REASONS TO BUY
Good overall cooking performance
Easy to clean
REASONS TO AVOID
No lid storage
Presto 02141 Review
An easy to clean, great performing product, especially for the price you pay
Credit: Presto
RELATED: Best Pressure Cookers
Our Verdict
The Presto manages to offer most of the performance of the best pressure cookers on the market despite often selling for much lower prices. As long as you're not invested in all of the recipe books and blogs that tailor themselves specifically to the settings and interface of the popular Instant Pot models on the market, we think the Presto is a perfect, generally, lower-cost alternative that is well-suited to share counter space with your other kitchen appliances.
Editor's Note: This pressure cooker gear review now includes more information on our favorite cookers and those we'd recommend. This update happened on February 4, 2022.
Compare to Similar Products
 This Product
Presto 02141 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Awards |  |  | |||
| Price | $87 List $92.52 at Amazon | $120 List $129.95 at Amazon | $80 List $79.99 at Amazon | $120 List | $76 List |
Overall Score  |
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| Star Rating | |||||
| Pros | Good overall cooking performance, easy to clean | Versatile, intuitive, feature-rich, great value | Perfect size for meals for one, easy to clean, good pressure cooking performance, doesn't need much counter space | Good pressure cooking performance, relatively easy to clean | Inexpensive, decent cooking performance |
| Cons | No lid storage | Rice is a bit sticky, lid and stainless steel pot can be difficult to clean | Too small for family meals, meat just shy of perfectly tender | Interface is a bit clunky, fewer cooking presets than average | Lacks a saute function, relatively difficult to clean |
| Bottom Line | An easy to clean, great performing product, especially for the price you pay | An easy-to-use, versatile model that won't break the bank and offers plenty of useful features | A fantastic smaller appliance for singles or for couples that aren't fans of leftovers | A capable cooker that lacks any differentiating features and doesn't feature the best price | Not a bad choice for bargain seekers, but you can get a lot more convenience without spending too much more |
| Rating Categories | Presto 02141 | Instant Pot Duo Plu... | Instant Pot DUO Mini | Cuisinart CPC-600N1 | Tayama TMC-60XL |
| User Friendliness (35%) | |||||
| Cooking Performance (30%) | |||||
| Ease of Cleaning (25%) | |||||
| Cooking Features (10%) | |||||
| Specs | Presto 02141 | Instant Pot Duo Plu... | Instant Pot DUO Mini | Cuisinart CPC-600N1 | Tayama TMC-60XL |
| Pot Material | Nonstick | Stainless Steel | Stainless Steel | Nonstick | Nonstick |
| Saute | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Capacity | 6 quart | 6 quart | 3 quart | 6 quart | 6 quart |
Show full specification detailsHide full specification details
Our Analysis and Test Results
Performance Comparison
The Presto offers excellent cooking performance at a great price.
Credit: Jason Peters
User Friendliness
For the most part, the Prest is easy to use even compared to other top-tier pressure cookers. Its interface is clear and easy to follow, the lid secures on easily, and the pressure release valve is relatively easy to release (be safe and use a wooden spoon, so your hand doesn't get near the ensuing burst of steam).
We do have a few minor complaints, however. The first is that there isn't any convenient storage for the lid when it's not in place. Many other models have a slot in one handle that can hold the lid vertically while you saute your veggies or serve your meal. This may seem minor, but it feels pretty luxurious not to have to hold the lid in one hand while you stir or serve with the other. Additionally, the LCD screen on the control panel is relatively small, so those that require reading glasses may have trouble reading it unaided.
We found the interface easy to use, but we wish the display were a bit bigger.
Credit: Jason Peters
Cooking Performance
While we generally didn't find cooking performance very different across machines (pressure cooking is a fairly consistent method), the Presto found its way into the upper echelon in our tests. This is mainly due to its ability to cook very tender meat (the ribs we made fell off the bone), one thing that can often be challenging for pressure cookers. We also found the saute mode quite effective — a vital characteristic for making one-pot meals.
One slight weakness we found with this model was its rice cooking. The rice came out very tender but a bit moist and sticky; those looking for fluffier rice may be slightly disappointed.
The Presto made fantastic ribs.
Credit: Jason Peters
Ease of Cleaning
Largely thanks to a nonstick pot certified by the manufacturer as dishwasher safe, we found the Presto to be one of the easiest models to clean of the many we tested.
That nonstick pot made scrubbing off burned veggies quick and easy, and the fact that we could toss it into the dishwasher was a huge plus. The two-piece lid has a removable gasket, making deeper cleaning fairly easy. Like every model we've ever tested, there is a gap where the lid secures onto the body that tends to catch bits of food and grease and is challenging to clean, but as of now, that's an unavoidable pitfall or pressure cooking.
Cleaning the pot is easy.
Credit: Jason Peters
Cooking Features
The Presto offers more cooking features than most models. If you're a fan of cooking presets in your appliances, the Presto 02141 won't disappoint.
A Full List of The Presto's Cooking Functions
Brown, Saute, Rice, Multigrain, Chop/Rib, Roast, Poultry, Fish, Soup, Stew, Vegetables high/low, Desserts, Beans, Slow Cook high/low, and Keep Warm
Should You Buy the Presto?
Thanks to all-around good performance and a propensity for being on sale, the Presto is often a fantastic lower-cost option for those looking for a new pressure cooker. However, it becomes much less compelling if you can't find it on sale. The Presto is as capable as many of the most popular models and lists for a similar price. However, it can be found on sale very often. We think it is a fantastic overall value if you find it on sale. If you can't find it on sale, you may want to consider going with one of the more popular models instead — they're popular for a reason.
What Other Pressure Cooker Should You Consider?
If price is not a concern, the Instant Pot Duo Plus 6 Quart is the highest-ranking option with impressive results in every testing metric.
—
Max Mutter and Michelle Powell
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