What Are The Best Pressure Cookers in India (2023)
Have you been using your pressure cooker for a long time, and now it’s started acting up? Has it stopped whistling off its pressure or whistles at will? Does it release the pressure frequently from relief valve? Has it lost stability due to bulging bottom?
Well, these are the signs that indicate that it needs to be retired from service, and a new pressure cooker needs to take its place. If you agree with us in this, then we’ll request you to go a step further and check out the list of pressure cookers that we have reviewed especially for you.
For this review, we have tried & tested several pressure cookwares from various brands. Taking into consideration their built quality, material used, cooking performance and other aspects, we have picked some of the best pressure cookware in India.
Criteria for Selection of Best Pressure Cookers
Most of the part, pressure cooker is not a mechanical device. It is only if it is electrical and connects with the Internet for purposes having to do with cooking. Therefore, there are few things that need to be considered before you buy one for you. Here…
- Size or capacity
- Shape
- Inner or outer lid mechanism
- Materials used in its make
- Safety features
- Traditional or smart cooker
- Brand
- Price
- Customer reviews &
- Warranty period
Best Pressure Cookers in India
1. Hawkins F40 Induction Base Aluminum Pressure Cooker, 3L, Black
Specifications:
- Induction compatible
- Available in different capacities ranging up to 6 litres
- 46% faster cooking than a microwave oven
- Fingertip steam release
- Hard anodized body and lid material
- 35mm gauge
- Can be used for multiple purposes
- 5 years warranty on product
There is a marked similarity between Hawkins F40 and F41 when it comes to shape. F40 shows a minor difference in gauge (6.35mm) and the usage of hard anodized body and lid material in its make.
In order to know in detail about its mechanism, kindly go through the review of the F41. There is at least one flaw in its design and it is the absence of short handle on the other side of the longer one. It was needed. But since it is not there, you will have to be more careful in handling it.
If you find it heavy to lift with one hand, then you either have to use pot-holder along with its handle or use both your hands to move it.
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2. Instant Pot Duo 7-in-1 Electric Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Steamer, Saute, Yogurt Maker, and Warmer, 5.7L, 14 One-Touch Programs
Specifications:
- Serves 7 functions including pressure cooker, sauté pan, steamer, slow cooker, rice cooker, food warmer, yogurt maker
- Featuring pot app allowing you to access 1000+ recipes online, tips, etc
- 14 cooking programs including soup, meat/stew, dal/bean, chicken, slow cook, sauté, rice, multigrain, oat-meal, steam/idli, yogurt, manual & pressure cooker
- Keep warm feature
- More than 10 safety features
- 1000W
- Stainless steel pot with stainless steel steamer rack along with 5.7L capacity stainless steel cooking pot
- LCD screen for showing cooking progress
Instant Pot Duo is different from other products that are reviewed here. It is electric and can be connected to the Internet via the pot app that you can download from Play Store or App Store.
In places where gas cylinders are in short supply or is not available for whatever reasons, having something that you can plug into the source of electricity anywhere in your house may prove extremely handy.
One of the unique selling points of this cooker is certainly the embedded microprocessor that perfectly maintains temperature and regulates pressure. It enables it to perform flawlessly in any of the 7 functions that it is designed to perform. As it is, each of these 7 functions requires specific temperature. If it were to be done manually, we cannot expect to achieve the kind of results that we get when the entire operation is precision controlled by the microprocessor.
The task of a user is further eased by introducing 14 cooking programs. These cooking programs include soup, meat/stew, dal/bean, chicken, slow cook, sauté, rice, multigrain, oat-meal, steam/idli, yogurt, manual and pressure cooker. If you want to cook any of these items, then all you have to do is to press a dedicated button for it. Just a press of a button and you forget it. It will cook of itself and when cooking is done, will automatically switch off. You can manually set time of your own for whatever mode of cooking you want to use. By the way, the timer function of this device allows you to delay cooking by 24 hours.
Not just that! You have a pot app to tap into the internet resources regarding the recipes that you can make with this stand-alone cooker, allowing you to access not only more than a thousand recipes but also some extremely useful tips.
It would be a little dissatisfying if we’d leave this review without talking about the advantage that its shape and mechanism offer. Suppose if you pressure cook, you are sure not to expect the inner content coming out of the pressure cooker and spilling on your cook top. And, suppose if the cooking is done and you don’t want to wait till the pressure is released gradually, then there is a quick release function for the purpose.
