Pressure cooker advice please!

[jennym]

Am considering getting a pressure cooker. Want a very large size if possible. Maybe 10 litres or more if available. What makes/sizes do others have, would you recommend them (advantages and disadvantages please), what life expectancy, spares availability, and what sort of cost should I expect?
Have NO experience at all with pressure cookers.

[jennym]

[Jeannine]

I can help you with this one I have 4 of them, well I did till son took one. I grew up with one at my Mums apron so am pretty familiar with them.

For most of my life I have had a Prestige Hi dome, not a bad pressure cooker for cooking but not reliable enough for food preparation in jars. Mine got dropped and it buckled.

I also have a Langostina one, very expensive, tall, not bad  but I found I used it more as a stock pot and rarely used the pressure lid as it was fiddly, the lid sat inside the pot.It was a gift, very nice but not what I would have chosen. Very strong pot though, still available on the net, but I wouldn't buy another one.

I had a Prestige stainless steel Rise and Something which I got as thank you for organising  a cookery thing some years ago, it was fine, again not for bottling as it is impossible to be accurate enough.I would have wanted a bigger one if buying one anyway.

I gave this one to my son before the other one got damaged so when it was no more, I got another Prestige Hi Dome to replace it.....bad idea... as soon as I took it out of the box I realised it was flimsy compared to the older ones and we returned it straight away.

So I went searching, I scoured around for 6 months before I chose and I finally bought a Kuhn , it is a Swiss one, I bought the biggest one and it is stainless steel,better as it doesn't react with acid stuff like aluminium. It wasn't cheap, just short of £100 I think. It took a bit of getting used to as it is silent in use, but it far outweighs anything I have had before and I reccomend it whole heartedly. It cooks in much less time than any other and it lets no steam out at all. I am thrilled with it. However I still would not use it for canning low acid foods.

The last one I have is a  huge  Presto American canner, specifically for pressure sealing jars etc, I can safely can fish, meat or veggies in this . It holds 23 quarts. It has a pressure gauge on so I can see very clearly exactly what the temperature inside is and can hold it at that for as long required for canning low acid foods. It takes a lot of canning jars to fill it but I would not can food with anything else.

I  am not sure what you are looking for, the Kuhn comes very highly rated, you can see it on the net.

Hope this helps, get back to me if I can help anymore, or if you need specifics or pictures.

XX Jeannine

PS I could not be without a pressure cooker by the way.

[jennym]

Thanks for that. Would you please explain:
"I finally bought a Kuhn... I am thrilled with it. However I still would not use it for canning low acid foods"
Why?

[Jeannine]

Bear in mind I lived in the US for a long time and they are very fussy about food prep there. Sometimes I get raked over the coals for stating my views on other methods.

In order that food is safe, it has to be prepared in different ways.

eg.

Fruit can be safely bottled/canned done  in a boiling water bath for the required amount of time  which depends on the type of fruit, it's density and the size of the jar. It does not need to be done in a pressure cooker, as there is plenty of acid in the fruit and it is low acid foods that cause the trouble.

Here is were I usually get myself into trouble.

Self sealing jars that pop down are not enough, the food has to be brought back to the boiling temperature it was when it went into the jar in order to kill bacteria.
Therefore jams and jellies and even pickles should go in a water bath.

Old jars with wax paper in my opinion are unsafe, even self sealing jars are not enough.

I just know I am headed for trouble here.

Tomatoes are on the border line of acidity, so they may be OK in a water bath or  maybe not, adding acid to the jar is a help but they still need sealing as above at least. If you add anything to the tomatoes which will reduce their acidity only a pressure canner is safe.

Meat, fish, veggies, savoury tomatoes, passatta if anything is added have to be pressure canned.

You could boil till the cows come home and the water will not get any hotter than boiling, it simply cannot.

Ovens will not penetrate so that is dangerous.

So, back to pressure.

In order to kill the micro organisms that produce spoilage, you have to take the contents of the jars to a much higher temperature than boiling, and you have to hold it there for some considerable time,pressure canning gives you that heat and also the control.. However...In order to be sure that you are at the heat you want, your pressure canner needs a dial which will accurately show variations. If you just use a weight that jiggles , it says when a gentle hissing is coming out it is at temperature, this is iffy, so I follow the US rules and just simple don't do it.


The  Kuhn says you can bottle in it, but the pressure is noted by a series of red lines and I don't think it is accurate enough. It does not suggest you do veggies and  meats anyway, just fruits and jams etc.


The Kuhn will for eg take a chicken down to fully cooked in about 15 minutes, it will make stock out of bones etc in  a very short time, I use it for stews etc or soups that would need long slow cooking. I can send you a copy od the booklet along with the on from the US canner if that would help.

People in the US just don't use the wax circle, in fact I don't think you can buy them, canning is very popular over there but almost everybody follows the rules put out by the equivalent of our Ministry of Ag.

I always hear people say things like, I have done it for years and  they have with no problems but  keeping up to date with modern methods in light of changes in veggies etc is important.

