Product Review Fagor 6 QT. Rapid Express Pressure Cooker

Product Review.... Fagor 6 QT. Rapid Express Pressure Cooker

For the past several weeks, I have had the chance to test a pressure cooker by Fagor America. Have you ever worked with a pressure cooker before? Well, the generous folks at Fagor have sent me a 6 QT Rapid Express Pressure Cooker to try out and review. The Fagor Company has some really wonderful pressure cookers, available in different sizes and with different features. While Fagor America has a variety of pressure cookers, I ended up testing the Rapida/Rapid Express Line in the 6 Qt capacity.

Over a few weeks, I tested the Fagor pressure cooker to make a wide variety of meals. I tested a few recipes from the Fagor Recipe booklet as well as some of my own recipes. I wanted to see if my recipes could be adapted. Here is some information about the 6 QT Rapid Express Pressure Cooker and my review:

Features of the RapidExpress:

• Spring-type mechanism with one pressure setting: High (15psi)
• Fagor Rapida pressure cooker is extremely easy to use
• Every Rapida pressure cooker comes with a visual pressure indicator & automatic pressure release system
• contains a trivet and steamer basket
• 18/10 Stainless Steel
• All Fagor Rapida pressure cookers have a ten-year limited warranty
• Fagor Rapida pressure cooker works on all domestic cooking surfaces: gas, electric, ceramic & induction
• Instructions manual
• Recipe booklet for pressure cookers

Benefits of Pressure Cooking:

• It is FAST. ~Saves a ton of cooking time! Recipes can easily be adapted to cook in about 1/3 of the regular time.
• It is EASY to use~You just place your ingredients and liquids into the cooker and close the lid. You wait until the pot is brought up to pressure, lower the heat, and then start the cooking time. When the cooking time is over, just release the pressure and open the lid. It really is simple to use. You can also brown/sear meats, saute vegetables before cooking...allows for additional flavor. This can simply be done by using just one pot.
• It is HEALTHY~ More vitamins and minerals are retained in foods cooked under pressure. Since you are cooking the foods in a shorter amount of time, the foods also retain more of their natural color. The pressure cooker also allows you to cook without oil. The foods prepared under pressure retain moisture and don't dry out so quickly.
• It is quite VERSATILE~ All sorts of foods can easily be cooked in a pressure cooker. You can steam vegetables, cook stews and soups. Grains can also be cooked in the pressure cooker... grains such as grits, oatmeal, polenta, wild rice, etc. Meats such as chicken, beef, pork, and even fish are ideal for cooking in the pressure cooker. They remain moist and succulent. And if it wasn't enough, you can even make desserts in the pressure cooker.
• It is ENERGY EFFICIENT~ Pressure cooking reduces cooking times and thus conserves a great amount of energy.

How I tested the Fagor Rapid Express Pressure Cooker?:

I just really enjoyed testing this product. It was a pleasure to use and made for some incredible tasty meals ...in a matter of minutes! I ended up doing some recipes from the recipe booklet as well as some of my own. Fagor also has some great pressure cooker recipes on their website that you can refer to. What impressed me the most, was how quickly you can put together a meal...not to mention that you retain more nutrients this way. Some recipes just blew me away by how FAST and EASY they were to make. A perfect example is the classic Italian dish... risotto. How could risotto be made so quickly?...and NO stirring?! That's right!...On top of that, it takes no longer than 7-9 minutes to cook the risotto. It comes out perfect every time. Those of you who are familiar with the time it takes to make risotto in general, will fully appreciate the pressure cooker.

One of my favorite ways to use the Pressure cooker...

Making flavorful stock in 30 minutes....I will also be making my own homemade beef stock:).

The chicken stock I made was full of flavor. From a whole chicken I was able to use the bones to make the stock and with the rest of the meat I made a few other meals. That chicken was used to the maximum potential! It is just so neat to have homemade chicken stock available whenever I need some.

You can do the same with beef stock...

Making the classic Beef Bourguignon... no longer takes forever and full of flavor.

Making steak chili...using chunks of meat instead of ground beef. By using cheaper cuts of meat, you can save money. The meat becomes quite tender when using the pressure cooker .

Having a ton of fun making all sorts of different flavored risottos in 7-9 minutes....a mushroom risotto, roasted pepper risotto, and a sausage risotto. I will soon be trying other flavors such as asparagus risotto, sundried tomato risotto, etc...the possibilities are endless.

I also made beans in 10 minutes...

Can you believe that?! I mean seriously, beans take FOREVER to cook...not in a pressure cooker! Why buy the canned beans anymore? You just need to soak them and then cook according to the recipe. You can also flavor the beans to your liking...try adding some onion, chipotle peppers, roasted chiles, etc. Beans are great for all sorts of meals... I even made a bean dip that's healthy and nutritious. Just make a batch and freeze the beans for future use.

One day, I made some grits and polenta in 5 minutes...without stirring! I can't get over that...NO stirring.

I even made some stuffed cabbage rolls. A recipe that usually takes a couple of hours to cook was done in 30 minutes! Incredible...

Making shredded beef for burritos and beef bourguignon in less than an hour...

Of course, I just had to make a dessert....

Making cheesecake....the creamiest ever! Use your food processor to make the filling and simply pour in a springform pan. Ideally a 7 inch...

Overall:

I really, really loved the Fagor Express pressure cooker. A wonderful product that is easy to use. It provides better nutrition and saves lots of time as well as energy. I also love the fact that you can buy cheaper cuts of meat and still be able to get that tenderness you want from expensive cuts of meat. Why not use a pressure cooker?

The Fagor pressure cooker was a pleasure to use, exceeded expectations, and provided for some flavorful meals. I would definitely recommend it...