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Step 1
Decide whether you want to use your pressure cooker for meal preparation or food preservation or both. If you plan to can low-acid foods, such as most vegetables and meats, you must use a pressure cooker. You cannot process low-acid foods in a boiling water bath canner.
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Step 2
Determine what size containers you plan to use if you will be canning produce and meats. Pressure cookers come in a range of sizes. Some of the smaller pressure cookers can easily accommodate 1-pint canning jars, but you will need a larger pressure cooker to handle larger jars. Don't buy a pressure cooker any smaller than 5 quarts.
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Step 3
Don't buy a used pressure cooker. Most pressure cookers are built to last a lifetime, but recent advances in pressure cooker safety make new pressure cookers easier and safer to use. If grandma hands down her pressure cooker to you, ask the manufacturer to inspect the unit before you use it.
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Step 4
Make sure the pressure cooker can maintain high pressure (at least 15 psi). Some of the trendy pressure cookers do not meet this requirement, which means that you will have to tailor all of your home canning and meal recipes for lower pressure. This could could lead to improper canning and, ultimately, illness or death for anyone who consumes the canned goods.
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Step 5
Determine whether you prefer aluminum or stainless steel. Use stainless steel to cook meals directly in the pressure cooker. Aluminum can pit and stain when cooking high-acid foods, and the aluminum can leach into the foods. However, aluminum is more durable overall, conducts heat better and is preferred by many cooks for home canning.
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Step 6
Select a brand that has a good reputation and years of history. Since a pressure cooker will likely be a once-in-a-lifetime purchase, you want to buy from a company that stands behind its products and will be around to provide replacement parts for a long time to come.
