5.0 out of 5 stars The best pressure cooker you can buy I just received my 12 quart Kuhn Rikon pressure cooker a week ago and I’ve used it three times already. I was replacing my 30 year old 6 quart Presto cooker mainly because I wanted a larger utensil. I wasn’t dissatisfied with my Presto, but until I tried this Kuhn Rikon, I didn’t realize that such a gap existed in terms of quality.I am so glad I chose this Kuhn Rikon 12 quart model. It is a very well built, heavy gauge stainless steel cooker with a nice heavy bottom to help heat it evenly. The handles are sturdy don’t get hot while cooking on my gas range. The lid attaches and twists into place very easily with no awkwardness or sticking. The lid gasket is thick and heavy duty. There is no jiggler weight to get lost.The unit is very quiet. It is so quiet that I almost didn’t notice when it had come up to pressure the first time I used it. You have to visually monitor it until you reach your cooking pressure and adjust your heat source to maintain it. There is no escaping rush of steam or hissing jiggler to alert you. But this is in no way a drawback. The cooker comes up to pressure quickly, and thanks to the red lines on the pop up pressure indicator, it is easy to adjust your heat to maintain the desired pressure. The faintest wisp of steam escapes from under the top steam deflector during cooking.If you want to release pressure quickly, you can push down on the central pressure valve with your bare finger without getting burned. It gets a little warm, but does not get hot. All of the steam is deflected by the round deflector on top. You can also push the pressure stem down with a spoon if you prefer.There are no negatives with this cooker from a usability perspective. I believe it is the best pressure cooker on the market. The only thing stopping this cooker from completely cornering the market is the hefty price. If it were priced 50% lower, it would easily take over market share from other contenders.

5.0 out of 5 stars Heaven in a Pot! I love, love, love this cooker! I also own the Kuhn Rikon 3916 Duromatic Top Pressure Cooker, 5-Quart (which I’ve also written a review on) which I’ve also been extremely pleased with, so much so, with the 5 qt. model that I bought first so I finally bit the bullet and purchased this 12 quart model.Good points of this cooker:QUIET – did I tell you how QUIET this cooker is? You CAN NOT, I repeat – CAN NOT hear it while it is cooking! You have to check to make sure the center pressure gauge is where you want it to be. After years of listening to the rattling and hissing of a variety of pressure cookers I’ve owned I wonder how I kept my sanity! What a pleasure to have this (plus all Kuhn Rikon’s other model pressure cookers) on the stove and be in the same kitchen with it while it is actually cooking!EFFICIENT – Once the pressure is brought up then you will find that you can turn this cooker so low that it is almost in the OFF position. Takes very little heat to maintain the pressure in this PC so if it does release steam you know that the heat is way too high – turn it down a little more. I have almost never found it necessary to fuss with the heat levels either, unlike some other PC’s I’ve owned over the years, so once the heat level is set then it’s “walk away and forget it” until the cooking time is up!LID LOCKING SYSTEM – super easy, super tight!SIMPLE – Simple, simple and simple to use. Nothing complicated here.CLEANUP – so easy to clean. Soft sponge with a little soap on the top, rinse and dry…done. The bottom can go through the dishwasher but I prefer to hand wash because, as with any s/s pan, some stuck on pieces of meats can cling to the bottom or sides. Again, the scrubby side of a sponge or SOS pad makes quick work, rinse, dry and put away plus this is such a large pan why take up all that space in the dishwasher when it’s so easy to do by hand.BOTTOM POT – large enough to be your go-to pot for making large batches of soups, stews, chilies or whatever you cook in large quantities. Use it as a pasta cooker and pass on those sloppy, get water everywhere, dual cooking and draining pots – ugh….only Martha Steward and TV cooks could love these pots because they have people to clean up after them!STATE OF MIND – Happy, happy, happy!CONS: As of 9-18-14. The chrome round disk covering the pressure valve has a black ring of plastic on the inside with three (3) plastic projections that can break off very easily. Recommendation is to remove the chrome ring and set it aside while washing the entire top of the cooker otherwise it is very easy to snap those plastic tabs off. If you do break one away, don’t fret because all these tabs do is keep this chrome piece from rocking and fit down over the circle project where the pressure valve come out of but does not affect the function of the cooker in any way. I’m annoyed with such an expensive PC that the company has not decided to use metal rather than cheap plastic. You can buy a replacement part but you could be doing this frequently at $17 per so be very careful as to how you lay the lid down in a sink or counter. Best method is to remove the chrome valve cover first and then wash the lid and replace.Expensive! You can buy a 12 quart from the same mfg. for less money and the only difference between this model ($375) and the less expensive ($200) is the amount of stainless steel. You decide. Whichever model you buy you will have this cooker for the rest of your life so prorate that and see how much it costs.I would NOT hesitate to buy this again nor would I hesitate in recommending it to ANYONE who needs a pressure cooker. Personally, I think every home needs a good quality pressure cooker and a cook who learns how to put it to good use. They are a life saver when time is limited but also when you don’t want to wait hours to get something prepared. If not this size, then consider a smaller model because they all are quiet, efficient, easy to clean and worth every penny you will spend on it!

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a generational purchase and I'm glad I got the 12qt. model (Mod #30333) To be perfectly up front, I recently purchased this and have only used it twice so far. My out of box impression was quality, and more quality. The top and bottom sections are heavy SS with an aluminum disk to soak up and transfer heat on the bottom. The handles are attached with stainless steel screws from the inside of the lid and outside on the base. They appear to be very sturdy and easy to replace if damaged. I’ve not experienced the hot handle issue after a 40 minute cook but don’t have any burners with flames capable of reaching outside of the base. Yes, like others, I’m less than impressed with the 3 pronged plastic clip that holds the collar/steam deflector to the lid. I just plan on being careful to not set it on anything upside down.In use, this thing absolutely rocks! It seems to heat up and come to pressure more quickly than my old 4 qt. aluminum Presto grandma hand me down. Coming to pressure and staying there, I’m hard pressed to see much, if any, steam escaping from the vent so I’m inclined to believe that as little as 1/2 cup of water would do the trick as long as one keeps the pressure under control with the second ring showing but not fully extended and venting. The one size fits all manual states the minimum is 50ml of water or about 2oz but I’m not willing to risk this purchase by cutting it that close. I would say if you have a tendency to walk away with the pressure indicator fully extended and venting steam, maybe you need an electric pot anyway. I’ve tried the cold water release which works fine and doesn’t seem to stress anything, natural, quick (by pressing down the indicator), and super quick (undocumented but by fully pulling UP the stem).I was initially concerned that I’d bought something only suitable for making huge quantities or canning but the 11″ diameter allows full contact browning of whole chuck roasts and large amounts of vegetables that would otherwise need to be done in batches or with continual stirring in smaller cookers. The big diameter also allows full flame fast reductions of liquids or thickening for gravies. Yet, this still manages to come to pressure quickly on my normal 30″ gas range and stays there with very little flame. If you are a petite person or have strength or pain issues handling larger pots, this 12qt model may not be for you. For me, I’m very happy and no longer considering buying a smaller companion PC.