The Power Pressure Cooker XL has certainly made an impact in the electric pressure cooker market due to its infomercials and advertisements. However, it is facing a lot of pressure from other competitively priced multi-cookers such as the Instant Pot.
Power Pressure Cooker XL: Overview
This pressure cooker is a 7-in-1 multi-cooker. It does the work of seven other kitchen appliances such as pressure-cooking, slow cooking, canning, soup making, steaming vegetables, browning meat and cooking rice. Use it to make popular meals a lot faster such as stews, pot roasts, chicken wings and short ribs. You can even cook white or brown rice in it.
The Power Pressure Cooker XL cooks food faster than stove top pots because the contents are cooked under pressure. The hot steam is kept inside the pot, which means that all the flavor and juicy moisture stays with the food instead of evaporating into the air. It has a safe locking lid and a manual steam release.
The Power Pressure Cooker XL has a nonstick inner cooking pot. It is available in two pot sizes: 6 quarts and 8 quarts. The 6 quart model will be suitable for most people, unless you have a big family or want to cook food for many guests. Nonetheless, there might even be a 10 quart model for sale somewhere if you need an even bigger pot size.
The 6-quart electric pressure cooker is 13 inches high, 13 inches wide and 11 inches deep. The 8-quart pressure cooker is 14 inches high, 12 inches wide and 14 inches deep. The 10-quart multi-cooker measures 16 x 14 x 13 inches high, wide and deep.
Overall, the Power Pressure Cooker XL is easy to use. It can prepare delicious meals in a very short time. However, the nonstick coating of the cooking pot does not seem to be durable. The build quality and customer service also seems to be below average.
Control Panel
The Power Pressure Cooker XL has a small digital display and many buttons for choosing specific cooking programs and functions. Cook a meal by pressing a single preset button. Here is a list of the control panel buttons:
- Delay Timer
- Canning/Preserving
- Soup/Stew
- Slow Cook
- Rice/Risotto
- Beans/Lentils
- Fish/Vegetables Steam
- Chicken/Meat
- Time Adjustment
- Keep Warm/Cancel
Warranty
The Power Pressure Cooker XL has a one-year manufacturer’s warranty, although the manual states 60 days. We do not know which warranty period is correct, but quite a few customers have commented that it is only guaranteed for 60 days. After the 60 days is over, you might have to pay for parts and repairs out of your own pocket. You can order recipe books, cords, accessories, baskets, racks, trays, lids, gaskets, pots and valves directly from the Power Pressure Cooker company website.
A few customers have complained about poor customer service from the company. The company might spend less on marketing and infomercials and more on better customer service and more complete instruction manuals.
Can it cook food from frozen?
Yes, it certainly can. However, cooking food from frozen will obviously add more minutes to the total cooking time. You might have to add about 10 minutes extra cooking time for frozen foods.
Can it slow cook?
Yes, it can slow cook food at a low pressure setting. However, because it cooks the food faster than an electric slow cooker, the results will not be better. Only a slow cooker can really “slow cook” food. Therefore, meat cooked in the Power Pressure Cooker XL will not be as soft as when it has been cooked overnight in a slow cooker.
How does it sauté food?
There is no preset button for browning food. Nevertheless, you can brown food by using any of the preset buttons while the lid is off. Do not try to sauté foods with the lid on!
It seems that there is another Power Pressure Cooker model that actually has a preset button for browning foods. It is called the Power Cooker Pro (see more details on Amazon).
Can it cook rice?
The control panel has a rice preset button and three settings for cooking three types of rice: white rice, brown rice and wild rice.
Is it good for canning food?
The Power Pressure Cooker XL is advertised as suitable for canning small amounts of food in pint-sized jars. However, a few people have mentioned that electric pressure cookers are not reliable enough when it comes to pressure and temperature for canning food safely. We do not recommend it for canning and preserving food.
Power Pressure Cooker XL: Verdict
One of the first things to mention is that this electric pressure cooker does not have a stainless steel pot. Its pot is coated with a nonstick surface on the inside. Also, the inside of the lid seems to be made from aluminum. The Power Pressure Cooker XL is definitely not for you if you dislike nonstick coatings and aluminum.
Another thing is that the manual does not provide enough information and recipes to really use this electric pressure cooker to its full potential. For example, the manual does not provide any troubleshooting tips or explanations for error codes. It also does not give instructions for using the timer function.
You might have to buy one of the Power Pressure Cooker XL recipe books that are available for purchase. You could also watch the many videos on YouTube to learn more about using this electric pressure cooker.
It seems like the worst part of the Power Pressure Cooker XL is the steam release valve. It is not reliable enough and needs a more robust design. Some people complained that it fell off after a short while and limited use. Another person struggled to get the valve to seal completely and to not leak steam.
The best thing about this electric pressure cooker is that it makes cooking good food much faster with less attention. An electric pressure cooker would make a great gift for busy moms or dads who simply do not have the time to spend hours behind the cooking pots. Pressure-cooking cuts the total cooking time of popular meals by more than half.
Bottom Line: the Power Pressure Cooker XL is in the same price range as the Instant Pot cookers, but it is probably not the best electric pressure cooker. The competition really puts it under pressure. We recommend that you rather spend your time and money on a better quality electric pressure cooker with a stainless steel cooking pot, such as the Instant Pot IP-DUO60 (click here to read my IP-DUO review).