetop pressure cooker. No electronics, no programs, no digital display. Just a pot, a locking lid, and a pressure regulator. It works on any heat source including a camp stove.
I've used it for about five months. Beans from dry in 25 minutes, rice in 4 minutes, chicken stew in 20 minutes, and even hard-boiled eggs in 5 minutes. The stainless steel construction is durable and easy to clean. The pressure regulator rocks gently when at proper pressure, giving you an audible cue without needing to watch a gauge.
On my camp stove, it uses roughly one-third the propane of conventional cooking for the same meal. That's the number that matters for preparedness. About $98 for Prime Day(s).
Budget alternative: An older Presto aluminum model from a thrift store ($10 to $15). Verify the gasket is intact and the safety valve is functional. Replace the gasket if needed ($8). Same cooking performance.
OVERRATED / UNDERRATED
Overrated: Electric pressure cookers (Instant Pot) for emergency preparedness. They're excellent daily kitchen appliances, but they require 700 to 1,000 watts of electricity. In a grid-down scenario, that's a significant draw on your power station. A stovetop model works on any flame.
Underrated: Thermos cooking as a complement to pressure cooking. Bring food to pressure for 5 minutes, then transfer to a pre-warmed thermos. The retained heat continues cooking for hours with zero additional fuel. Pressure cooker plus thermos is the most fuel-efficient cooking system possible.
THE LINK DUMP
Hip Pressure Cooking — Comprehensive resource for pressure cooking techniques and timing charts.
Extension.org: Pressure Cooking — University guidance on pressure cooking safely.
Serious Eats — Background on pressure cooking science and history.
Presto.com — Manufacturer guides for stovetop pressure cookers.
COMING UP
Open-source intelligence for civilians. The research techniques that analysts and journalists use to find reliable information, applied to your preparedness monitoring.
PS: I timed a side-by-side test. Conventional beans: 8 hours soaking plus 55 minutes cooking. Pressure cooker beans: 0 hours soaking plus 28 minutes cooking. Same beans. Same taste. Around One-tenth the fuel. Not bad.
THE READY BRIEF is published for informational and educational purposes only. Nothing here is professional legal, medical, financial, or tactical advice. Preparedness looks different for every household — use your own judgment, consult qualified professionals when the stakes are high, and adapt what you read here to your actual situation.
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