How to Buy a Great Pressure Cooker?

Pressure cookers have a bad reputation. There are countless stories out there about exploding ones. The truth is that only old cookers are prone to explode, the new models are very safe and easy to use. Pressure cooking is worth trying out as it produces delicious and healthy food in a lot less time than ordinary cooking. Risotto takes only five minutes to prepare, a stew takes less than sixty minutes.

 These devices work based on the fact that under pressure, the boiling point of any liquid is higher. When the pot is sealed, the pressure inside the device begins to build. The pressure raises the boiling point of water from 212 to 250 degrees. The elevated pressure produces steam. The hot steam heats the food, making cooking a faster process. Thanks to this, pressure cooking uses less energy than ordinary cooking, and produces a richer flavour as no molecule can get out of the pot. 

What are pressure cookers made of?

 Pressure cookers can be made of two materials. Aluminum and stainless steel. It is best to avoid devices that are made of aluminum. They are less robust than those made of stainless steel. Heavy usage will result in deformation and damages. Aluminum pressure cookers are less pricey, but if you plan on using the pressure cooker for years, I advise you to save up, and buy a pressure cooker made of stainless steel.

 However, stainless steel is not a good conductor of heat. A device made of nothing but stainless steel would contain hot spots. These are areas which are a lot hotter than others. Hot spots mean longer cooking time. To buy the best pressure cooker, select a type that has an aluminium disc attached to the bottom of it. This way, you can get the best of two worlds.

 How big should it be?

 Most pressure cookers are 6 quart models. However, I advise you to purchase a bigger one. There are two reasons for this. First, it is impossible to fill a pressure cooker more than up to 2/3 of the way. All the minerals and juices from the ingredients will stay in the cooker, you need to leave space for them. Second, some recipes ask for bigger pots. I recommend an 8 quart model. This allows you to cook bigger pieces of meat, like whole chicken, turkey breasts, ribs. You can always prepare less food in a bigger pot, while you can't do it the other way around.

 Tall or wide?

 It is widely accepted that wide models are better than tall ones. A wide bottom means bigger cooking surface. This is more efficient, and you have to spend less time cooking meat before closing the pressure cooker. A wide cooker's inside is easier to reach when cooking, the food easier to see. The useful models are the ones around 7.5 to 9 inches in diameter. The best pressure cookers are 9 inches wide.

 How about pressure?

 A pressure cooker is essentially a sealed pot that does not allow steam to get out below a pre-set pressure. The higher the pressure, the shorter the cooking time. Cooking under 15 pounds of pressure would take away the speed gained by the process. Longer cooking defeats the aim of pressure cooking, as you do not save any energy by doing so. Also, you will need to adjust your recipes. Most recipes are written for exactly 15 pounds of pressure.

 Electric or stovetop?

 Electric pressure cookers became widespread in recent years. Inexperienced cooks like them as they are easy to use. However, electric pressure cookers are a constant source of pain. They usually come with a one year warrantee, while their stovetop counterparts come with a warrantee of a decade. The programmable feature defeats your options of coming up with innovative recipes. For example, quick cooling is impossible, which prevents you from prepairing crisp vegetables. Electric pressure cookers are harder to repair, parts harder to replace. A good stovetop model will make your life easier, allow you greater freedom, and serve you for a lifetime.

 Does the handle matter?

 Never purchase a pressure cooker with just one short handle. You will burn your fingers almost all the time. A long handle offers extra leverage when locking the lid on top of the cooker. Having a shorter helped handle on the opposite side of the bottom unit is an absolute must. It is hard to lift an 8 quart model full of food with only one handle.

 Old or new?

 Old pressure cookers might seem like bargains, but they can be unsafe, and hard to repair.

 If the manufacturer of the cooker is already out of business, parts are hard to come by, a manual almost impossible to obtain.

 An old cooker's bottom can be full of bumps which prevent the heat from spreading evenly. The top might not fit the bottom perfectly. If the vapor can escape through the cracks, the pressure cooker is useless.

