Cooking vessel with adjustable ventilation system

A cooking vessel for use in a conventional oven, microwave oven, or convection oven with an adjustable ventilation system, comprising:

• a ceramic base having a top, a bottom, an interior, and an exterior and a pair of handles extending outwardly from the exterior of the base;
• a removable lid adapted to be received by the top of the base, the lid having a top and a bottom;
• a recess portion in the top of the lid, the recess portion having a plurality of ventilation holes and a central keyway extending from the top to the bottom of the lid, the plurality of ventilation holes being equally spaced from adjacent ventilation holes with all of the plurality of ventilation holes being positioned on the recess portion within an arc of less than one hundred and eighty degrees;
• grasping means extending upward from the top of the lid for holding and removing the lid;
• a ventilation cap rotatably secured to the top of the lid within the recess, the ventilation cap having a vent knob handle, a key, and a plurality of ventilation holes, the key of the ventilation cap releasably received within the central keyway, the plurality of ventilation holes being equally spaced from adjacent ventilation holes with all of the plurality of ventilation holes being positioned on the ventilation cap within an arc of less than one hundred and eighty degrees, the ventilation cap rotating within the recess above the ventilation holes of the lid such that the plurality of ventilation holes of the ventilation cap are permitted to be sequentially aligned with the plurality of ventilation holes of the recess to enable a plurality of different cooking positions, each cooking position enabling the regulation of a different amount of steam or moist air to be released from the cooking vessel.

A method for cooking food using an adjustable ventilation system, comprising the steps of:

• providing a cooking vessel, the cooking vessel with a base having a top, a bottom, an interior, and an exterior and a pair of handles extending outwardly from the exterior of the base, a removable lid adapted to be received by the top of the base, the lid having a top and a bottom, a recess portion in the top of the lid, the recess portion having a plurality of ventilation holes and a central keyway extending from the top to the bottom of the lid, the plurality of ventilation holes being equally spaced from adjacent ventilation holes with all of the plurality of ventilation holes being positioned on the recess portion within an arc of less than one hundred and eighty degrees, grasping means extending upward from the top of the lid for holding and removing the lid, a ventilation cap rotatably secured to the top of the lid within the recess, the ventilation cap having a vent knob handle, a key, and a plurality of ventilation holes, the key of the ventilation cap releasably received within the central keyway, the plurality of ventilation holes being equally spaced from adjacent ventilation holes with all of the plurality of ventilation holes being positioned on the ventilation cap within an arc of less than one hundred and eighty degrees, the ventilation cap permitting unlimited rotation within the recess above the ventilation holes of the lid such that the plurality of ventilation holes of the ventilation cap are permitted to be aligned with the plurality of ventilation holes of the recess to enable a plurality of different cooking positions, each different cooking position enabling the regulation of a different amount of steam or moist air to be released from the cooking vessel;
• removing the lid from a secured position on the base of the cooking vessel to expose the bottom of the base;
• inserting a desired food into the exposed base of the cooking vessel;
• placing the lid back in the secured position on the base to enclose the food within the cooking vessel;
• rotating the upper ventilation cap relative to the recess to a desired cooking position with each of the ventilation holes of the upper ventilation cap being correspondingly aligned with a different ventilation hole of the lower ventilation cap to form the plurality of different cooking positions for enabling the regulation of a different amount of steam or moist air to be released from the cooking vessel and maintaining the proper moisture retention within the cooking vessel during the cooking of the food;
• inserting the cooking vessel into an oven to cook the food;
• and
• removing the cooking vessel from the oven when the food is cooked to the desired degree.