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Electronic Pressure Cookers

M

mitchelt

Senior member
I watched an infomercial the other day about pressure cookers and I am very interested in getting one...do any of you have any experience with electronic ones?

If you have one and like it, can you please provide the Manufacture/Model Number?
 
mitchelt said:
You can adjust the cooking temperatures, times and delayed start.
Click to expand...

Cooking temperature: When I cook with a pressure cooker it is not to temperature. It is to a set cooking pressure determined by the weight on the cooker's pressure relief valve. The pressure determines the temp. Many conventional pressure cookers have an adjustable pressure relief valve anyway.

Time: I guess there is some value in being able to set a time but I'm fine with using a timer and turning the stove off manually

Delayed start: Can't see the value in this. I wouldn't use a pressure cooker if I were not home so I can't see any other use for a delayed start.

I'm assuming this thing plugs into a typical 15/20 amp household outlet. A cooking stove can deliver far more energy and heat up a conventional pressure cooker faster than this pressure cooker.

I'll just stick with a conventional pressure cooker. No electronic parts to break, conventional works fine for me and the benefits of an electronic one are not a selling point IMO.
 
NetWareHead said:
Cooking temperature: When I cook with a pressure cooker it is not to temperature. It is to a set cooking pressure determined by the weight on the cooker's pressure relief valve. The pressure determines the temp. Many conventional pressure cookers have an adjustable pressure relief valve anyway.

Time: I guess there is some value in being able to set a time but I'm fine with using a timer and turning the stove off manually

Delayed start: Can't see the value in this. I wouldn't use a pressure cooker if I were not home so I can't see any other use for a delayed start.

I'm assuming this thing plugs into a typical 15/20 amp household outlet. A cooking stove can deliver far more energy and heat up a conventional pressure cooker faster than this pressure cooker.

I'll just stick with a conventional pressure cooker. No electronic parts to break, conventional works fine for me and the benefits of an electronic one are not a selling point IMO.
Click to expand...

I can accept that.

How do you like your pressure cooker? Does it REALLY make a difference in the taste of the food?
 
Instat Pot is really highly recommended
http://www.amazon.com/Instant-Pot-IP.../dp/B0073GIN08

Pressure cookers really aren't there to change the taste of food...rather they can steam or tenderize tough foods much, much faster than conventional pots.

Upside of the electronic ones is that they double as rice cookers and you can delay start them a before you get home for meals.
 
mitchelt said:
I can accept that.

How do you like your pressure cooker? Does it REALLY make a difference in the taste of the food?
Click to expand...

The taste is not so much the factor. A pressure cooker is an excellent time saving device. Because it cooks at much higher temps than regular boiling water, food cooks much faster. For instance, if you want to braise short ribs or other kind of tough meat, you typically need to bake in an oven for hours until the meat becomes tender. You can braise the meat to the same level of tenderness in far less time in a pressure cooker. If you don't have time for low and slow, the only other way is a pressure cooker.

IMO, I still think the hours long braising process in an oven yields tastier product than the fast pressure cooker method but thats my opinion and perhaps I am being picky. Thats not to say a pressure cooker is without uses. It has plenty of other uses. You can even use a pressure cooker as an autoclave to sterilize items.
 
a pressure cooker is good to cook hard stuff such as artichokes.
By boiling them you'd lose more nutrients.
I guess this applies to other vegetables as well.

vi edit said:
Upside of the electronic ones is that they double as rice cookers and you can delay start them a before you get home for meals.
Click to expand...
that just sounds dangerous
 
A pressure cooker does what a slow cooker does in much less time. With a conventional model I'm constantly monitoring the pressure indicator. I trust the electronic one to maintain the proper pressure on it's own.
 
who? said:
A pressure cooker does what a slow cooker does in much less time. With a conventional model I'm constantly monitoring the pressure indicator. I trust the electronic one to maintain the proper pressure on it's own.
Click to expand...

Im trying to understand exactly what you are monitoring? The weight or valve on the relief valve will only allow the cooker to build pressure until a certain point. Excess pressure is then vented. If the pressure is constantly venting then you need to turn the heat down. Otherwise, one it starts venting it is at operating pressure.

If anything, the only thing that needs to be monitored in pressure cooker operation is to make sure it doesn't run dry. I always add a cup or 2 more water than I would usually when using one.
 
Bought mine at Bed Bath and Beyond about a year ago. The first two were defective right out of the box (would not heat up). The third one has worked perfectly. Great for all sorts of things, especially preparing the food in the morning and setting the timer so that it is ready when you get home. We still have our old Presto pressure cooker, just in case.
 
On Fagor pressure cookers if the pressure gets too high the gasket gets shoved out of the safety hole, then you have to cool it down to shove the gasket back in and heat it back up.
 
who? said:
On Fagor pressure cookers if the pressure gets too high the gasket gets shoved out of the safety hole, then you have to cool it down to shove the gasket back in and heat it back up.
Click to expand...

If the gasket gets shoved out of the way and presumably releases all of the pressure, then that is a design flaw and not the way normal pressure cookers are supposed to work. Usually pressure cookers with bad gaskets are either defective or too damaged for normal operation. I prefer a pressure cooker with a metal to metal seal between the lid and body. This eliminates the rubber gasket as a point of failure. And, when the gasket breaks 10-15 years later, good luck in finding a new one.

If your gasket is getting shoved out of the way, your pressure relief valve may not be operating normally. if the internal pressure is that high, the valve should be venting that, not the gasket !! 😱
 
If the pressure relief valve gets clogged with food or the pressure goes up too quickly on a hot stove the gasket release hole is a simple and effective safety device.
 
If you do canning, pressure cookers are almost absolutely required for certain foods to ensure safe canning. E.g., venison. Side benefit: it can take tougher cuts of venison and make them omg melts in your mouth tender. If I'm doing canning, I'm not going to be in the mood to wait for some 15amp pressure cooker to heat up the volume in the canner to a suitable temperature.
 
who? said:
If the pressure relief valve gets clogged with food or the pressure goes up too quickly on a hot stove the gasket release hole is a simple and effective safety device.
Click to expand...

Ok I've seen those models and now I know what you are talking about. That is a safety device that prevents the cooker from exploding, not a pressure relief valve that continuously works and vents excess pressure. When that gasket release goes, the cooking stops too. If you had a working relief valve, convenient operation of your cooker would be possible. You shouldn't need to monitor it constantly like you wrote before. I'd get a new valve or a new pressure cooker imo...
 
vi edit said:
Instat Pot is really highly recommended
http://www.amazon.com/Instant-Pot-IP.../dp/B0073GIN08

Pressure cookers really aren't there to change the taste of food...rather they can steam or tenderize tough foods much, much faster than conventional pots.

Upside of the electronic ones is that they double as rice cookers and you can delay start them a before you get home for meals.
Click to expand...

I have that one and love it. The rice is outstanding - perfect every time. Every grain is 'full-bodied' and none are mushy. These units are very safe, not to mention very quiet, and the company (in canada) has very good customer service.
 
NetWareHead said:
Im trying to understand exactly what you are monitoring? The weight or valve on the relief valve will only allow the cooker to build pressure until a certain point. Excess pressure is then vented. If the pressure is constantly venting then you need to turn the heat down. Otherwise, one it starts venting it is at operating pressure.

If anything, the only thing that needs to be monitored in pressure cooker operation is to make sure it doesn't run dry. I always add a cup or 2 more water than I would usually when using one.
Click to expand...

That's assuming the pressure switch and T&P valve is working correctly. 😉 I guess the odds of both failing are probably slim though.
 
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