 If the pressure regulator doesn't fit well, the cooker is unable to maintain pressure as indicated. This defeats the aim of the process.

 Any of these can result in a useless device.

 Are non-stick interiors safe?

 Non-stick interiors can't withstand pressure cooking.

Non-stick interiors made of fluorocarbons drop off as the result of sustained pressure. These parts end up in the food. Fluorocarbons release poisonous gases that are not able to escape the pot.

 You can not use metal forks or knives as these damage the non-stick finish.

 One final piece of advice

 Your newly purchased great pressure cooker will serve you and your family for a lifetime. It is very important to find the best pressure cooker out there. Save up some cash and purchase an expensive, but better model. Don't buy bargain cookers. If you buy a cheaper, used model, you risk having to buy another one a few years later.

 Your one time investment will pay off in a short time by reducing your energy bills and saving you valuable time that you can spend with your loved ones.

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Smart Pressure Cooker - Smart Chef

Forget whatever horror stories you heard about your grandmother's pressure cooker. For time saving, flavor and nutrition no cooking method beats today's safe and reliable pressure cookers. You can get home at 7:00 and have a complete, fresh, homecooked meal on the table by 7:30 or even earlier. Put those soggy, bland microwave meals behind you, and get ready to accept the adulation of your adoring family.

 Here is how a pressure cooker works its magic. The cover or lid locks in place creating a closed system at a standard 15 pounds of pressure. At this pressure water boils at 257 degrees F instead of the usual 212 degrees F. The higher temperature cooks the food faster. About three times faster than regular stove top cooking methods. Small to medium-sized potatoes cook in five minutes, and a whole "roast" chicken dinner cooks in only twenty minutes.

All foods, vegetables in particular, keep their color and their flavor. Nutrients stay trapped in the pot instead of dissipating in a cloud of steam. For family use the Kuhn Rikon 7 liter stainless steel pressure cooker is the gold standard. An aluminum disk in the base, sandwiched by stainless steel, cooks evenly on gas, electric, ceramic and induction stovetops. That old, dancing pressure valve that scared the beejezus out of your grandmother is replaced with modern safety features that quietly regulate pressure and keep the lid safely locked while the contents are pressurized.

 Presto pressure cookers have been around for a long time and offer a variety of different sized stainless steel and aluminum pots. Professional chefs prefer a stainless pressure cooker because it is nonreactive and can be safely cleaned in a dishwasher, but aluminum is also a good choice if weight is a consideration. You want heat resistant double handles, one on each side of the pot, in every case.

 A 6 quart pressure cooker is minimum family size. Go larger if you will use it as a canner. You are better off sticking with a name brand manufacturer even when price is your primary consideration. Quality control is likely to be better but more importantly you want to be able to get replacement parts when you need them five or ten years from now.

Valves get lost. Gaskets wear out or get damaged. A loose fitting lid doesn't affect your stock pot but it will put your pressure cooker out of business. Many models come with useful accessories like racks, trivets or vegetable steamers which keep food from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Most chefs brown meats before attaching the lid so sticking does occur.

You may still want to avoid nonstick interiors, however. The occasional inconvenience of a little extra cleaning far outweighs the risk of a pitted or peeling interior coating. Nonstick interiors are less of a potential problem with electric pressure cookers. Cuisinart makes a programmable electric pressure cooker worth considering. Priced between the Presto and the Kuhn Rikon pressure cooker its push-button controls and digital display make an attractive package.

The Cuisnart can be programmed for high or low pressure cooking, browning, simmering, sauteing or warming. And you got to admit that an electronic thermostat is more foolproof than setting a stovetop control to a precise position. You do give up some flexibility, however, because you can't open the lid until the cooker says you can. With the stove top models you can instantly drop the pressure and open the lid by putting the unit under cold water.

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What Is A Digital Pressure Cooker?

