Looking for a pressure canner

September 17, 2012 5:45 AM

Please recommend me a gasket-free pressure canner!

Bonus points if it can double as a hot water bath canner (I'm assuming they mostly can, since a hot water bath only requires a large vessel that holds water). I am in Guelph, Ontario but my parents live on the border with Buffalo, NY so I have access to whatever stores are there too.

Ideally, I would like it to be a no-gasket canner to avoid having to replace the gaskets every few years, but if there's some reason you swear by the other type, then by all means let me know.

posted by torisaur to food & drink (5 answers total)

All-American is a reputable and effective no-gasket canner. Pricey, but worth it over many years and many batches of canned goods.
posted by MonkeyToes at 6:21 AM on September 17, 2012

To the best of my knowledge, All-American is the only company that makes a gasket-free pressure canner.

I use a Presto pressure canner, which I really like, but it does have a gasket (though I'm three years in and it's still strong and pliable). It works fairly well as a boiling water bath canner when used with pint jars, but it's imperfect as a canner for quarts. The reason is that when pressure canning, the jars don't need to be submerged in water. So the pot it built to be just tall enough to hold quart jars, without enough height to allow you to have them submerged a full inch and still have some space for the water to boil and splash.

I do highly recommend it as a pressure canner, though.
posted by Marusula at 8:53 AM on September 17, 2012

I can't help with the no-gasket recommendation, but in case you don't know, coating the gasket in oil will really extend its lifespan. I do this with pam every time I use mine, and my Fagor's gasket is still looking great after a few years of regular use.
posted by susanvance at 9:44 AM on September 17, 2012

In my own opinion, spending so much more on a gasket-less pressure canner doesn't make sense compared to spending $8 or $9 every three or five years or so when the gasket wears out, and another 10 seconds replacing the thing.

I have a 16-qt Presto (with gasket) and love it. I replaced the dial with a weighted gauge, which I find to be more accurate. I also use it as my water bath canner.

I bought mine through Amazon, btw.
posted by mudpuppie at 12:44 PM on September 17, 2012

Bonus recipe.
posted by mudpuppie at 12:48 PM on September 17, 2012