Similarly, if you sauté anything using the sauté mode, then the height of the wall of the inner vessel will not allow minutest globules to escape it and settle down on your cook top. It keeps your kitchen clean.
Finally, it has as many as 10 safety features. Guess what! You don’t need more than that.
To make a long story short, Instant Pot Duo is the best in the class that is available in Indian market.
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3. Hawkins Stainless Steel Pressure Cooker with 12 Idli Stand, 5-Litre
Specifications:
- Steel body
- Inner lid
- 4-pieces idly plate having 3 moulds each
- Compatible with induction cook top
- Tall 5-Litre pressure cooker
This Hawkins Classic pressure cooker comes with a set of 4 idli plates each having 3 moulds, enabling you to use it to prepare idli at home, making 12 idlis at one go. And, just consider! It cooks 12 idlis in just six minutes! It’s an indicator of how well it uses the energy. The pressure that builds inside is also well regulated with a pressure regulator.
It has inner lid which is one of the characteristic elements in the products designed by Hawkins. Its mechanism is such that its gasket lasts longer than the gasket of outer lid cookers, and it is pressure locked.
Some people are not comfortable with it when it comes to closing the pressure cooker lid. That’s the reason why they don’t buy it; otherwise, as far as, its performance goes, it’s unbeatable.
Made from food grade stainless steel, its base has 5.81 mm thickness which ensures uniform heating. It is compatible with induction as well as gas stoves. Hawkins offers 5-year warranty on this pressure cooker.
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4. Pigeon by Stovekraft All in One Ceramic Super Cooker, 5 Liters, Black/Transparent
Specifications:
- Hard anodized aluminum material
- Induction base
- 5L capacity
- Outer lid type
- 3 lids including straining, serving and pressure cooking lids
- Short handles for easy handling
- Dishwasher safe
- 5 years warranty covering manufacturing defect
This offering from Stovekraft is one of the most cost-effective products that come in 5 litres capacity. It is made from anodized aluminum and is induction friendly. It is coated from inside with ceramic non-stick material. Because it is ceramic, it poses no risk to your health.
It impresses us by its handi shape, two short handles, and 3 different lids. One of the lids is for straining, another for serving and still another for pressure cooking. All three lids are outer lids.
The lid that can be used as a strainer is, in fact, a much needed facility in cookware but is missing in the offerings of other brands. This way of raising user awareness about his/her requirements through such innovative designs is something that grabs customers’ attention to the brand that offers it. This inclusion of strainer is one such thing. There are many Indian recipes that require it. Straining water from biryani rice is the most obvious example that comes to our mind.
Generally, you boil rice in a pot to half-cook it, and either use colander or a perforated dish to drain water from the rice. But in order to strain water with perforated dish you have to use pot-holders, which is neither easy nor risk-free. Even if you use kitchen pincers for holding and tilting it over colander, it is not quite comfortable; because the pot containing rice and water is quite heavy.
But if you have such a simple mechanism like perforated outer lid for the purpose, the task of straining is rendered absolutely hassle-free with the two short handles that it has.
The lid that is used for pressure cooking has metallic safety plug that releases extra pressure that may sometime build up inside. And the glass lid is given in order to turn the cooker into a serving bowl that you can place on your dinner table.
Finally, the product comes with 5 years warranty. It’s durable…
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5. Hawkins F-41 Induction Base Stainless Steel Pressure Cooker, 4L, Silver
Specifications:
- 18Cr/8Ni AISI 304 food grade stainless steel body and lid
- 7 mm gauge of the base
- Anti bulge base
- Allows for light or deep frying before pressure cooking
- Induction models available in 4 litres and 5.5 litres
- 5 years warranty on product
Hawkins F41 induction aluminum pressure cooker has a truly innovative design, and you cannot fail to grasp the difference at a glance. It earned the brand the honor to have its product displayed by the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
It has 3 litres capacity but more choices of size are available in this design. As for its body, it is made from AISI 304 anti-magnetic steel. It means it makes use of 18% chromium and 8% nickel in it. This composition is considered to have excellent capacity to resist wear and tear of daily use for a long, long time.
Its bottom is 7 mm thick and following a sandwich model, inserts 4.9mm aluminum disk between stainless steel layers. Please note that it is together with its thickness of the aluminum disk that its base has 7 mm gauge. The bottom so reinforced with triple metallic layer doesn’t bulge and it disperses heat evenly. The result is that it cooks 46% faster than a microwave oven.
