Kuhn RikonStainless Steel Duromatic Saucepan Pressure Cooker 5 Quart, Silver

I've gone through 4 or 5 pressure cookers in the last 10 years, and I think I've finally found one I like. I work full time (40-60 hours a week), and I like to cook, so the time saved by pressure cooking is important to me. I use the pressure cooker mostly for meat, potatoes, beans and lentils. Typically, meat cooks in about 1/3 the time it would take in a regular pot. Pressure cooked meat is very tender and flavorful, but you need some experience in matching the cooking time to the type of meat. You have to be careful not to overcook.The construction and finish of this cooker are excellent. It is made of stainless steel, with a thick aluminum plate at the bottom to spread the heat. This is a useful feature. Typically, pressure cooking requires high heat initially to quickly build up steam pressure before you turn the heat down. That is when food can burn and stick to the bottom of the cooker. This cooker spreads heat very well. So long as you use the prescribed amount of water or other cooking liquid, this cooker will not burn food at the bottom.There is a two-level steam pressure indicator on the lid. The cooker comes with two booklets containing recipes, and a very comprehensive list of recommended cooking times for all sorts of meats, poultry, vegetables, beans, etc. If you follow directions, the cooker does not whistle or otherwise make any objectionable sounds. I can barely hear it from 10 feet away. Of course, if you forget to turn down the heat after the cooker is up to full cooking pressure, it will release a loud burst of steam. This is a safety feature.The cooker has a shield on top of the lid to direct any escaping steam downwards, so there is no danger of burning your hands.Kuhn-Rikon recommends using nylon spatulas to maintain the mirror-like finish, but you'll find them sadly inadequate when, for example, browning meat. I use a heavy gauge steel Calphalon spatula and steel tongs. After several months, I can see minor scratch marks inside the cooker, but the outside is still bright and shiny! Anyway, cookware should be designed to take this kind of handling -- it is meant to be useful rather than decorative. Stainless steel is the best material to withstand normal levels of use and abuse, and this cooker handles it well.Keep in mind that a pressure cooker can't be filled to the top when cooking. It should never be more than half or two-thirds full, so the 5 liter capacity translates to about 2.5-3.0 liters of usable capacity. If you cook large quantities, you might want to get a bigger model.This is a relatively expensive cooker, but it is well worth the money.

Update: December 2010Very happy with this purchase. Use it ~5 times a week. Lentils/ Beans - the only way to cook them is in a pressure cooker. I can't believe I managed w/o one all this time. The size has worked out well for 2 people. Allows for leftovers and cleans very nicely. Upgraded review to 5 stars (from 4).***************************************************************September 2010Very new to using a pressure cooker. After much thought and vacillation we settled on the Kuhn Rikon 5L duromatic inox (name of the pressure valve used) pressure cooker. The Kuhn Rikon best seller based on their website!There is another model with the same capacity with a top lid that is slightly different called the Top Model. The valve on the top is a bit more elaborate but both models seem to have all the same features. The Top Model has a valve on the top that is almost like a stove burner knob and you dial in the setting. On the model we bought, the duromatic, you have to press the little knob on the top to release pressure. Given that this has been around for a while I think it may be a bit sturdier than the top model (just a thought - not based on any data!).For two people the 5L size is ample. We recently became vegetarians and cooking beans/ lentils in a stockpot is a day long affair. I had soaked chickpeas for 15 hours and then I cooked them in a 5 qt stockpot on the stove top. After 3.5 hours they were still somewhat crunchy.Soaked 1.5 cups of chickpeas for ~15h and it took 18 minutes to cook in the pressure cooker. Took another 20 minutes for the pot to cool down before I opened it. I could have pressed the pressure release valve on the top to hurry up the process of depressurizing but I was getting other stuff together and so waiting another 20 min. was not a big deal. The stockpot version had a lot of chickpeas losing their skin and splitting. With the pressure cooker the consistency turned out perfectly.This particular cooker comes with a trivet, which sits on the bottom of the pot and allows the food to be off the bottom of the pan, preventing it from burning. I wish they included a steamer set. This is something you can see on their website in Switzerland (KuhnRikon.ch) but is not sold in the U.S.A.! Item # 2002. I spoke to them and got no conclusive reason as to why they wouldn't sell it here. One cannot even buy this from the swiss website !! They look like stackable cake pans each with a diameter of 22 cm. If one wants to cook rice/ multiple veggies altogether, this would be invaluable. You use one container for each item, stack them and fire up the pressure cooker. Anyway, so I need to find something that will work. Kuhn Rikon suggested Williams Sonoma! I feel this would be a very useful accessory to have and it is a shame that they make it but won't sell it here!In trying to find the steamer I called up Shar's kitchen (their authorized dealer in the U.S.) and wished I had bought the pressure cooker there. Here's why - the pressure cooker has a base (5L) and a lid with the valve. When cooking you first bring the contents to boil on the stove top and once you see it starting to boil you cover it with the pressure cooker lid. So before you put the pressure cooker lid on your pot sits there with no lid. Apparently Kuhn-rikon sells tempered glass lids that fit the pressure cookers perfectly and Shar's kitchen often runs specials and will sell the glass lid, (with the purchase of a pressure cooker) for 50% off. I ended up paying $30 bucks and ordered the lid. The pressure cooker lid (with the valves) needs to be hand washed and so I want to use it only to bring up the pressure and avoid getting food on it. The glass lid will get used as the ingredients are going into the pot and any mess I make splattering stuff on the glass lid is taken care of by the dishwasher.The mechanics of how the valve works:After the contents in the pot begin to boil you put the pressure cooker lid on. On our larger burner (20,000 btu) after about 3 minutes the black stem on the pressure cooker lid moved upwards and a red line became visible. After an additional 1 minute the black stem kept moving upwards and a second red line was visible. This is the high setting for the pressure cooker. I turned the burner down to a 4 for about 1 minute and then to low for the remaining time (~13 minutes). The cooker is very quiet. No hissing or steam release at all. Once the 18 minutes were up I turned off the stove and let it sit for 20 minutes. If I had wanted to let the steam out manually I could have pressed the stem with the markers down a bit and this would have let out the steam from inside the pressure cooker.The pressure cooker lid with the gasket remained very clean at the end of my first cooking endeavor and I hand washed it lightly with some soap. Very nice product! I hope this helps clarify any thoughts concerns you may have!

I deliberately went searching for a modern pressure cooker, partly because every Vegan cookbook that I own considers it a "must have". I also have fond memories of the delicious meals that my Mom and Grandmother cooked in years past, but the older styles scared me with their sputtering and pressure releases. I was always somewhat afraid I would end up with pot roast on my ceiling... The Kuhn Rikon 5-Liter Stainless Steel Pressure Cooker is a dream come true. The 5-Liter size is adequate for a small family or if cooking just for one or two people. It is easy to regulate the cooking pressure with the gauge on the top and the user guide is actually user-friendly! Pressure cooking foods is somewhat of an art, I believe, so it does take a little bit of getting used to if you are not familiar with using a pressure cooker. I, personally, have not owned one and so there is a bit of a learning curve. But the measurement and timing guides for different foods are comprehensive and very easily understandable. The foods I have cooked came out just as expected in much shorter amounts of time than regular cooking methods. Plus, I like the fact that nutrients are sealed in and foods retain their moisture. The stainless steel pot and cover clean up easily. The engineering and design are beautiful and I am totally happy with this cooker. It is a most welcome addition to my kitchen!