Tried, tested and top-rated by experts

We loved the Chef iQ smart cooker for its gorgeous build—minimalist black both inside and out with a simple screen and black knob—and customizable cook functions. You can dictate almost all aspects of each setting. For example, its Ferment function allows you to adjust the fermentation temperature, making it more versatile than the preset Yogurt function on the Instant Pot.

Designed for chefs by chefs, this pressure cooker offers some small but impactful details. It has a built-in tare function, so you can weigh ingredients directly into the pot and minimize dishes from building up in the sink. It also removes the guesswork during the initial pressurizing phase by displaying exactly how much pressure has built up in the cooker, so anxious cooks can more accurately estimate how long it’ll take until dinner is ready.

Plus, you can choose when and how pressure is released after cooking, so if you opt for immediate quick release, the cooker will automatically beep to let you know it’s about to release pressure and then do it for you in a totally hands-free experience.

This pressure cooker also connects easily to the Chef iQ app, which is beautifully designed and full of recipes and tips. It’s not required for you to sync the two before use, so you can add on the app at any point.

How We Tested Pressure Cookers

Hi, I’m Jenny! I’m a professional chef, writer, founder of a nonprofit community think tank called Studio ATAO, and author of Mastering the Instant Pot. I’ve been a pressure cooker fan since way before Instant Pots were a thing

Pressure cookers have been a staple in my mother’s kitchen for making flavorful stocks, tender braises, and creamy porridge for decades. In fact, it’s the first appliance she bought for me when I moved to a new city after college.

And we’re Bethany, Cassidy, and Valerie. All of us love to cook but work full-time, so coming home and having to prep dinner and lunch for over an hour gets exhausting, fast. Needless to say, we’re pressure cooker fans—and having each contributed to this piece more than once, we know our stuff.

Before selecting our final list of multicookers, we looked at a total of 20 Instant Pots and competitors. We passed over some of the earlier Instant Pots like the Instant Pot Lux, as the newer models offer features we wanted to check out.

Otherwise, we chose the ones with the best combination of high reviews, great features, and reasonable pricing. (If a multicooker was twice the price with half the features, it didn’t make the cut.)

We exclusively tested moderately sized 6-quart Instant Pots and other multicookers, although you can find many of these multicookers in 3- to 8-quart models. The 8-quart models are better for large families.

Credit:
Reviewed / Jackson Ruckar

We like the Instant Pot Smart Wifi because it’s a smart device with tons of features.

The Tests

To ensure each pressure cooker was a good all-rounder, we tried three recipe types in our first round of testing: a classic comfort food (chicken noodle soup), a date night special (saffron risotto), and a finicky breakfast bowl (yogurt from scratch).

We added a slow cooker chili in subsequent updates to see how these appliances measured up to a traditional slow cooking device. We used the same ingredients for each and took detailed notes about how easy or difficult it was to select the cooking functions and times, how the food came out, and how tough the pressure cooker was to clean.

We also noted any surprises. Did the milk heat up to the right temperature for making yogurt? Did the Instant Pot flash a weird symbol during cooking? Did the steam valve spray hot milk everywhere and startle us so much we accidentally threw a recipe book across the room?

For cleaning, we did everything by hand.

We also took into account how helpful the manual was (and how much we needed to use it while cooking), whether or not it came with a recipe book, whether or not you could manually set cooking temperature and pressure rather than rely on cooking programs, and whether or not those cooking functions worked as expected.

One of the nice things about these appliances is that with enough time spent consulting the manual and Googling your questions, you can figure out even the most confounding of tasks. That said, if a product left me wondering whether or not our food would be edible when it was finished, we took that into account.

How to Choose the Best Pressure Cooker For You

Most pressure cookers and multicookers come in a variety of sizes, so you can choose the best model for your family and living situation.

If you’re typically only cooking for one or two, models that come in a 3 or 6-quart size should suit you fine. But if you’re used to cooking for larger crowds, you’ll likely need an 8-quart pot.

