Pressure Cookers: brands, sizes, features

[Samhill]

Well, heres mine, I'm very happy with it, that one with the guages is the kind that explodes *shiver*, freaks me out.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detai...itchen&n=507846

I've had it for 5 years, very nice, I paid 130 bucks at the kitchen store, 90 bucks ain't bad.

[balmagowry]

OK, this afternoon I caught myself all nonchalant-like comparison-shopping for pressure cookers.  eBay, Amazon.com, you know -- the usual suspects.

It's the eGullet Curse.  Either that or the eGullet Blessing. 

Oh, it is. Both. Either.

I myself, having been perfectly happy with my good old Presto 6-quart for lo these (count 'em) 30 years, have now gone completely to hell in the name of "research." (Curse you, Carolyn Tillie, for putting this eGCI idea into my head. ) It started innocently enough, with a reprint of the Papin treatise on the original digester; then today I started thinking I really needed to broaden my horizons with different designs and varieties. I've just bought (oh hell, I've been curious about these ever since they first came out) a microwave pressure cooker; I'm eyeing an electric one as well. None of this comes to big bucks... yet. But I'm dreadfully afraid that Kuhn Rikon set on eBay is going to be my downfall. Someone (one of you, no doubt) seems to have bought the 12-piece set, but the 6 (which is what I was really considering) is still there, and unless one of you rushes off and buys it out from under me, there's no telling what I might not do in the name of "research." Hey, thinks I to myself, self-justifyingly, at least the guy's in New York, so I could pick it up and save the shipping.

Oy, eGullet, what hast thou wrought!

[balmagowry]

Fiends... fiends... you people are FIENDS!

(Ooooh, a Fagor, eh? Well, I'm curious to see how it's different from the ones out there now, but there's no special urgency - I really only asked because I wanted to get a sense of how many of these fancy brands people were actually using. BTW I myself still use the old Presto for the foreseeable future; I have myself tallked out of the Kuhn Rikon for now, on the grounds that I have absolutely no need for it.)

[Carolyn Tillie]

Okay, now that I am at work (and have MUCH faster Internet access), I was able to surf around and find the Fagor that I have -- seems it is considered a Classic!

Fagor Picture and Specs Here.

and Here.

How terribly interesting.... I am SO excited about this. I realize it was a pretty expensive piece of equipment and always felt guilty that I never used it.

[Toliver]

I myself, having been perfectly happy with my good old Presto 6-quart for lo these (count 'em) 30 years...

Ah, Presto.

My mom received a Presto pressure cooker when she married my dad back in '55. Last year she decided she needed a new gasket. She called Presto and they had the gasket that she needed, still in stock, after all these years.

Now that's customer service.

Good luck on your eBayin', balmagowry!

[lovebenton0]

Carolyn, I checked out your Marine Fagor. One thing I truly like about mine is that it also has a sideways locking lid. The "lock" is 360, lid and pot. Hope you enjoy yours. It sure is a pretty thing.

[balmagowry]

Okay, now that I am at work (and have MUCH faster Internet access), I was able to surf around and find the Fagor that I have -- seems it is considered a Classic!

Fagor Picture and Specs Here.

and Here.

How terribly interesting....  I am SO excited about this. I realize it was a pretty expensive piece of equipment and always felt guilty that I never used it.

You have the Marine model! Too cool! I found that page the other day when I was looking these things up, and the sailor in me immediately went into lustful overdrive. So what if my boat isn't big enough to have a galley? I could rig something in the cockpit... it'd be worth it for a gorgeous implement like that. Who cares that in boating weather the most you'd ever want to cook anyway is a fish or a burger on a cantilevered hibachi? A marine pressure cooker simply cries out to be owned by a sailor, right? RIGHT...???

Wrong. But what a beautiful thing it is. Give you joy of it. Yes, yes, I'm working on the course outline.

Edited March 11, 2004 by balmagowry (log)

[uberleet]

Here's a Climbers Pressure Cooker.

For what it's worth, this thread (especially Suvir's comments) convinced me I needed one; I bought the six quart Magefesa a couple weeks ago and I love it. Sadly, the eight quart model is no longer produced - though there is apparently a set containing an 8 quart model sold through QVC. I talked to a Magefesa representative who said I could order that set if I wanted an 8 quart model, but I got the impression that is wasn't as nice as the "real" Magefesa.

[balmagowry]

Pressure Cooker Outlet

A good resource! Thanks for that link. Too bad they don't offer a wider selection of brands.

Pressure cooker parts? Parts you want???? Check this out:

eBay auction

Uh-oh, I'm tempted. Great - more miscellaneous stuff to have lying around just in case Little Miss Fix-It suddenly gets ambitious....

Edited March 15, 2004 by balmagowry (log)

[CRUZMISL]

OK, pressure cookers were never very popular in my family but the idea of making stocks etc in record time might make the purchase worth it. Any one regularly use a pressure cooker? I was thinking of getting a WMF Perfect Plus 6.5 quart model. Any advice on this subject I know nothing about is appreciated.

Joe

[Anna N]

I have just started using a pressure cooker and love it. I actually have two, a small aluminum one and a larger stainless steel one. My only piece of advice - go for stainless - the aluminum stains horribly.

[beccaboo]

I have a Magafesa and two Kuhn Rikons, and like them very well. I've seen the WMFs at the store and they look nice, but I've never heard anything about them.

Get the biggest one you have room for--you can only fill it 2/3 full, so you'll want a big one for stock.

[Shalmanese]

Good luck finding one in the US but I love my computer controlled PC which I detailed here.

It automatically brings the pot up to pressure and then keeps it there so you get no vapour loss whatsoever. It has a timing feature so you can dump something in and forget about it.

