Customer Reviews

Hawkins Stainless Steel 2.0 Litre Pressure Cooker

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Indian cooking becomes ridiculously easy with a pressure cooker - especially if you are planning on cooking lentils or beans. Not only do you save time, you also retain nutrients which can otherwise be destroyed when exposed to high heat for long periods of time.

Safety is virtually guaranteed with Hawkins' foolproof design - if the lid is not closed properly, the cooker just won't attain full pressure and so won't become dangerous; if there is even a little pressure remaining, the lid just won't be forced open. And if - this happened to me once - you put in too little water by mistake and the cooker boils dry, you are still okay thanks to a safety valve ingeniously placed just under the bar on the lid - so that when it opens up, the heat gets deflected away from you.

I have only used aluminum cookers, but the stainless steel ones are great too - if a little more expensive. Worth it if you want to avoid stains that can sometimes be a problem with aluminum cookers. I have three cookers in 2, 3.5 and 4.5 litre sizes. 2L is ideal if you're living alone and the 3.5 is just right for a two person family. I use the 4.5 when I cook for guests. I will still buy the 5L because it really is the most convenient size for an average family.

My only grouse with buying these cookers online is that you don't get accessories or replacement parts as easily as you can in Indian stores. After I blew out the safety valve in my 2L, I'm waiting for my next trip to India to get the lid fixed. Also, the 5L (and above) sizes become much more useful when you can use them with accessories like inserts - for multilevel cooking inside the cooker (cook two dishes in one go) and steamers - (for rice cakes etc.)

Bottom line - if you are planning on cooking Indian dishes, invest in a pressure cooker. Its versatile enough to cook pulses, vegetables and meats and will last you a lifetime!

I absolutely love my Hawkins pressure cooker.

The construction is top notch, a well engineered design that has the oval top lid actually under the top lip of the pot, sealing like the door of an airplane. It is impossible to open this cooker while still pressurized, making it a very safe cooker, in addition, as the lid doesn't twist on, like almost all other pressure cooker designs, the gasket isn't subjected to wear and it lasts a lot longer.

The bottom of the pot is a sandwich of stainless steel surrounding a thick aluminium insert for even heat distribution, a must if you're going to be frying before cooking under pressure. Oh yes, and this is one of the famous Indian whistling cookers. Once you get the measure of your cooktop and where to turn the heat down to after full pressure is built, the regular whistle steam release makes a very useful timer. You'll find many recipes from India using this timing method. A very fine cooker indeed, I highly recommend it.

It took a little time to get used to using this pressure cooker because my mother made sure to scare the dickens out of me when I was little. Now this is required in my kitchen almost daily since my husband is from India. We used to have all aluminum pressure cookers but I've been worried about aluminum getting in our food so when the old one needed replacing about a year ago I got this one. Sometimes if the lid isn't on exactly right a little steam will leak from the seal (aluminum cookers didn't have this problem) so I reposition the lid and it usually works the second time. It's great for cooking any kind of beans, rice, vegetables, chicken etc. that you would usually have to boil. One or two whistles for most veggies and chicken, twenty minutes or so for beans and dal (lentils). Much faster than boiling!

Just bought this and had absolutely no problem cooking with it- after reading the instructions and doing a test run. The basmati rice I cooked for dinner came out beautifully, following the directions from the accompanying cookbook. We have used several 4 and 5 L Aeternum pressure cookers over the years- but the size of the Hawkins 2 liter is just perfect for 2 people.

I really like the shape of this pot. It is different from Presto or Fagor, but it is worth getting used to. I'm very happy that I purchased it and can see using it every day.

I have purchased hundreds of things from amazon but for the first time this pressure cooker turned out to be defective.
The lid is leaking and the device does not develop pressure.it was completely worthless.
We have applied for refund and we are thinking of buying a different pressure cooker.I thought Hawkins was a reputable name however they proved us wrong ,by selling defective pieces online.From now on I will double check ,anything i buy from Hawkins..

it didn't work properly. Water and steam was coming out from around the valve. I've returned right after running the initial test.

This is an extremely unsatisfactory and dangerous product. The one I purchased was returned and my account was promptly credited by those great folks at Amazon. This cooker spews scalding food and steam on your cooktop, kitchen walls, and the chef despite following directions explicitly. Beware, do not purchase.