Apart from these, it also has an utterly original pressure regulator that releases pressure just by pressing your finger against it. It also keeps the steam vent from blockage. Add to it the pressure locked safety lead and shielded safety valve, and you have threesome safety measures for rendering the cooking operation absolutely safe.
Another good feature is the maximum food level indicator. It considerably improves the cooking efficiency. You know by experience that filling a cooker out of proportion may force it to depart from its normal behavior.
Finally, the handles of this cooker remains cool, no matter how hot the cooker gets. It is quite irksome to have to handle the cooker but you cannot because the handles are quite hot to touch bare-handedly.
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6. Hawkins Stainless Steel Contura Induction Compatible Pressure Cooker, 3 Litre
Specifications:
- Ideal size for a family of three to four persons
- Inner lid locking mechanism
- Handi-shaped
- Easy to clean
- AISI 304 non-magnetic stainless steel material
- Outer base of AISI 430 magnetic stainless steel to make it compatible with induction
- 131mm base
- Not compatible with dishwasher
Hawkins Contura induction compatible pressure cooker is one of the safest products to buy. It has a wonderful handi shape. It is so elegantly designed that you cannot help falling in love with it at first sight.
AISI 304 stainless steel, which is used in its body, is known to have high tensile strength. That is just another way to say that the product resists the pressure quite well. In order to make it usable with induction cook top, its bottom is made from AISI 430 magnetic steel.
With this product, the cooking is not much of a problem. But if you are not used to manually cleaning the utensils, then it should be a matter of concern to you that this cooker cannot be cleaned in dishwasher.
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7. Prestige Svachh 3.5 Litre Pressure Cooker with Hard Anodized Body (Black)
Specifications:
- Unique deep lid that controls spillage
- Mini metallic safety plug
- Anti bulge induction base
- Controlled gasket release system
- Capacious 3.5L interior
- 5 years warranty
The claim made for Prestige Svachh 3.5 Litre Pressure Cooker regarding the uniqueness of its lid is utterly justifiable. Even a casual look at it shows that it has out-of-the-box design when compared to the traditional design that we have been wont of seeing in almost all of the pressure cookers that are offered by the brand.
This difference is due to the way its lid is designed. It is deep in the middle and raised at the rim. The advantage of styling it this way is that if the content spills out when the whistle blows, it doesn’t overflow the rim and spill over its side and thence to the cook top. It is held in the deep surface of the lid and gets evaporated from there. It’s quite insightful.
Made from hard anodized aluminum, the cooker is certainly strong; but the design of the shorter handle of the cooker is a little bit surprising. It bends upward a little bit. It would have been better if it was straight. That would have made it easier to clean. But designing it this way certainly seems to be driven more by aesthetic considerations than practical.
However, our perception in this regard may or may not be shared by others. After all, it certainly does change from person to person. So, many users won’t mind it the way it is.
To address the safety issues, we find in it two-fold solutions: one is mini metallic safety plug and another controlled gasket release system.
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8. Borosil Pronto Induction Base Stainless Steel Pressure Cooker 3L
Specifications:
- Stainless steel materials
- Fast cooking time
- 7mm thick base
- 3L capacity
- Available in different sizes
- Compatible with both induction and gas cook tops
- Opens only when pressure is released
- Safety valve
- Stay cool Bakelite handles
- 3 ply technology
Borosil Pronto is an inner lid pressure cooker, having stainless steel body and a base that consists of AISI 304 food grade steel layer on the inside, aluminum core in the middle and AISI 430 magnetic stainless-steel layer on the outside that makes it fit for induction cook top.
For safety, it features a regular safety valve to relieve extra pressure that might occasionally build up inside, and pressure locked safety lid that opens only when pressure is released. As for the Bakelite handles, they stay cool all through the cooking operation.
This, here, is a product you can safely rely on. Also available in 1 liter, 2 liters, 3 liters, & 5-liter capacity.
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Best Pressure Cookers in India – A Buying Guide
Pressure cooker is so called because it is designed to take away a lot of pressure that cooks are subjected to. Cooking certainly puts a lot of pressure on them. What the cooker does is to shift the pressure from cooks to the food they are cooking.
The advantage of using pressure cooker is that it is highly energy efficient, making optimum use of energy in cooking its content. Because it cooks fast, it also burns less fuel for the purpose. Also, because the food is cooked in closed shell of the cooker, its nutritive value is not lost. If you fry or roast anything, it does lose its nutritive value to some extent.
