I have finally decided to bite the bullet and look into getting a pressure cooker, as their use features so often in Mamta's recipes.

Admittedly as a kid I was petrified of them - my Aunt (a brilliant cook) was always using one but I refused to go into her kitchen, scared with all the hissing, whistling and wobbling of the thing on the top that the whole apparatus was about to explode!!

Any thing I should look out for or are they all pretty much industry standard? Do they work OK on solid electric hobs? Sorry I am a complete novice!

Perhaps any recommendations could be put on Mamta's new shiny Amazon pages?

Hi Winton!

:)

I don't think the model mum has is available any more, hence we haven't yet put one into the store, as we need to look at which one to recommend.

However, if you do choose one from Amazon yourself, based on reviews, you can still support the site by ensuring that you click through to Amazon via our store and make the purchase during that same single session visit.

I think, if I've understood correctly, we still get referral but not entirely sure, as this is all very new to us!

Mum uses pressure cooker a lot, though Pete and I don't have one.

We just don't have space and we decided we wanted a slow cooker more!

:)

Kavey

The pressure cooker is one of the best kitchen things that I ever bought and I use it about 4?5 times a week.

With most modern pressure cookers you have two pressure settings, 8psi and 12 psi, although some just come with the one pressure setting. I'm told that pressure cookers at the lower end of the price range (such as prestige - which is what I have) only reach 12psi, however, there are some better makes (more expensive) available that can reach 15psi. It also depends on your location too, because the higher above sea level you are the lower the boiling point of water - I'm guessing this is why pressure cookers are really popular in Switzerland...

The one that I own is a 6 ltr prestige and I've had it just over a year - so far it's on its third gasket. I'm thinking of getting the 5 ltr aluminium prestige (that I saw in Macro) because the gaskets for it are available in most hardware stores. When I have to buy a new gasket for the one I have now it costs more money and for some reason they don't last long at all.

If there are particular models that our users can strongly recommend maybe we can put those on our amazon store. let me know.

I have following pressure cookers;

1. http://www.amazon.co.uk/PRESSURE-COOKER-839-SMALLER-HOUSEHOLDS/dp/B002TQVEGM/ref=sr_1_29?ie=UTF8&s=kitchen&qid=1258469922&sr=8-29 Mine is Hawkins, but identical

2. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Prestige-Hi-Dome-Pressure-Cooker/dp/B0000AKLIJ/ref=sr_1_35?ie=UTF8&s=kitchen&qid=1258469948&sr=8-35v Prestige High dome, stailess steel.

3. http://www.vct-electronics.amazonwebstore.com/Futura-by-Hawkins-Hard-Anodized-5.0/M/B000GR7776.htm Futura 5 L

4. http://www.fiera.co.uk/Product/7-ltr-futura-cooker.aspx Futura 7 Litre

5. http://www.amazon.com/Prestige-Deluxe-Stainless-Pressure-Cooker/dp/B000UZOHPE stainless steel, pan pressure cooker like this one, but with less height, just like a pan really ,

And, I use all of them.

Sorry, but can't get the links to work!

Thanks all for your kind advice. Also surfing around I didn't realise 'the pressure cooker' is becoming the essential "retro" piece of kit for your kitchen!

'Tower' and 'Prestige' seem to be the most availably brands available - I didn't know know you might need to buy spares afterwards (naively thinking they just came with a lifetime guarantee) so perhaps Prestige, although a little more expensive, could be the best option.

Mamta - you seem to have a veritable army of pressure cookers! Kavey, was given a slow cooker years back (far too large for my requirements) that it is just gathering dust. So making the change! Fast v Slow?, Slow v Fast? - will report back with any more conclusions!

You can cook small amount of food in a large slow cooker. If you don't have the book anymore, there are hundreds of recipes on the web. It makes a mean rice pudding and lovely casseroles.

Slow cooked casserole type of meats do taste better than fast cooked ones.

I've added those pressure cookers recommended by Mamta to our Amazon stores, in case you feel like treating yourself to an early Christmas present :)

Oops hit the wrong button , will start again as I just have to have my say about pressure cookers.

Wonderful cooking implement. Buy the cheapest cuts and in next to now time one has a nutritious, flavoursome meal or to make something really quick, so easy:)

I too used to be terrified of them as a kid. Mum used hers just about every day all those years ago. Was determined to bite the bullet and just learn to use it, cos even though hers would shake, rattle and roll it never blew completely.

Now I do all sorts in it. Mine is made by ScanPan and was a real cheapie one year in the post Christmas sales.

Soups, casseroles, dahl, curry, use the steamer for fish or veg ( 3-5 minutes), even a semi roast.....

I usually do not get home from work much before 6.30, so I hit the pots and pans (or should I say pressure cooker) as soon as I walk in the door. Meal is ready by 7pm usually

Have thought about a slow cooker, but nah, will give that one a miss for now:)

cheers

June

Thanks June for your reassurance! I am convinced.

