So, as we start off this New Year, we made eating healthier one of the top priorities (as I'm sure many have). What always seemed to throw a wrench into the plan is the amount of TIME it takes to prepare everything! Well I'm happy to announce that, for once, there is a way to work towards such a goal and actually save time! Its called pressure cooking!
For those who know all about pressure cookers and are just looking for the operating pressures, I have good news for you! Unlike the previous version (the one with a red handle), the high pressure is now 14.5 psi and the low pressure is 10 psi per the manual. Previously, the max pressure was only 12 psi (low was 7 psi) and I know of at least one popular website that calls T-Fal out by name for having a lower than 'standard' 15 psi. I'd say 14.5 psi is pretty darn close! Theoretically, you should cook for 3.33% longer due to the 0.5 psi difference. That would be 1 minute for every 30 minutes. In reality, there are many other variables that make this negligible. Items that you cook for 30 minutes or more will usually have a larger time range anyway because of variables such as size and weight of the item (like a roast) and anything shorter than 30 minutes (most items) is a difference of literally seconds. I would be more concerned with the higher than 'standard' low pressure (as discussed further in my 'update' at the bottom).
For the rest of you who are new to pressure cooking, I found this model very easy to use. I did not encounter issues that others comment about on other cookers like difficulty of opening and closing or not being able to get up to full pressure. Everything is very well made and seemed to operate very straight forward and smooth. I will say that, being my first pressure cooker, it did take a little getting use to. I did not really know what to expect, but, now that I know a little more about it, I will point out a few things that come to mind to hopefully help demystify it a little:
- The manual says that for the first use, you should fill to the max line with water and cook at max pressure for 20 minutes and then do a quick release. I would do this as I think it helps to set up the valve. I say that because when heating up, the valve all of the sudden evacuated steam like a locomotive as if I had done a quick release, but I still had it set on the high setting. I was not expecting that so I immediately took it off the stove and ran cold water over the lid to cool it down. Upon inspection, the valve appeared OK, so I tried again. This time it gradually let some steam off and then maintained a lower stream that I would have expected the first time. I used it 4 times since and its gradual and operates as expected each time, so I think this was to somehow set it up. Either that or the valve was just stuck and some overpressure got it unstuck. Its still a good idea to do this to get familiar with it before actually trying to cook something.
- The pressure indication pin is located in the hole on the handle and will not allow the unit to pressurize unless you have the latch locked. When there is pressure, the pin will raise up to be flush with the top of the handle and its red so you can see it easier. Note that this does not mean that you are up to your pressure setting. You must visually/audibly have steam coming out of the top of the valve. All the pin tells you is that the unit is still under pressure and you should not open it.
- When you look at cook times, keep in mind that this is not the total time that you will be preparing an item. There is the time to reach full pressure and then the time to let it naturally release (if that's what the recipe calls for). So, for some black beans that I made, while the cook time was only 4-6 minutes, it took about 15 minutes to heat up and another 15 minutes to cool down. Granted, it would still take over 1 1/2 hours cooking them in an open pot, so I've still saved a ton of time and the beans turned out great!
For a great list of cooking times for a variety of things, check out the Hip Pressure Cooking web page (google "hip pressure cooking times") which will give you a great place to start for so many different items. Miss Vickie also has a great site with a lot of information.
As part of our resolution, we plan to cook a lot of beans. One side benefit that I discovered is that pressure cooking helps to deactivate the lectins in beans. Google lectins to read more about why you don't want to be consuming them, but it turns out that stove top cooking may not deactivate all of them and a slow cooker may not deactivate ANY of them! If you are a bean eater, pressure cooking is the way to go!
To clarify what you will be getting, the pot and lid is as pictured except my valve knob is orange (the pic at the time of review shows grey). You will also receive a steaming basket and stand. As I learn more about this wonderful new kitchen gadget, I'll come back to update this review. If anyone has any great knowledge or resources that you want to share about pressure cooking, please leave me a comment. Thanks for reading and happy cooking!
UPDATE 1:
After using it a bit longer now, I've had a chance to try out the low pressure setting. This is best for vegetables and hard boiling eggs. When looking at cooking times for vegetables on 'low', they typically refer to a pressure of around 7-8 psi. With this low pressure setting being 10 psi, you should cook for a slightly shorter time (~20% less) so that your vegetables don't over cook since vegetables are particularly sensitive to cook times or they can become mushy. For doing eggs, I was concerned that 10 psi would be too high (on high setting of 15 psi, I've read the eggs could crack), but it turns out to work perfectly! I have never in my life pealed a boiled egg so easily! Just make sure there are no cracks already forming on any of the eggs. One of mine did, but I tried it anyway and it pushed the yolk out through the crack and it cooked to the outside of the shell! It was quite artistic, but not something I would eat.... haha! You should be able to fit a dozen eggs in the included basket, fill with water to below the basket (do not submerge), cook for 5 minutes and do a natural release. Back to more pressure cooking adventures!
UPDATE 2:
After 2 years of use (average once a week), its still going strong. Every now and then, I'll have to readjust the lid to get it to start pressurizing, but the gasket hasn't failed yet. In case you need to eventually replace the gasket, you can find it here: T-fal X90101 Seal Secure 5 Gasket. If you have a few extra bucks to spend, I'd recommend picking one up in case they no longer offer the gasket in the future. If the gasket goes and you cannot find a replacement, the pressure cooker becomes useless.
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If you have a favorite pressure cooker dish, please share in the comments! [...]
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The gauge is different than pictured.
UPDATE 10/31/24 After some months of use I think I am comfortable now saying this pressure canner is easier to use than others in that, it automatically trys to hold at the pressure it is set to. Not that I don't adjust my heat levels, but I think this does most of the heavy lifting there for me. 1 is 5 psi, 2 is 10 psi, and 3 is 15 psi. This canner has worked well for me and holds a lot of pints. I can fit 14 pints in one batch, which is really helpful when you are doing large batches of things.Also, there is a water line marked on the canner, which I completely disregard. If you fill it up that far your jars might tip over... you only need a couple inches in the bottom.Another tip if you don't can... put some vinegar in the water. Helps reduce staining on the inner walls.--------------------ORIGINAL REVIEW:I am new to canning, and I was expecting the PSI gauge pictured, but instead I got a 1-2-3 system. The photos on the listing also seem to contradict the book. Veggies are setting 1 in the image, but the book says setting 2 or 3 depending on altitude. Also the processing time in the included manual is different than my cookbook says. (for instance, Green beans the manual says 75 minutes on setting 2 for my altitude, but my cookbook and internet say 20 minutes on 15 PSI - which I don't know what setting that means) For this reason I am knocking a star off because it's going to take me more time to learn this and I might ruin a few batches of food trying to learn.This is a very large canner, and the price was right though.
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