And be mindful that most of these cookers will take up lots of space on your countertop, and are likely too heavy to lift in and out of a cabinet after each use. Be sure your kitchen space allows for a mainstay like this before purchasing one.

Cooking Functions

Some of the latest multicookers offer as many as 14 different cooking functions—from sous vide to air frying to yogurt making. But is that something you’ll really take advantage of as a home cook?

Consider how many cooking functions you’ll want to use in your multicooker, and whether it’s worth upgrading to the latest model. Similarly, if you’re someone who loves making your own yogurt or bread in a multicooker, be sure to make sure the model you’re eyeing has that capacity—not all of them do.

What Is The Difference Between A Pressure Cooker, A Slow Cooker and A Multicooker?

Given how many different types of kitchen gadgets are on the market these days, it’s helpful to know the difference between a pressure cooker, a slow cooker, and a multicooker.

In brief, a slow cooker—often referred to as a Crock-Pot—cooks or simmers food at a relatively low temperature for a long time. It’s frequently used to make stews, briskets, or anything that you might want to prep before heading out for the day and eat when you get home from work.

A pressure cooker speeds up this process by sealing food and liquid in a pot and using the trapped steam from cooking to quickly raise both the temperature and pressure. That makes them great for quickly making a meal that would otherwise take an hour or two.

Older pressure cookers used to be mostly stovetop models, but these days they’re largely electric and live on your counter.

Credit:
Reviewed / Betsey Goldwasser

The Ninja Foodi Pressure Cooker are Instant Pot Ultra are both multi-cookers that can do a lot more than slow cook—the Ninja can ever air fry.

A multicooker is simply an electric cooking device that combines multiple functions, such as slow cooking and pressure cooking and yogurt making, into one device.

In our experience, most electric pressure cookers—including the Instant Pot—are actually multicookers. But before you buy one, make sure it has the functions that you’re most likely to use.

These gadgets are extremely versatile, and ideal for quick cooking when you don’t want to dirty all of your pots and pans—or don’t want to turn on your oven. They’re also great for large families who need to cook for a lot of people at once.

The best multi cookers give you the freedom to cook a vast variety of meals all from the same pot. They’re incredibly easy to use and, if you have to work in a small kitchen, give you the freedom to experiment without requiring multiple appliances. With prices starting from as little as £35, they’re a brilliantly affordable addition to any chef’s toolset.

Multi cookers are often seen as a jack-of-all-trades appliance. While that’s still true to some extent, nowadays many of the best multi cookers are highly capable in their own right. Some even specialise in certain cooking methods, which is great if you have a preference towards one type of meal.

If you already have an idea of what you want, our at a glance list below will take you straight to retailers for our favourites. Alternatively, you can scroll down to find mini reviews of all the multi cookers we’ve tested. New to the world of multi cooking? We’ve put together a handy guide below to talk you through some of things you should consider before buying.

Best multi cookers

All of the best multi cookers will have preset functions for slow cooking, baking and either rice or steaming. Some multi cookers, such as the Instant Pot and Tefal All-In-One, can also pressure cook. These are a good option if you cook a lot of meat joints and want to achieve slow cooker-style tenderness, but don’t have time to wait around.

READ NEXT: Our pick of the best slow cookers

If healthy cooking is on your list of must-haves, a multi cooker with an air frying function may come in handy. The Ninja Foodi does just that, as well as all of the usual functions, so you can make stews, soups, pressure-cooked meats and crispy chips all with the same appliance. The only issue is that this versatility comes at a price: at around £200, you could potentially buy a cheaper multi cooker and separate air fryer for less.

What size multi cooker should I buy?

This depends entirely on the size of your household. If you’re cooking for one to two people, then anything from 1.4l upwards should be just fine. For families of four to five, we’d suggest nothing smaller than 4l. If you cook for a crowd regularly or are seriously into batch cooking, then we’d suggest a 6-7l multi cooker.

How much should I spend?

