Pressure-cooker caramel custard

I've made caramel custard before, but baked in the oven. I've even made it steamed in a pressure cooker - but never actually pressure-cooked it. Actually I've read that it's not meant to be cooked under pressure, merely steamed (like idlis, I guess). I was curious about whether pressure-cooking it give the same taste to the custard, whether it would cook and look the same as well - and I followed the recipe in Anupama's food blog, Food n More and whaddya know, it DOES taste the same. The custard tended to accumulate runny juices (probably because of something I didnt do right, but I dont know what!), but that didnt detract from the taste.

Recipe for: Pressure-cooker caramel custard



Ingredients:

3 cups milk
4 eggs
1 cup sugar + 4 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Method:

1. Dissolve 1 cup sugar in the milk and bring to a boil. Set aside to cool.

2. Beat the eggs in a bowl till light.

3. In a flat bottomed steel vessel which will fit in the pressure cooker, place 4 tbsp sugar and 2 tbsp water.



4. Heat this over a very low flame until the sugar caramelizes to a rich golden brown. Swirl the caramelized sugar in the pan so that it coats the pan part-way up the sides. Let this cool for 10 minutes.



5. Add the beaten eggs and vanilla extract to the cooled milk, mix well and pour into the prepared pan.



Cover the pan with lid and pressure cook it for 2 whistles. Then turn down the heat and let it simmer for 5 minutes. Turn up the heat again and when the cooker comes back to full pressure, turn it off.

Let the cooker sit till the custard has cooled in it. Then take the pan out and place it in the fridge for a few hours (or overnight).

To unmold the custard, run a thin spatula or knife around the side of the pan to loosen the custard. Then place a large serving plate over the pan and tilt it quickly. When you take the pan off, the custard should have unmolded onto the plate.



Serve sliced into wedges.