Steaming food at 500m

[realm]

Thanks to everyone who contributed to the fascinating thread on baking powder. We are not yet in Italy, but will be there asap. Meanwhile we are learning everything we can in advance.
Following on from the baking powder thread, I googled high altitude baking, and we have gained a lot more useful info. We do have a pressure cooker. But my wife is very keen to steam vegetables rather than boiling them. Can one steam vegetables at 500m just as easily as we do now at 350 feet? Would they take much longer to cook?

[Gala Placidia]

I don't think that at 500 m altitude you should have too many problems. The air is a bit dryer and all liquids tend to evaporate faster and boil at lower temperatures as you go higher in altitude. Steaming should not be greatly affected. Just add a bit more water. Pressure cookers should have instructions from the manufacturer, check those.
Cooking times in general may take a bit longer, careful with meat and poultry in particular.
I have cooked at 830 m altitude and differences were small, except for baking. It would be more complicated in the case of higher altitudes.
Generally, it always takes a while to get used to the particular conditions of a new kitchen, stove and oven. And this is regardless of the altitude.

[Gala Placidia]

Just another idea as you enjoy steamed vegetables and so do I, but I cook them in the microwave using special steamers which are suitable for that type of cooking. It takes a while to get used to the exact cooking times but you will find that it is simple and effective. And altitude will not be a problem. An extra piece of advice, buy the best microwave oven you can find and shop for special dishes, casseroles and utensils.
You can also do some baking using the microwave oven and I make a mean polenta bread that goes very well with barbecued meat or chicken. It has taken me a while to get used to this style of cooking but it is really wonderful.

[alan h]

Originally Posted by realm

................ Can one steam vegetables at 500m just as easily as we do now at 350 feet? Would they take much longer to cook?

At 500m, water boils at about 98.5C - so there shouldn't be any significant effect of steaming food

See - Water Altitude Boiling Point Calculator



.

[Noble]

At 627mts I steam veg and had not even thought about there being a difference between steaming them here or in Berkshire! I have learnt to add a good pinch of Bicarbonate of Soda when cooking green veg and campagnola (edible field weeds). It's the baking that's the disappointment. In fact bread is far far better when baked in a bread machine up here. Oh and I don't want to upset dear Gala but I have resisted having a microwave!

[EddieV]

Originally Posted by alan h

At 500m, water boils at about 98.5C - so there shouldn't be any significant effect of steaming food

See - Water Altitude Boiling Point Calculator
.

That's all well and good, but just as I referred to in the baking powder thread, this is based on a pressure of 1013.2 Pressure changes hence on other days you may find that your water boils at a completely different temperature. Cooking is still a black art :)

[EddieV]

Personally, I wouldn't consider anything below 1000m (3000ft-ish) to be 'at altitude' - there's really not that much difference. Now if you're on the Tibetan plain - things are different!

[Noble]

Well all the old ladies and fantastic cooks around here add bicarb Nielo and if you have ever cooked field weeds without adding a big pinch of bicarb what you get is a dish of veg that looks exactly like a brown cow pat on a plate!! (My first attempt went into the bin).

[EddieV]

hahaha. Sounds lovely. Bicarb it is then!

[Gala Placidia]

I use bicarb to soak vegetables when cleaning them and also to soak dried beans to make them more digestible, but not to cook them. You always learn something new.
As for microwaves, I was not quite convinced about them until I bought a house which had one built-in and an excellent instructions-cooking book. I changed my mind after that and now I use them a lot and not only for reheating leftovers.