When it comes to multi cookers, pricier certainly doesn’t always equal better. Though many of them have the same basic functions, these appliances can be quite varied at times, so we’d suggest deciding what you need the most (slow cooking, air frying, pressure cooking) and choosing a model that excels in that area.

If you want something that simply slow cooks and makes rice, then a budget cooker around the £30-£40 mark is probably more than enough for what you need. However, if you can take advantage of the extra functions, we’d always suggest spending as much as you can.

Anywhere between £60-£100 will get you something decent and probably have enough variety. If you really want to experiment, then it may be worth spending even more on a model with specialist functions and more adjustability.

READ NEXT: Best pressure cookers for super-speedy meals

The best multi cookers to buy

With similar styling to the Instant Pot, Tefal’s impressively affordable all-in-one cooker excels in a lot of areas. We’re particularly fond of its pressure cook and steaming functions, but it also does a whole host of other things including slow cooking, rice steaming, baking and browning. Rather unusually, this multi cooker also has its own one-touch function for warming and preparing baby food, which is very neat.

If you’re looking for an Instant Pot clone that’s a bit more affordable, this is a good option. The 6l capacity is enough to accommodate a small family whether you’re cooking rice, curry, soups or stews. Better still, the inner bowl is dishwasher safe, making it relatively easy to clean.

Key specs – Capacity: 6l; Dimensions: 28 x 30 x 30cm (WDH); Accessories: Steam basket, trivet, measuring cup, spatula; Dishwasher safe bowl: Yes; Guarantee: 2 years

The best multi cooker for pressure cooking

This cult classic is loved by many home cooks due to its versatility. We really like it as a pressure cooker and it makes exceptional rice, too. Other functions include steaming, sautéing, warming, slow cooking and yoghurt making. Capacity-wise, it’s about the same size as the Ninja Foodi, but it’s far more affordable.

The Instant Pot has more than enough functions for the everyday home cook and does all of them pretty well for the price. There are cheaper options on this list but they don’t deliver such consistent results, so if you can stretch to it, this offers an almost perfect balance between performance and price.

Key specs – Capacity: 5.7l; Dimensions: 31 x 34 x 31.7cm (WDH); Accessories: None; Dishwasher safe bowl: Yes; Guarantee: Not specified

Ninja Foodi 11-in-1 SmartLid Multi Cooker

Though it isn’t Ninja’s most expensive model (that honour goes to the Ninja Foodi MAX 15-in-1), the Foodi 11-in-1 does come at a premium price. However, if you’re willing to spend that little bit extra, you’ll get your hands on a high-quality, versatile multi-cooker.

While it might be on the large side, the Ninja Foodi 11-in-1 is aesthetically pleasing and well designed, with a clear and readable digital display and easy to use controls. You can switch between three modes – pressure cooking, air frying and steaming – as well as 11 different cooking functions. These include classic functions such as slow cooking, air frying, and roasting, as well as two new “combi-steam” functions, which combine steaming with baking or air frying for fluffier bakes and juicier, more tender meats.

In testing, it performed admirably in a number of areas but was particularly impressive when pressure cooking and steaming. It’s also much simpler to use than previous models, as the newly designed MultiLid doesn’t need to be changed out when switching between its three main modes. This cleverly designed lid, combined with impressive functionality make the Ninja Foodi 11-in-1 one of the simplest, yet most feature-packed multi cookers available.

Read our full Ninja Foodi 11-in-1 SmartLid Multi Cooker review.

Key specs – Capacity: 6l; Dimensions: 41cm x 39cm x 40cm (HWD); Accessories: 6L cooking pot, crisp basket, reversible rack; Dishwasher safe pot: Yes; Guarantee: 1 year

Best multi cooker for fast meals

Marrying style, versatility and convenience, the Ninja Speedi is the first real game changer we’ve seen in the rapid cooking space in some time. Underneath its aesthetically pleasing powder-blue finish and bevelled edges the Speedi houses a versatile multi cooker with air frying, slow cooking, grilling, sauteing, baking, roasting, dehydrating, steaming and combi-steam abilities.

