Pressure Cooker Size

[SailorTrish]

Just wondering what size pressure cooker folks that are out long distance cruising are using. My husband and I are heading out soon. We have a 36 foot sailboat with limited galley storage. I have been looking at a 2.5 quart and a 5 quart size cooker. Storage space wise I am leaning toward the 2.5 quart; but wondering if I won't regret the smaller size when wanting to prepare larger batches of food. Would like to hear other's thoughts.
Trish
S/V FarAway

[Cheechako]

We used one occasionaly. Great in warm weather as you dont have to use the oven. I would just say keep in mind that saving leftovers is probably limited on a lot of boats... so how big a meal do you ned to cook?

[annk]

I carry a pressure cooker that will take 4 x 1lb jars for processing. This works for us, with 2 on board it's not so big that I won't use it to make soup or a stew but still large enough to make processing a batch of 4 cans worthwhile.
I admit that I sometimes hanker for a larger unit when I have spent the entire day processing prior to a long passage or visit to an isolated anchorage. However weighing everything up this event only happens 2-3 times a year, not often enough to sacrifice the space that a larger canner would take.
I definitely think 2.5 is too small if you intend to do any canning.

[Ozbullwinkle]

Firstly, pressure cookers are brilliant - I just love them.

I recently updated to a new Scanpan Duo where you get 2 different sized bases and the pressure lid is interchangeable. I got mine for A$150 so I'm sure you could get it cheaper in the USA.

This gives you the best of both worlds and you effectively get 2 pressure cookers in one - just brilliant.

You could not go wrong with one of these!

Here is a link so that you can see what they look like.

Pressure Cooker - www.pressurecooker.com.au; Product Details - SCANPAN Duo Set - 8.5L & 3.5L pressure cookers

[matauwhi]

G'day, mate. 5 qt. here. Previous one was 4 qt. We do lots of whole chickens & rice and pot roasts. Our other pots nests inside it, so really doesn't take up any additional space. All the best. Cheers.

[bobconnie]

We can also !! it's great for fish!! we have the same size as above enough for 4 jars !! put other pots inside and it's not to big to have in your boat just our 2 cents

[TOPGALLANT32]

I love my 2.5 qt cooker. great for baking bread on the stove top. I can fish and berries also, in smaller jars however. It will cook all two can eat for several meals

[donradcliffe]

6 quarts--we live on left-overs

[BojanglesIV]

Hi, I am so very glad you asked! I will attach a picture of mine which I think is unique because it does not have that long handle that makes storage difficult.

It is a smaller pressure cooker than many out there but it was good size for us. I did need to have a larger pot for pasta etc but for boiling potatoes/rice etc for our family of 5 it worked great. May not have if our 3 kids were teenagers but who knows. Also the pots nested - a very important consideration. To be efficient, I used the pres cooker to boil water then transferred to to the larger pot.

I also used the larger pot for washing dishes as that technique used the least amount of water.

The pressure cooker kept food hot longer than regular pots so Bojangles mashed potatoes were always a hit at pot lucks.
Kathleen

[rubyjean]

We use a 4 qt., works great for two people. It's a cheap Presto, when it goes to hell, we just get another. I bought on E-Bay @ $23. USD. Can't beat that for price, it's still being used. For cruising w/ carry a spare seal kit. Will can 3 pints at a time, it takes care of the extra Tuna...Michael..

[swisscraft]

I had pressure cookers - onboard and on land. I gave them away.

Pressure cookers are great for potatoes, period. Vegetables get a much better taste if you glaze them, cook them with onions butter or whatever. Beef is a nightmare out of a pressure cooker - its soft, but gets a bad texture. The beef sauce is not comparable if you cook it with beef for some longer time.

There is a reason why you hardly find it in gourmet kitchens (They mostly go with low pressure steamers). Its great to safe time and energy and if this is your main concern go for it. This is as well the reason why you find them somtimes oversized in jail, hospital and army kitchens - you get the picture. If you love fine food its not the right choice.

And yes, there is some other use for pressure cookers...so beat me up

[Ram]

I have a 6 quart one and love it- use it almost every day- from rice & potatoes to
octopus - it can be used as just a pot also if you don’t want to use pressure- save a lot of time & fuel

[janice142]

Hello Trish. First I would go shopping for jars, imagining what size you'd prefer to have/use. Frankly, I cannot see using any jar larger than a pint. What you (okay, *me*) want is to be able to can/preserve meats. Quite frankly, sauces and canned goods from the grocery store are practical and economical -- why go to the expense and time of preparing my own?

So, think about how much meat you eat in each meal and that's the size jars you'll want to use. Next, find a pressure cooker that will accommodate that size jars -- four at a time minimum.

As an aside, mine is a 3 liter foreign unit and as per a suggestion on SSCA I bought a spare rubber gasket at time of purchase. Mine is small (no handle) and fits four of the 1 cup wide mouth jars or 7 of the smaller jelly jars (.5 cup) at a time. My unit will not fit the taller 1 cup jars. Oops!

Just don't think of the pressure cooker as canning your entire scrumptious home-made dinner. Instead, add the fillers (rice, potatoes, noodles, spaghetti, e.g.) from your dry goods locker. My little 1/2 cup jar of prepared sausage (sliced and precooked with ground beef as the filler) with a can of tomato paste, an onion, garlic, and perhaps a fresh tomato too... well, that's a lovely spaghetti or rigatoni and sauce meal and takes very little space to store. Plus, it's delicious, even if I do say so myself.

For a year's worth of meals (and I'm based here in the US with stores relatively easy to get to -- sort of!) I have about 6 to 8 dozen jars on hand. They take up a lot of locker space but it's so worth it to have the freedom to decide at 4:30 in the afternoon that some pork salad would taste great about now -- and be eating same inside of 15 minutes.

My canning is for convenience and quality of contents versus saving money so I have perhaps a different outlook than others. For you and yours, the canner that fits 4 or 5 pint jars would be the one I'd buy and use.

Aside: Wide mouth 1 cup jars can be used to make lasagne and it will stick together/come out of the jar intact.

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by Ozbullwinkle

Firstly, pressure cookers are brilliant - I just love them.

I recently updated to a new Scanpan Duo where you get 2 different sized bases and the pressure lid is interchangeable. I got mine for A$150 so I'm sure you could get it cheaper in the USA.

This gives you the best of both worlds and you effectively get 2 pressure cookers in one - just brilliant.

You could not go wrong with one of these!

Here is a link so that you can see what they look like.

Pressure Cooker - www.pressurecooker.com.au; Product Details - SCANPAN Duo Set - 8.5L & 3.5L pressure cookers

Not sure what the advantage of storing two is....? One ought to be enough,

[tartansail]

Size depends on intended use and propensity for leftovers. I believe ours is 2.5 quarts. We don't can/preserve. Soups and risotto's are staples during the colder seasons and are much easier to make in the pressure cooker. I agree with the recommendation to look for one without handles. Ours is much easier to stow and retrieve than some smaller cooking equipment with handles.