Instant Pot Max 6 Quart Multi-use Electric Pressure Cooker with 15psi Pressure Cooking, Sous Vide, Auto Steam Release Control and Touch Screen

Most canners only show you what the pressure is inside the canner. What is MOST IMPORTANT, however is the TEMPERATURE at a sustained high pressure. The high pressure is pre-set to 15 PSI. Pressure drives temperatures above the boiling point, to above the 240 degrees necessary to kill botulism. It must be sustained for a given period of time determined by the USDA. The Max shows it’s internal temperature the entire time it is running in the canning operation. If it should drop unexpectedly, it will stop working and flash it’s display until you fix it. For those who can’t handle the weight of a big stove top canner or don’t want to can foods in quarts, this is a great countertop addition to the kitchen. Four pints at a time gives me the right amount of canned food to enjoy right away and have extra on the shelf for later. I can take advantage of sales and don’t have to worry about power outages and losing a freezer full of food. It provides a quick, easy meal with only a warm-up needed when I’m too tired to cook from scratch, and ready-cooked meats for dinner or for my husband to take to work. I have not yet even tried sous vide function, but I will certainly be making bone broth soon. This is a wonderful companion to my regular Instant Pot Duo, both of which are very much welcome in my kitchen. I am legally blind, but I can still safely use these products. They are a joy to own and use.

Let’s start with the cons because there are so fewCon-the instructions on canning leave a lot to be desired and it would have been cool to include recipes for the canning and sou vie (sp) features.Pros- the touch screen is large enough I can read it without my glasses! NiceIt works exactly like the other instapots so I was familiar with how it operates.I have used it for canning meat and veg and it works perfect and so easy! Set it and forget it. Unlike my canner you can’t leave because you have to watch the gauge and make sure it stays to the correct pressure.It has a temp inside the canner so you can see that it’s hot enough to kill germs.It’s max canning load is 4 pint jars which is perfect for my little projects that I do most of. I dig out the big canner if I’m doing a large load of something.It has a sous vie (sp) feature I haven’t used yet but can’t wait to try. I hear you can poach eggs this way and they turn out perfect and easy.It’s less expensive then a presto canner and does way more stuff. The competition really needs to up its game to keep up with this machine.

I have used and owned the ultra, the duo evo plus , the new IP pro, and hands I down prefer this model. I do not use anything but pressure cook and sauté as I prefer to program my times based on the recipe I use and prior experience. The yogurt and sous vide are present should I need them. What I like is the constant feedback as to process in the cycle (heating/under pressure/ post warming cycle with display of minutes.). It also displays actual temperature achieved, and allows you to change your venting from “no venting,” to intermediate, to rapid, before, during, after you have finished cooking. Since they have not yet elected to program a timed pressure release in, this works well. I love the intermittent release vs rapid release of pressure at that point in time, particularly when cooking something like a pea/bean soup or cheesecake.I love that the inner lining is stainless steel.I have never used the higher pressure obtainable and did not buy it for this purpose. I have a canner for canning. I would trust the unit for canning pint jars at the higher pressure.I bought this unit initially for $149. I bought a back up to use concurrent with my prior as I love sautéing and gently cooking vegetables as I’m cooking other portions of my meal. The current offer is a steal. With gas prices high and escalating, utilizing an efficient unit like this as an extra burner may be under consideration.My only complaint is that they don’t have an 8 quart version.

I have had a the Wifi version of one of these for 9 months, used it twice. When I decided it was a good time to start using it more, I found that the Wifi didn't work anymore due to their changing things around. I figured I would rather have a better display anyway.I don't do most of the things these are capable of, I simply do occasional slow cooking when I can do that with a smaller pot (I have a normal larger slow cooker for normal use) or for pressure cooking. Since I didn't need all the other bells and whistles, I found what I DID want was a good screen, with usable details. My Wifi model left me guessing if it was even working or not. I love how this one shows me the warm up, the pressure, the release, all the states as they happen.I don't have any issues with the interface, it's easy to set what I want, program or change programs, and see at a glance just what is happening right now.It IS odd not having the normal steam release but I'm getting used to that.It's worked well, handled what I've done with it easily. These really do offer so many better options for families for ways to cook, and shorter cook times. Mine will start getting much more use as I become more familiar with the things I can cook with it.