Things to Look Out For While Buying a Pressure Cooker in Year 2023
When you buy a pressure cooker, you need to take into consideration few necessary details.
- Size: If you are single or single professional, you will need something that would suffice for two or three persons. Because it cannot be that you never have a friend or two that might share a meal or two with you sometime. But if this scenario is beyond the bound of possibility in your case, then only you need a 1 or 2-litre capacity pressure cooker. Otherwise, you may need a 3-litre cooker. But if you are part of a family of 5 to 6 persons, then you certainly need a cooker having minimum capacity of 5 liters. Anything more capacious would be considered good for meeting any need that may be occasioned by few guests that would make a party or something along that line. You have available to you products having more than 10 liters for such occasions. It is in this way that size matters. You can do without other inessential things if they are in short supply; when it comes to food, you cannot economize on it except you are forced to under exceptional circumstances.
- Shape: Shape does have a bearing on both capacity and looks. Pressure cookers offer you nice set of choices in this regard. There are products that have traditional look. By traditional is meant straight-walled cookers. These could have a height that is either less or more. Those having less height seem to squat on your cook top when you place them on it whereas those having more height seem to be standing there. Then, there are cookers styled like handi and kadai. The lids of these cookers may be differently styled. The important thing is that some brand like Prestige offer extra glass lids that can be used comfortably at the table, turning cookware into something that can be used for serving. Here, mention must be made of Clip-On design that allows you to use the lid of one cooker with others in the same range. Still another type of pressure cooker is shaped like an apple. It is said that this shape is awarded for its innovation.
- Materials: The materials used in manufacturing pressure cookers generally include stainless steel, aluminum and hard anodized aluminum. The advantage of the hard anodized aluminum pressure cooker is that it looks really nice. Its surface doesn’t get scratched or stained easily and so retains its look for a long time.
- Induction compatible: Not all pressure cookers are induction compatible. The sign of induction-friendly pressure cooker is the stainless steel perforated plate at its bottom. Another technique to make it compatible with induction stove is to endow it with Alpha base that provides 30% more surface than is found in perforated plate bottom. It enhances its efficiency, which is reflected in faster cooking.
- Safety: It is ensured through precision weight valve and a hole on the lead to let out pressure if it grows beyond certain level and is not released through whistles. As for the precision weight valve, it is raised when pressure increases up to 1 kg/cm2. But the purpose of this feature is not to release the pressure. Rather it is to indicate the pressure inside the cooker. The purpose of releasing the pressure inside will be served as usual by the whistle. Interestingly, when the pressure inside the cooker goes down, the precision valve automatically returns to its original position. After this, you can open the lid of the cooker. In past in absence of such safety features, very often when the pressure inside the cooker increased beyond certain point, it used to change the shape of the cooker. It may result in its bottom getting convex. When you put it on flat surfaces, it may not sit there steadily. In a worst case scenario a pressure cooker could explode, leading to serious injuries. The good thing is that, along with safety features, the present generations of pressure cookers come with anti-bulge base.
- Price: It is not a rule that good things must be dearly paid for always. No! The products that we have selected for review are proof enough for debunking such outdated beliefs. Some of them are extremely budget friendly without stinting on matters having to do with quality. Some, on the other hand, are quite costly. The important thing is that price, here, is not the indicator of quality but of the materials used in their make, certain features that are by no means common, and utility for the purpose they are designed for. Careful and comparative view of their specifications will corroborate what we have to say about pricing.
- Best cooker brands: The following list should not be considered as comprehensive. Neither was it our aim to make it so at the time of compiling it. Rather we intended to present you with a list of brands that have succeeded in placing their products in people’s mind. They’d not have been able to do so had their offerings not met with people’s expectations. Here are some of these: Hawkins, Prestige, Pigeon, Butterfly, Borosil, Instant Pot, & Bajaj.
Best Pressure Cookers in India – A Conclusion
As you can well see, the pressure cookers we have reviewed here are good not just for pressure cooking; some of them can also be used for multiple purposes. We have endeavored to make your choice easy by picking up the best that is offered by the best of brands. Their designs have varying degrees of sophistication that assign them to categories ranging from basic to smart. Therefore, it is simply not possible our list doesn’t include a product that doesn’t meet your requirements. You will greatly improve both the culinary and gastronomic experience if you pick a product from it.
Last update on 2023-03-23 / Images from Amazon
