Cooking utensil

A cooking inset and support ring combination for use in a conventional cooking vessel having an upper rim comprising:

• a support ring adapted to fit within the vessel and rest upon the rim of the vessel, said support ring including a ring-shaped central portion, an outer flange extending radially outwardly from said central portion, and an inner flange extending radially inwardly from said central portion, said outer flange adapted to engage and rest upon the rim of the vessel, said inner flange defining a plurality of perforations, a concentric circular opening and a plurality of notches opening into said opening;
• and
• an inset adapted to fit through said opening in said support ring and extend into the vessel, said inset being movable between a raised position and a lower position, said inset including a circular bottom, a circumferential sidewall extending upwardly from the periphery of said bottom, and a rim extending outwardly from said sidewall, said sidewall having an upper portion and a lower portion, said upper portion having a greater diameter than said lower portion, said upper portion and said lower portion being interconnected by a transition portion, said inset adapted to engage the bottom of the vessel when in said lowered position, said inset further including a lower plurality of outwardly extending protrusions, said lower protrusions arranged to rest upon said inner flange of said support ring to support said inset in a raised position and to selectively align with said notches to permit said inset to be lowered into and raised out of the space in the pot through said opening is said support ring.