While very impressive, the Speedi isn’t quite perfect: the rapid cooker’s saute setting didn’t quite match the fierce heat of our hob and sadly, this model lacks any pressure cooking functionality. If the latter happens to be a dealbreaker for you, then you may be better off opting for something like the Ninja Foodi 11-in-1. Otherwise, the Ninja Speedi is a multi-cooking option whose convenience and versatility are hard to match.

Read our full Ninja Speedi review

Key specs – Capacity: 5.7L; Dimensions: 31cm x 33cm x 35cm (HWD); Accessories: Adjustable grill plate, cooking pot; Dishwasher safe parts: Yes; Guarantee: 1 year

The best multi cooker for slow cooking

We love the temperature and timer controls: the digital display allows you to quickly and easily set your preferred temperature and cook time, something most of the cheaper options on this list are missing. It’s disappointing that there’s no set function for rice, though.

Key specs – Capacity: 5.6l; Dimensions: 46 x 34 x 28.2cm (WDH); Accessories: Roasting rack, measuring cup; Dishwasher safe bowl: Yes; Guarantee: Not specified

Lakeland Mini Multi Cooker

Whether you’re a student or you’ve just got a tiny kitchen, this multi cooker ticks all the right boxes. Much like the Instant Pot, this dinky cooker excels at making rice, but we also got great results when baking a cake and slow-cooking a stew for two in it. The delay start time and keep warm functions are also a godsend.

Alongside multiple rice options, cake baking and slow cooking, you can also make oatmeal, quinoa and yoghurt in it. Due to its size and price there isn’t a steamer basket or option to adjust temperature settings. That’s frustrating, but we didn’t find the latter affected the quality of our stew at all.

Key specs – Capacity: 1.4l; Dimensions (WDH): 23.5 x 28 x 20cm; Accessories: Measuring cup, plastic spatula; Dishwasher safe bowl: No; Guarantee: 3 years, if bought via Lakeland.

With one of the best multi-cookers, you’ll have access to an array of cooking functions right at your fingertips. These cookers are incredible value for money, with up to 14 cooking settings available in one unit, and offer versatility for those who need space-saving appliance solutions.

Often combining pressure cooking with modes for slow cooking, baking, steaming, and even air frying, these multi-cookers really can change the way you use your kitchen. If you’re a keen chef, you’ll be sure to take advantage of all of the ability they have to offer.

That’s exactly what we’ve done, with a panel of expert reviewers weighing in on how well these multi-cookers can replace rice cookers, the best slow cookers, and debating if they can oust the best air fryers from your kitchen.

Below are our top picks of the best multi-cookers on the market, with budget-friendly models for under £100 alongside more expensive options, if you’re looking to invest a little more.

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(Image credit: Instant Pot)

The best multi-cooker overall

Specifications

5.7 L or 8 L

28 pre-set cooking programs

Pressure cook, slow cook, steam, sauté, bake, sous vide, yogurt, rice/ grain

Stainless steel pot, steam rack, spare sealing ring

Reasons to buy

Silicone cooking pot handles

Safe and easy steam release

Free recipe app makes it easy to adapt to

Reasons to avoid

The pot isn’t non-stick

The Instant Pot Pro has a sleek black exterior and is fully loaded with presets and cooking functions to take centre stage in your kitchen. We appreciated how compact the 5.7 litre model we tested was, but it also comes with an 8 litre pot for larger families. Something that can put people off pressure cooking is the steam vent release. This lets out high-pressure steam, which can splutter depending on the machine you’re using. We had no such issues with the Instant Pot Pro though, thanks to the switch to the side of the valve which means you can keep your distance.

We made tasty brown rice in just 30 minutes, and were left with fluffy separated grains. The slow cooking mode was also impressive, but it’s worth noting that with all multi-cookers they will retain liquid better than a regular slow cooker, so reduce the amount of stock you’re using to get the same result you’re used to with your slow cooker.