[andiesenji]

Manttra pressure cookers have been making a lot of headway in sales recently because the prices are very competitive and the quality is excellent.

This vendor is in Canada but ships all over the U.S.

They even have an electric model that is now on sale at an excellent price.

At SmartBargains

(This vendor is part of Loehman's, if anyone is acquainted with their stores.)

I recommend the 8 quart or 10 quart in the regular pressure cookers.

I gave away a 6 quart that I used once and found was too small.

Edited November 26, 2005 by andiesenji (log)

[jsolomon]

What do you plan on doing with your pressure cooker? If you're planning on processing food in mason jars (or Kerr), you may want to go with a (much) larger model.

If that's not your aim, any of the mentioned should serve you well.

[JayBassin]

I have a Magafesa and two Kuhn Rikons, and like them very well.  I've seen the WMFs at the store and they look nice, but I've never heard anything about them. 

Get the biggest one you have room for--you can only fill it 2/3 full, so you'll want a big one for stock.

←

I have a 12 L Kuhn Rikon that I use for stock and an 8 L Wearever (aluminum) that I rarely use. I like the Kuhn Rikon a lot. I agree with the previous recommendation to stick with stainless steel. The wearever has a weight that sits on a post on the lid and rocks when the steamer is at pressure. The Kuhn Rikon and other modern ones have an integrated spring pressure valve. The big difference is that the spring valve doesn't release a lot of steam, so cooking for a couple of hours in one means you don't need a lot of water (a good feature). The wearever/weight models vent a lot of water/steam during use, so you need to take that into account.

Second, do not ever dish-washer the lid or the rubber gasket. I ignored the warnings in the manual, and found that the heat of the dishwasher or drying cycle shortened the life of both the gasket and the rubber pressure-release valve.

You can only fill the cookers 3/4 full, so a 12 L cooker only results in about 4-6 L of stock (depending on the volume of bones and veg).

All in all, the large Kuhn Rikon is an excellent investment.

[eje]

For large scale canning and cooking of non-reactive items, the All American cast aluminum pressure cookers work well. They are available from various vendors in sizes ranging from 10-41 quarts.

[Abra]

I love my 8 qt Magefesa and use it all the time. I agree with the earlier admonitions that bigger is better.

[annecros]

Must put in a plug for last year's Christmas present from hubby.

Innova. Stainless steel pressure cooker, model 42010 C.

Competitively priced, versatile, and worth a lookup.

It has performed admirably, and features lots of extra's like the adjustible wieghts, sealing ring and safety lock release, rack/steamer basket, and 5 year warranty.

Just a real good, all around pressure cooker at a reasonable price. Good starter cooker that performs as well as some of the more expensive options out there. Get one like this, use it to experiment, then keep it around for utility work.

MOO.

Annie

[fannus]

I would also recommend looking at Fagor pressure cookers, they're much more reasonably priced than Kuhn Rikon are Magefesa, and have commensurate features, but I have not 'battle tested' one yet. Soon I will have in my posession:

http://www.mercantila.com/catalog/store/Fa...Pressure_Cooker

I think that this looks like a very solid 2nd gen. (i.e. internal steam valve) pressure cooker. So I should be able to comment more concretely on its merits soon (if you're looking for a deal, this website has about the best non-eBay price I've found on this model).

[miladyinsanity]

That WMF is what my mom uses--though it might be a different size. She uses it at least once a week, and is really happy with it. The life-time warranty is good too.

[mizducky]

Manttra pressure cookers have been making a lot of headway in sales recently because the prices are very competitive and the quality is excellent.

This vendor is in Canada but ships all over the U.S.

←

I got a Manttra cooker at my local Target. I've been extremely happy with it, by the way. Just a nice basic general-purpose cooker.

[Stuckey]

Was there ever a Pressure Cooker eGCI course, or did it not go ahead?

I've never had any experience with pressure cookers - never used one, never eaten anything that was (to my knowledge) cooked in one - but the efficiency and usefulness of them appealed to me. Last weekend, I bought an 8-litre Tefal Clipso Control Pressure Cooker.

The first thing I did was try to familiarise myself with its operation by boiling water in it. The instruction booklet says that after it reaches pressure, "lower the heat" and set the timer for however long a recipe calls for. Boiling water is one thing, but when cooking, how low do I "lower the heat"? Am I right in saying that if the temp is too high, it'll burn the food, and if it's too low, the pressure won't be maintained?

Thanks for any tips or advice!

[tryska]

Well in my experience - you start with it at a high to bring what you have in there to a boil. When the cooker starts spitting, turn the heat down to med./med. low for the rest of the time.

Using one of my Mom's shortcuts, i usually just set it to medium and ignore all the whistling and temp changing. I usually end up with a little extra liquid int here, but it's not biggie to boil it off with the lid off.

I have a Prestige Cooker, and I'm truly amazed with the craftmanship on that thing. It's stellar.

One thing I have learned. One must respect the Cooker. If the Cooker doesn't want to open, for the love of God, don't force it.

I did that a few weeks back. there was a gunshot like pop, and my stove area, wall, floor, and clothes were covered with hot cooked onions. I still have a faint burn left to remind me.

[jayt90]

One thing I have learned.  One must respect the Cooker.  If the Cooker doesn't want to open, for the love of God, don't force it.

I did that a few weeks back.  there was a gunshot like pop, and my stove area, wall, floor, and clothes were covered with hot cooked onions.  I still have a faint burn left to remind me.

←

My aging Lagostina will usually be safe to open after a few minutes of cooling down.

Sometimes I need the ingredients right away, and have used the technique I saw on the Iron Chef (I think it was Ming), running cold water over the hot cooker in the sink. This will reduce the pressure inside very quickly.