Sorry Mamta but my slow cooker has to go. It is over 14 inches in diameter (but seems a lot more in a small flat,) the instruction/recipe booklet is in Thai (even a Thai friend could not make head nor tail of it saying it was badly translated from yet another language!) and given its epic proportions actually has precious little depth. It will be going to a good home where I can borrow it back the few times a year I actually use it, as it makes a pretty good fool-proof paella.

Winton, don't throw it away, unless you have a pressure cooker. It is very useful. Instructions are not really needed and you can find them on the web anyway. Slowcooker cooks cheap cuts beautifully and makes curries without any effort, especially meat/chicken curries of poorer cuts of meat!

Dear Mamta,

The slow cooker is just going to a new home where it will be better used and appreciated. The idea of throwing away any culinary appliance is a complete anathema to me - like throwing a precious Ming vase out the window! I still use a pre WWII mincing machine as it makes far better mince than the the food processor (despite me having to crank the handle round!)

It is just making space for a new shiny prestige pressure cooker so when cooking I can pressure cook for ten minutes rather than boil for eighteen hours!!

LOL!

I actually had 3 or 4 pressure cookers but since a soup incident* years ago I've not used them for pressure cooking. They do however make great pans for all my cooking needs, stewing, boiling potatoes, making soups etc.

If you go for Prestige ones they aren't the original ones anymore (Presitge name was bought out when it closed) but they still seem to be the same dimensions and specs. If you can get one the best are the high dome ones and get stainless steel if available.

• making soup and it started to boil up rattling the weight on top, nudged the weight to seat it properly and it pushed it off ! This created a fountain of scalding superheated steamy soup which hit the ceiling and rained down fortunately missing me .... !

Steve

Thanks Steve - makes me concerned now I have ordered some sort of weapon of mass destruction! (But at least it is a stainless steel high-domed armament.)

When it arrives what's a good recipe for me to start with? I was thinking of one of Mamta's Dals.

If you follow the instructions, you will never have an accident. All the Indian people I know here in UK and all my extended family in India, which is huge, use it every single day, at least once, and I have never heard of anyone having an accident. Only time you have a chance of that is when you try to be 'clever' and do something silly. It is only steam under pressure afte all!

You must not over fill the pan, not leave it unattended and forget it 'on', on the cooker, try to open it while still hot nd make sure that your safety valve is not blocked, then you will be fine. Read the booklet on it's use carefully. Lot of information on the internet about it;

http://www.missvickie.com/workshop/safety.html

Mamta

The only accident that I've had was on the day I bought it. I decided to cook some green split peas and so I added the peas and the water, put the lid on, and brought the pan up to pressure - but I forgot that it was still on number 6, so as you can imagine, about 7 minutes later the ungrateful thing decided to spit out its peas all over the kitchen, cooker, and everywhere. I had to dismantle it after that and give it a good clean - my only problem with lentils is that they tend to clog up the safety valves from time to time.

Anyway, I want to buy the next size down from the one I have now, the only problem is that it's aluminium. Is there any issues with the aluminium pressure cookers, or aluminium cooking pans in general?

I think aluminium is okay as long as you don't cook acidic things in it. I do however cook curries with tomatoes in my one surviving aluminium pan sometimes. Most of mine have got replaced with stainless steel or anodised ones over the years.

May be Lapis can help here?

Mamta

Mine are Aluminium but I'd prefer stainless as its much better for cleaning etc ~(there was also another one of those nothing to report on news days, where they reported a possible connection between aluminium pans and diseases like Alzheimers !

Steve

Hasn't the link between aluminium pans and Alzheimers been generally discounted? Although scientists still argue about any casual link between the two, it is agreed that any contamination from using aluminium pans is so small compared to what is already contained in our food, tea, medications (and most things around us!)

Anyway our bodies should naturally expel any excess aluminium with the notable exception of kidney patients.

Probably Winton, like I said it was on a no news day...!

Steve

I read somewhere that eating plenty of fresh coriander leaves aids the body to expel excess metals within the body.

So most Indian are non-metalic ;-)!

... and less likely to set off Airport security detectors? LOL!

I't is suggested that a good consumption of fresh corriander leaves helps remove excess 'heavy metals' from our bodies. Perhaps a good meal with some sort of corriander pesto would be a good detox??

Someone bought me a 5L aluminium prestige pressure cooker from Makro* yesterday as a Christmas present, so I guess that I'm going to need all the coriander pesto I can get.

The only trouble is that I'm not allowed it until Christmas day - and no amount of begging is going to change that :-( I wouldn't mind but I don't even celebrate Christmas, I hate it. Surely there should be some leniency based on the fact that I don't celebrate Christmas.

*Sometimes Makro have some real bargains, yesterday I bought 1KG of fresh ginger for ?1.40 and 20 bulbs of fresh garlic for ?1.60.