What would our cooking and our diet look like if we didn\'t have pressure cookers? Would we still be eating roasted meat, potatoes fried on oil or pig fat, using deep fryer for our most basic meals? Probably yes. By doing that, we endanger our health and lose a lot of benefits we might gain if we prepare our food in a bit healthier way. Besides that, we would lose much time by preparing meals in an old fashioned way. Time is the most valuable and precious thing we have on this world.

Using it right should be one of our primary goals. And when it comes to cooking, it sure can take a lot of our precious time. Just imagine what was happening one century ago, or even 50 years ago. Our mothers and grandmothers used to spend hours and hours just to prepare meals for their families.

Waiting for soup to be ready, then throwing in some meat, finish it with some fry potatoes - it all took a lot of time. And when you count in the cleaning they had to do, there wasn\'t any more time for them. Situation is a lot different now. Women no longer have the luxury or will to spend entire day in their kitchen. There are other activities they like to be involved with, but they still have to do them after they finish work.

What could save their time is a digital pressure cooker. It helps with a time schedule and it makes delicious, healthy food. A perfect sign of progress and something that every busy and advanced woman should have. With pressure cooker, you can plan your day. All meals are prepared a lot faster then usual, you used to need about 3 hours to prepare beans, but with cooker you need only one hour.

What is best, you won\'t have to check what\'s happening every 10 minutes, pressure cooker will start by itself and turn off when the cooking is done. In the meantime, you can be busy with other things, like spending some time with your kids, your spouse or chatting online. The advantage of a pressure cooker is very clear, you get more time and you get better results.

 Digital pressure cookers are very versatile products with lot of benefits. They have many different settings to choose from, depending on what kind of food you want to prepare. Should it be steaming, low pressure cooking or just keeping your food warm, it\'s all possible with pressure cooker. What is best, all meals will be delicious since they will have their original flavor.

You won\'t lose any nutrition value, while there are no worries about cholesterol due to big amounts of oil in your fries or meat. While we speak of meat, pressure cookers will turn tough meat to tender and juicy meals that you will want to taste again and again.

 One of the cookers we can recommend to you is a Nesco pressure cooker. It is perfect for soups, stews, for cooking rice or chicken. There are several different food preparations he can serve for, so you don\'t have to worry about number of choices and using some other cookware.

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Stainless Steel Vs Aluminum Pressure Cookers - Which Type of Pressure Cooker to Go For

Scary pressure cooker is now a thing of the past. The fear of blowing the lid off and scattering mess all over the kitchen has long been gone and over. Even if it has serve you delicious foods and amazing dishes, consider Grandma's noisy cooker is history; gone are the whistles and hissing sound that you hear at the kitchen. Thanks to the modern day cookwares that are manufactured by leading European and American brands and other Asian companies as well.

When shopping for this type of cooker in the market, you will be faced with two main options - they are either aluminum or stainless steel made. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages so when deciding for one, its better to weigh your options so you can choose which one best tailor to your needs.

Stainless steel pressure resists corrosion; its scratch and warp resistant so you can keep it shiny and pretty for a long time. It does not react to food and its more durable. It is more sleek and elegant cooking but its more expensive than the aluminum made ones. Aluminum pressure cooker is cheaper or more affordable choice. Moreover, they are better conductors of heat, being aluminum made. However, it is a soft metal so it has the tendency to scratch and dent easily plus it can react to certain acidic food.

The choice between an aluminum or stainless steel can be boiled down to two important factors - price and durability. Aluminum ones are cheaper but they are better conductors of heat. However, they are inferior when it comes to design and quality.

Stainless steel pressure cooker maybe more expensive but it is more durable and reliable. They are usually made of aluminum at the bottom to make them absorb heat better. If you are really on a tight budget, go for the aluminum ones but if its quality and durability that you are looking for, opting for stainless steel pressure cooker is the best option for you and can be worth your money in the long run.

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