I have wanted to put sesame seeds in the pressure cooker for several years now. It is amazing how procrastination and other ideas can steer a desire off course for indeterminate amounts of time. Today I came across bulk sesame seeds at a local store and took this as a sign to purchase a bag of seeds and bring them immediately home to the pressure cooker.
Aki and I conferred on how long to cook the seeds. She believed that due to their small size we should dramatically cut down on the cooking time compared to our other seed cookery. I was hesitant although she quickly convinced me that we should try her seven minute cook time. I filled the bottom of the pressure cooker with an inch of water and then placed a trivet in the center. I then took a small bowl filled with the seeds, some water, agave nectar and salt and placed it on the trivet. I sealed the lid and set the timer. When the seven minutes were up I let the pressure dissipate and I opened the lid. The seeds were not cooked and definitely not tender. I put the lid on and tried another seven minutes. No success. I tried another twenty five minutes. Not yet. I added another hour to the cooking time and finally had positive results. The seeds have texture and a snap and pop similar to eating tobiko (flying fish roe).
I should also note that the seeds uniformly toasted during the pressure cooking. They picked up a rich nuttiness which did not exist in the raw seeds we started with. The tiny size of the seeds and the popping texture are really incredible. I am not quite where we will go with these cooked seeds, though I am looking forward to the journey.