You won't die from jam that has mold on it from being poorly sealed but it can make you ill. You can die from botulism from improperly sealed low acid foods though and it does happen.

PersonallyI like to keep up to date and gradually the methods I am quoting are now being adopted here, but it difficult.

I used to can about 200 pounds of salmon each season and I needed to be sure what I was doing was OK.

I would advise you to read what you can , both sided of the coin and make up your own mind.

May I ask why you wanted to buy a pressure cooker? Let me know if you would like the booklets.

Oh, I bet I am in trouble now, bear in mind this is not my opinion, it is from governement sources , US ones.

XX Jeannine

[jennym]

Thanks for that info. I do know about the dangers of improper food storage (make jams & chutneys in very large volumes) but have never used a pressure cooker. Are you saying that the Kuhn cooker that you have does not have a pressure gauge on it that shows the actual pressure inside?

I know I need stainless steel, and need to have an accurate pressure reading so that I can get good repeatability. Anyone know of anything that meets this criteria on the market?

[Jeannine]

I would consider havin a presto canner shipped over from the US, it is not as bad as it souns,I think with canner and the shipping which was about the same price it cost me about £9O, I will try to find you alink XX Jeannine

[Lauren S]

Jeannine, thanks for all the info on canning.
I too am a huge fan of pressure cookers. My first was a high dome prestige with a 25yr guarantee...lasted 28 yrs used daily even took it camping in Europe many times (saved gas).
I would like to see pictures of the American canner you recommend Jeanine please, so I know I'm buying the correct one.
Lauren  :)

[Jeannine]

Elle Ess. go to e bay, tap in Presto 23 quart canner, you will get several International sellers coming up.The one I bought my last one with is not there but you will see good descriptions  and pictures there.Currently at the rate of x change you would pay about £115 for one including the postage. I think that is still a very good buy, but be careful on e bay. There will be other companies that will send one. I can check out a couple of safe stores I deal with to see if they have them.

Also go to

               http://www.uga.edu.nchfp/publications/publications_usda.html


On here you can download or print a complete copy of the USDA regs regarding canning. Note you need the revised 1994 one, anything before that is now no longer considered safe.

If you Pm me I will send yo a copy of the booklet that comes with the Presto.

Presto also have a website showing the differnt sizes of canners .

        http://www.gopresto.com

Contact me if I can help you further

[Jeannine]

I need to add something I thought I had written earlier.

It is  not impossible to can in a weighted pressure cooker but allowances have to be made for people who are above sea level, this is what makes them iffy unless you are absolutely sure.I  don't think I made this clear.

Sorry Jeannine

[Lauren S]

Thanks Jeannine.
Will take a look at the Ebay site etc.
I'm only just above sea level so a decent canner to be safe is a must.
Lauren

[jennym]

Returning to previous points raised:
Jeannine - does the Kuhn cooker you have, have gauge lines or a dial gauge? Would you be so good as to let me know the model number.
Is the Presto cooker aluminium? I can't find any Presto cooker that is stainless steel.

Does anyone else out there have a stainless steel pressure cooker with a dial gauge?

[Jeannine]

Lauren, thete is  Us e bayer with the Presto on at the moment, his name is irwilley..he has the pressure cooker on a BUY IT NOW for $77.50 that is £39.05

I e mailed him earlier to ask about shipping to the UK, he has just e amiled me back $74, that is about £38. Together this cooker would cost you £75, that is about what   I paid and about £20 under everybody elses price. He has an excellent feedback too.

If you are serious about getting one I would  take a look . They don't make them here. This is a very big canner.

The item number is 220116858477

XX Jeannine

[Lauren S]

Jeanine you're a *STAR*.
Thank you for taking the time to look for me, appreciate that.
Lauren :)

[Jeannine]

My Kuhn which  is stainless steel has red  gauge lines. My Presto is aluminium, it has the gauge. I don't mind the aluminium one that one as I never actually put food in it just jars, and I find it does get a chalky interior like a kettle in hard water areas from boiling jars. My Langostina has a weight. John os trying o do picture as we speak do stay put a while if you can

[Jeannine]

Some photograhs


The first one oi the Langostina, I have shown it with it unsealed, you can see how the lid goes inside the pot. Stainlees steel hold 10 litres

[Jeannine]

Another picture This the Presto aluminium 23 quart US canner, this is the one I use for prssure canning when preserving foods.It holds 7 quart Jars, or 20 pint jars,or 24 hals pint jars. I can can veggies.meat and even fish in this one, Stock number 01781.  it nicelt fits into a 15 inch x 14 inch box. which will give you it height which is about 16 inches when the dial is screwed on.


Hope these picture help XX Jeannine

[Jeannine]

This is the Kuhn Rikon 7 litre stainless steel swiss made excellent for all round cooking,silent in use. Model numberKR 3344

[Jeannine]

The ring lines on the Kuan Rikon 1 line is 10 pounds 2 lines is 20 pound

[Lauren S]

Thanks Jeannine, much clearer understanding with the pics.
Lauren :)

[Jeannine]

Sorry the second ring above should read 15 not 20 pounds XX Jeannine