Customer Reviews

Kuhn Rikon 2 1/2-Liter Stainless Steel Pressure Cooker

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

 

 

Right from the get-go this pressure frying pan worked great. I felt sort of on my own because there aren't a lot of pressure frying recipes out there. But I am an experienced pressure cooker user so I felt fairly confident jumping in. One of my favorites is slow-roasted tomatoes, 2 hours or so in the oven - 7 minutes in the PC frying and I couldn't tell the difference. A beautiful job of frying potatoes, 5 minutes prep, 2-3 minutes browning potatoes, 5 minutes PC and you're ready to go. In other words you can brown and pressure cook with oil with this pan and when you add water, you add a lot less than with a regular PC. it's a well-made unit which you would expect for the price.

Those are the pros, the cons:

Instruction book inferior like many from Europe. Almost nothing about the frying pan and I find some of the suggested times to be a bit off too. Recipe book mixes in a few frying pan recipes with regular PC recipes which makes them hard to find. They need a separate frying pan instruction book and separate recipes for FP.

There is a little safety valve which comes unattached to the top. Difficult to find clear instructions on how to attach and once attached has a tendency to fall off. Poor design.

because of 'dimpled' bottom of FPPC no trivet is included as with other KR PC's.( Dimpled bottom supposedly acts as a trivet.) But some of FP recipes call for a trivet so it should be included.

I've had my 2 1/2 qt. fry/braiser/pressure cooker for over 10 years and just now need to replace the spring and pressure regulator cap. It heats evenly. Never burned anything and cleans up in a snap.

I've had a the 2L model for four years, and never had to replace any parts. I left that one at my second home so I will never be without one, and just purchased this 2.5L here. What seems like a loose screw on top is a simple, responsive and sturdy pressure release valve. The plastic handles would only melt if one were using a flame that extends beyond the sides of the pan. By heating it up at medium heat and reducing it to extra low once full pressure is reached, the flame will be nowhere near the sides of the pan, especially on this wider 2.5L model. This takes only a couple of minutes so I see no need for a roaring flame. Dual handles allow you to move the pan while hot, or hold it to run cool water from the tap over the edges for immediate pressure release when desired. The base is very thick so there is no burning of contents. The steam inside reduces all sticking and the lid comes off quite clean. I have electric rice cookers but almost always use the Kuhn Rikon instead because it is much faster and the texture of the rice is better. Only 25 minutes for brown rice, 5 minutes for white.

I got this pressure cooker as part of a set over 10 years ago, but this is the piece I use most frequently; usually several times a week. I hesitated paying so much for a pressure cooker, but I would definitely buy it again. Over the years I've replaced the rubber seal and the pressure spring-seal. I usually cook for one or two and it's the perfect size for one pot meals with enough leftovers for lunch the next day.

We have had a 5.25 qt Kuhn Rikon pressure cooker for 4 years, for daily use that one was a bit big to handle. We were looking for a smaller 2.5 to 4 qt pressure cooker for quick one time portion meals for 3- 4 people. We tried other brands, both for money savings and variety, and after being disappointed with the construction and quality returned them promptly. We decided to plunge again into Kuhn Rikon, ordered this 2.5 qt Pressure Cooker. Wife is happy - appropriate for small, quick meals, is easy to handle, clean, and store. It feels and looks solidly constructed which makes it slightly on the heavier side for it's size.

If you are already familiar with pressure cooking then Kuhn Rikon is the best in class, and if you are already aware of Kuhn Rikon, there is nothing more to add. If the size is right for you, it will serve many, many years.

Because of the really high cost and all the hype the about these pans you would think they were constructed out of gold. But they aren't. The gasket material is fragile, The fit is not very good and the handles don't even have metal inserts where they attach to the lid. (the heat differential between the lid and handle causes movement and stress the pulls the screws out of the handle and because the material crumbles you require a new handle at $16 plus shipping every 2 years of regular use or so. The lousy lid screws just self tap into the bakelite handle which almost guarantees they will fail. The other pressure cookers I own like the Fagor do have inserts and the lid handle has never failed on that cooker. I am on my second handle in 4 years with the Kuhn Rikon.
Other things that failed on this pan were the top finishing plate (plastic snap on fitting broke), and the gasket twice (KH says this is normal).
Looking on the web one can see I am not alone. There are handles, gaskets, and spare parts in many sites. They are not cheap either. I guess the steel used in the pot is OK It has never failed but it seems every thing else has in the four years I have used this. Comparing it to the 5L Fagor which I use for large meals probably more often than the KR, the engineering in the KH is really inferior. The score for maintenance over 4 years is Fagor $0.00 vs Kuhn Rikon $80. You'd think the Swiss could design something better. This is my last KH product. The Fagor line is 1/3 the price.