The 5 best pressure cookers this year, according to food experts
We consulted chefs, cookbook authors and an MD on what to consider before buying a pressure cooker.
Hanna Horvath
Hanna Horvath
This six-quart pressure cooker has nine cooking settings, including slow cook, stews and soups, rice, red meat, poultry, steaming, beans and searing. The model comes with a Keep Warm feature and Delay Cooking feature to match your eating time. The LED screen shows how much cook time is left, and has a safety release valve on the lid to release pressure. The inner pod and lid are dishwasher-safe.
This model has a built-in air fryer and nine basic pressure cooker settings, including steaming, slow cooking and searing. The Food Ninja has 14 safety features and the inner nonstick pot is easy to wash. This model also comes in multiple sizes, ranging from five to eight quarts. The LED screen shows cook time and temperature in the pot, allowing users to more easily adjust settings while cooking.
One of the most well-known pressure cooking brands, Instant Pot has many models to choose from, ranging in features and price. The Duo is a standard electric pressure cooker and slow cooker, with special functions for rice, sauteed food, porridge, soup, stews and yogurt. The Keep Warm function can keep food hot before eating and the Delay Start function can set a future cooking time up to 24 hours ahead. This model comes in four sizes — three, six, eight and 10 quarts — and the inner lid and pot are microwave-safe for easy cleanup.
This stovetop pressure cooker is sleekly designed and has two pressure settings, high and low. It has an automatic locking handle to prevent steam release and comes in four sizes, ranging from 4.2 quarts to 10 quarts. The cooker performs on both gas and electric stoves and comes with a steaming basket.
Pressure cookers may have previously conjured up images of soup exploding all over the kitchen or burns caused by the steam, but modern pressures cookers are much more safe. Schieving explained that recent models have features like automatic pressure control to prevent over-pressurisation, a lid lock feature to prevent opening under pressure and automatic temperature detection to regulate heat.
“They can almost function as a mini-kitchen,” she said. “And since the pandemic has required people to cook more than ever, it’s not surprising that they might have become even more popular.”
When shopping for a pressure cooker, pay attention to its size and your available kitchen space, as well as its price and additional features, noted Schieving. Pressure cookers aren’t very compact and might require substantial counter or cupboard space. Evaluate your kitchen storage situation and how much food you plan to make.
While most pressure cookers perform similarly and have the same safety features, many come with additional features that cost more.
Some are multi-cookers and can be used as a slow cooker or pressure cooker, depending on what you’re making. Others even combine air frying and pressure cooking into the one model.
Some pressure cookers equip preset functions to simplify cooking rice, chicken, chili, stew or sauteed food. If you regularly cook a certain dish, look out for a button for that specific food, said Schieving. Not sure how many pre-set functions you need? Think about how many microwave settings you use, said Schieving. If you typically don’t use the preset microwave buttons, you probably won’t use the preset buttons on your pressure cooker either. Most users opt for the regular “Pressure Cook” button, said Sakai.
Higher-end pressure cookers also sport LCD screens that give you information on what’s going on inside the pot, including cook time and temperature.
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