What is Pressure Cooking?

Pressure cooking at home is safe and efficient

For more information on pressure cookers and the best ways to safely operate them, refer to our collection of pressure cooker videos.
Pressure cookers are making a serious comeback, and today's "second generation" pressure cookers are stylish, safe and far more efficient. 

There are now many makes and models available from all parts of the world, and with such a choice of features, there is virtually one for every budget. Pressure cookers have been around for about 100 years but many cooks are only now discovering the many advantages offered by cooking under pressure.

What's in a Pressure Cooker?

These new modern pressure cookers include several pressure settings and multiple pressure safety release systems making them 100% safe. The new stainless steel pressure cookers, with the thick aluminium 3-ply 'sandwich' base, prevent burning hot spots through efficient heat distribution and with the improved vent and pressure release systems, make them easier than ever to use.

If you are looking for a piece of cookware that is fast, easy to use and healthy, nothing can compare to a pressure cooker. So whether you are a novice who wants to start pressure cooking or you just want to upgrade that old model that you may have inherited, now is the time to buy a new pressure cooker.

What are the benefits of Pressure Cooking?

Today's pressure cookers have advanced pressure regulating systems, eliminating the need for a lot of water while cooking, and because pressure cooked foods require less cooking liquid, water soluble vitamins and minerals are retained and vegetables retain more flavour and colour. 

Pressure cooked food is always succulent, tender and full of flavour and pressure cooking tenderises the toughest meats.

Because food cooks at a much faster rate, a pressure cooker means less energy is needed and therefore less heat is generated (a definite plus in the hot weather). Kitchens and apartments are certainly less affected by cooking smells. 

In fact, modern pressure cookers save around 60% - 70% of cooking time and thus offer a substantial saving in both time and costs.

In today's world, where you are faced with busy schedules, demanding jobs and family commitments and too little time, the pressure cooker is the perfect solution for fast, delicious, nutritious and economical home-cooked meals. 

You'll find that there is no end to the variety of dishes you can cook. Because of the versatility of a pressure cooker it also makes an ideal companion for camping, caravanning and boating and you will quickly realise that the pressure cooker is the ideal partner in the kitchen.

Why buy from the Pressure Cooker Centre?

The Pressure Cooker Centre offers the most comprehensive choice of pressure cookers at the very best all year-round prices in Australia (delivered to your doorstep at around 30% to 40% less than normal over-the-counter retail prices all-year-round to most Australian destinations). We are also backed by Kitchenware Direct - Australia's largest online cookware and kitchenware retailer.

Video transcript "How to use a Pressure Cooker"

"Welcome to the Pressure Cooker Centre. I'm going to demonstrate for you the latest model from Silampos, which is a Portuguese brand, and this is the Easy Pressure Cooker.

First, I'm going to show you what are the different features on the lid. You have the lid handle with a button that you push and pull to open and lock the pressure cooker. And here is a pressure regulator that you turn to choose the low pressure, the high pressure, or to depressurise.

Now, I'm going to do a test for you with just some water and you can do the same at home if you want, before you cook for the first time with your Silampos Easy Pressure Cooker. So, to close the lid, there is a mark on the lid and a mark on the handle. Put the tube on line, and just slide the two handles together and lock. You always must start your cooking in a pressure cooker with your stove on high, so you need to generate heat inside the pot very quickly so it comes to pressure quickly and you avoid overcooking the food. So, high temperature underneath when you start.

Now the first thing you're going to notice is the little pressure indicator here, which is the red button. This little pressure indicator is going to pop up. When it pops up, that's telling you there's pressure in your pressure cooker, but it's not telling you that you have reached pressure. You only have reached the pressure that you have chosen here - low pressure or high pressure - when steam will escape from the nozzle here.

So we just wait a couple of minutes to have a look at this pressure indicator. Now you can see that the pressure indicator has started to move, and in a few seconds, it will just pop up in a position. As you can see, the steam is now escaping. You can hear it through the nozzle. So it's time now to turn down the heat as low as you can and time your cooking. This is perfect moment that you time your cooking. Let's see. The cooking time has expired. Your little timer has beeped.

You turn off the gas and now you have three options before you open your pressure cooker. The first option is, if you're not too hungry and too much in a hurry, you just wait until this little red button goes down again. And that means no more pressure, and you can open your pressure cooker. You can also, if you wish, de-pressurise manually. So all you have to do is turn this button to pressure-release steam and that will de-pressurise. But if you're in a hurry and you don't have any steam in your kitchen, you take your pressure cooker to the sink. And now to de-pressurise your pressure cooker with some cold water, just run a little cold water on the lid just for a few seconds and when your little red button is down you know that means no more pressure. So you stop the water, take out your Silampos Easy Pressure Cooker, push the button and open and voila!"