T-Fal Secure Stainless Steel Pressure Cooker, 6.3 Quart, Steam Basket, Induction, Secure Locking System, Easy and Safe Opening, Compatible with All Cooktops, Dishwasher Safe, Silver

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. . If you have a favorite pressure cooker dish, please share in the comments! [...]

It performs well.

I purchased this T-Fal Pressure Cooker about 14 months ago. I'm a busy single realtor and was looking for a cooker that is well built, dependable with fewer potential parts and no electronics. I am VERY happy with this cooker. Today I made an excellent lentil soup. With the unit nearly filled to the limit line it took about 10 minutes to come up to steam on high pressure setting. I know to set my stove timer for 10 minutes and am reminded when I hear the stove beeper that the cooker is there, or just about up to steam. Then I simply turn the stove top setting to Medium Low (about 3 on my stove) and set my stove timer again for about 18 minutes (for my lentil soup). Once my stove beeper sounds the alarm again, I simply leave the pressure cooker right where it is on the hot burner and turn the burner off. After about half an hour I carefully turn the 'pressure setting valve' to low and if no pressure exists at that setting, I'll turn the setting all the way down. If there is no pressure, then I can easily open the cooker. If there is still pressure then I turn the pressure setting valve to the next higher setting and give it another 5 or so minutes to cool. Once the pressure is completely relieved, then it's completely safe to open. Honestly, this is the BEST (and quickest) way to cook just about anything. By the way, if you're cooking meat, you can brown your meat just as you would in any frying pan. I'd rather cook in Stainless steel than any other material. Highly recommended!

Ok, the last time I saw a non-electric pressure cooker was at home when my Mom had one. This T-Fal ain't like your Mother's. I had bought maybe 15 years ago an electric pressure cooker. I liked it but the vent was hard to clean so that is why I wanted a non-electric pressure cooker; I like to use clean in my kitchen. So my husband read reviews and bought this T-Fal for me. We made broccoli soup the first night (even though we had barely any idea what we were doing). It was delicious and fast. I have spent two hours making the same thing in a regular pot. I looked up recipes on line and Harry read the directions. The next time I used it for sloppy joe, I followed a recipe in a pressure cooker cookbook but it burned on the bottom and the "pop-up" never did pop up. Don't know why. It tasted ok and again fast but that is why I gave this pressure cooker a "4" instead of a "5" stars. It is very easy and I feel safe using it. We also made a roast which was not as tender as I expected. We think next time we should cut the meat in big chunks instead of leaving it in one piece. The pop-up button popped when I used it for meat. It is also easy to clean. Directions say to soak it which we did (overnight-- remember the sloppy joe was burned on the bottom) and it is still shiny. The size my husband bought (6.3 qt.) is just right. It also has a "helper" handle on the other side that I like. This one also has two pressures so I can do vegetables and fish. Overall, I do feel I will be able to get the hang of using this pressure cooker. Just not overnight.

A modern design with little sound during cooking. Old designs were very noisy.

The quality is great and it save the lot of time and gas and it cooks the meet well

Very fast cooking time

Muy bonita y práctica olla de presión, confieso que les tenía miedo, pero los productos Tfal, se caracterizan por ser confiables y mi mamá, me insistía mucho para que me hiciera de una propia. Amé lo fácil y segura que es utilizarla, es mi primera olla de presión y llegó para quedarse. Me la entregaron antes de la fecha acordada, ya he cocinado en dos ocasiones con ella y si acaso se marcaron unos frijolitos en el fondo, pero nada de cuidado, se vé muy resistente y sólida. Gracias ñ.ñ

Principalement utilisé pour cuire mes légumes vapeur. Simple d'utilisation et possibilité de faire cuire des plats complets en un rien de temps. Parait robuste et de bonne qualité. A voir avec le temps.