Best Pressure Cooker
Pressure cookers are amazing kitchen tools, and if you haven’t ever used one, prepare to be amazed.
Modern pressure cookers have redundant safety measures and pressure release valves to make sure they don’t explode in your kitchen. They are a simple, straight-forward tool. The boiling point of water depends on the air pressure of the environment, so the higher the pressure, the higher the boiling point. So, high-pressure environments, like a pressure cooker, can get to really high temperatures.
The biggest feature by far is how fast they cook. We’re talking from dried beans with no pre-soaking to black bean chili in half an hour. All this adds up to less energy used to cook and less time in the kitchen. Stay tuned for my fave recipes!
Most stovetop pressure cookers will sear and deliver tender meats (for you carnivores), cook beans to tender perfection, and make one-pot meals in a fraction of time. But not all pressure cookers are created equal.
Here’s what you want to look for:
- Ease of use, versatility, well designed so it’s easy to clean and maintain.
- Cookers with a wide, low profile are much better for searing and sauteing.
- The lid should lock on smooth and tight.
- Easy-to-see pressure indicators. Cheaper cookers have tiny or recessed indicators that are difficult to see.
- Easy to obtain replacement parts and good warranty.
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Heat evenly, sauté or sear without scorching. Look for a nice thick, wide disks at the base that will distribute heat evenly.
What size is best? That really depends on the size of your family. I find it’s about a quart per person. For example, I can make black bean chili perfect for four people with my 4 quart. If I am feeding more, I jump to my 8 quart.
My Recommended Pressure Cookers
- I have the Fagor Duo: https://amzn.to/2Ne9u88 and it’s fantastic! But…the company is going out of business so units will get hard to find and customer service will eventually be non existent. So, it won’t be an option for much longer. Update!!!! Looks like a company called Zavor is now selling what was once Fagor: https://amzn.to/2SygUFK
- Fissler is considered top of the line and highly rated. If you have the budget, Fissler is shiz: https://amzn.to/2P2efT0
- On a budget, then I recommend the Presto: https://amzn.to/2P2WQts
I need to address the elephant in the room…the Mulitcooker or the ever popular Instant Pot. If you are not familiar with the Instant Pot, it is a mulitcooker. You can head over to amazon and take a look at the glowing reviews: https://amzn.to/2P25NTx
It’s a device that combines an electric pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker and yogurt maker in one handy unit. But, I don’t have one and here is why. It works well but not as well as any of those items individually. Stove top pressure cookers are faster (higher pressure level than any electric cooker), sear better, and have more capacity for their size. Even more, I use my pressure cooker pots for more than just pressure cooking. So my stove top pressure cooker is more efficient, takes up less room/weight and is multi functional too.
That said, if you still think a Multicooker is right for you, I would suggest checking out the Zavor over the Instapot: https://amzn.to/2UlchRc
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Helen Russo –
Nikki, if you have beans of questionable age, try putting about 1/2 t to 1 t baking soda in the water. It will help with the softening issue. Sometimes they are old, and sometimes it is the hardness of the water. 🙂 Another use for your favorite cleaner…but for cooking.
Helen Russo –
As an owner of a Fagor, now Zavor, multi pot Pressure cooker, I have to say I really like it. It has been very dependable. It is important to check seals and replace after a while, especially if one cooks a lot. I do not use it for yoghurt or rice, even risotto as the traditional way is how we like it (and I own a yogurt maker that I like). It comes down to several things with brands of pressure cookers. (and yes, the instapot is a pressure cooker) How one interacts with the brand and set up, how they use it, how long and how much experience they gain, and so on. Beans for example come out great, and it takes me about 15 -24 minutes – depending on condition when they went in. (dry/soaked) However, the first batch burned because I was new to the use of a pressure cooker and made some mistakes. The crock pot option works fine, more like a traditional stove top cooker since it does not have heat on the sides, and that is something to take into account when using that feature. As well, don’t buy one first, but see if you can borrow one to trial, it has helped some of my friends out! Some found out they don’t like them, and some love them. I am going to buy the stove top Zagor (and an induction plate) for exactly the reasons Nikki cited, we have almost finished our solar set up on our rv and it will be perfect for dry camping and exploring. 🙂 Hope this helps out 🙂 It’s all great, there’s plenty of room for all kinds and ways of cooking.
Julie McShea –
I bought the Zavor but have to say I’m not won over. As reviewed on Amazon, the pop up button that indicates the pot is at pressure has not yet worked. The button is not stuck, just never engages. Pre-soaked dried beans take over 40 minutes to cook and the moisture released makes a huge mess under the pot. Does not seem to work as advertised and could definitely not go from dried beans to chili in 30 minutes. After each attempt, I reread the instructions to see if I missed something. Maybe my pot is defective? Still glad you got some pennies though.
Nikki Wynn –
Sounds like you have a defective lid. If it hasn’t been too long, I would return it for a refund or at least reach out to the company. They should send you a new lid. Either way, glad you came back to let us know about the issues and alert anyone else that purchases.
And as a side note. I have had random batches of beans that never wanted to soften. Not sure if it was quality, past their prime or what. It’s rare but it has happened a couple of times.
Nikki Wynn –
Hey Rebecca! We didn’t say that the instant pot wouldn’t make great rice or anything else and the ease is certainly there. Americas Test Kitchen, Wirecutter and Consumer Reports have all done the side by side testing with exactly the same results I mentioned above.
We have done side by side comparisons with our friends insta pot (they are die hard instapot fans) but even they agreed there was a slight noticeable difference of the pressure cooker over the instapot end results. But, they still love and would choose again their instapot for its ease and convenience. We weren’t out to try and prove one right or wrong, simply curious. In the end, we are drastically different cooks and we each have the appropriate set up for our cooking styles. I prefer more flexibility and control. I enjoy the process of cooking. My friends like good food but don’t like the hassle of cooking and the instapot is the perfect solution for them.
I think the instapot is great but it is much larger, heavier and simply not as versatile for me. We don’t use propane for cooking. We have an electric induction cooktop so it is still an electric device that runs off of our solar/lithium battery set up (all listed in the gear store too if you are curious). And that is the big takeaway, choose the best devices and set up for your style. There is no one size fits all. We’re all beautifully diverse. 😉
Rebecca –
I totally disagree with your assessment of the Instant Pot. It makes the best rice, especially for sushi and it’s the easiest yogurt maker I’ve ever used. Not to mention you can set it and forget it, unlike a stove top. I have 3 and was an early adopter back in 2015 so I have a lot of experience with the pots. I’ve never actually used the slow cooker function because I now pressure cook those recipes now. My understanding is that’s really the only aspect that may not be as good as the original. You are correct about a standard pressure cooker being able to multi task as a regular pot. I would also think with your robust solar set up that it would be cheaper to run an electric pressure cooker than to use propane/gas. I am planning to take my IP cruising with me. I can’t comment on the brand you recommended because mine are all Instant Pots. Have you done any side by side comparisons? Thanks for all of your great content!
IndoorKitty –
Fagor is going out of business! What the what?!?! My family sized Fagor PC is fantastic.
Off to buy a spare set of gaskets…