Everything, even the lid, can go straight in the dishwasher, which we were thrilled with. Especially because the pot isn’t non-stick, it’s nice to know there won’t be any need for scrubbing.

Read our full Instant Pot Pro review.

(Image credit: Ninja)

The best multi-cooker for in-built air frying

Pressure, steam, slow cook, yogurt, sear/ sauté, air crisp, grill, bake/ roast, dehydrate

Non-stick cooking pot

Hinged crisping lid can’t be removed

The air frying lid (which is known as the tendercrisp lid) is hinged to the side of the cooker, so when you use the pressure lid you need to allow room for the crisp lid to stand upright. This can make it tricky to fit the Ninja Foodi 9-in-1 Multi-Cooker OP350UK under kitchen counters. The air frying is actually really good, though. We were able to make an entire roast chicken by pressure cooking and then air frying it, and the potato wedges it made were even and crispy.

We enjoyed the non-stick cooking pot, but it can swivel around slightly when stirring because the pot isn’t held into place with handles like the Instant Pot Pro. The bottom of the pot is also slightly curved, which made it tricky to add oil to the pot without it gathering at the sides. Cleaning is a breeze, and the handles on the side make this a storage-friendly multi-cooker.

Read our full Ninja Foodi 9-in-1 review.

(Image credit: Sage)

The best multi-cooker for easy presets

Pressure cook, slow cook, steam, sauté/ sear, sous vide, reduce

Stainless steel cooking bowl, stainless steel trivet

Pre-sets work on pressure or slow cook

Handles make it very portable

Cooking bowl can’t go in dishwasher

Sage’s latest multi cooker, the Sage Fast Slow Go, is a great alternative to the fascia of many multi-cookers. The images make it more attractive, but also easier to get to grips with. You can choose between pressure and slow cooking for many of the presets, and it can also be used to steam, sous vide, and reduce.

The hinged lid is unusual, and not our favourite. It can be removed, but the process is quite fiddly. We do like that the pressure cook mode releases the valve hands-free, which means you won’t need to worry about any splattering hot water.

We made a very delicious risotto in just 18 minutes using the Sage Fast Slow Go, and it required no stirring. Another dish we tried was a chickpea curry using dried chickpeas on the legume setting. This was a big win, and while we’re not usually fans of using dried chickpeas, this machine may have converted us for how easy the process was.

Buy Sage The Fast Slow Go, £169.95, at sageappliances.com (opens in new tab)

Read our full Sage The Fast Slow Go review.

(Image credit: Magimix )

The best multi-cooker for premium design

3.5 L metal bowl, 3.6 L food processor bowl

13 automatic programmes + 1 expert manual programme

Steam, soup, blend, chop, bread, and more

Universal blade, Steamer basket & tray, Whisk, Heat-resistant spatula, three-layer food processor, 2 slicing discs, 2 grading discs

Food processor and cooking attachment

Completely hands-free cooking

It’s a very expensive choice

The Magimix Cook Expert brings an alternative take on multi-cooking, with an attachment to put even the best food processor out of a job, and a cooking bowl with blades attached at the bottom which can whiz through soup or stews with ease. You can use the presets for soup (chunky or smooth), blending, frozen desserts, and even kneading dough, or even freestyle on the manual cooking mode to make your own recipes.

We really enjoyed how immersive the Magimix Cook Expert experience is. You can join online groups to get tips on new recipes to try, and it’s amazing to see how many different things people make in their Cook Expert. This includes mulled wine, porridge, even custard. The blades at the bottom can be removed, but it’s best not to do this when you’ve just finished cooking and they’re hot, so the grooved spatula is needed to get ingredients out of the bottom of the cooking pot. It’s a bit fiddly when cooking dishes like porridge or mashed potato.

None of the other multi-cookers we tried had blades attached, so while you can use the steam insert or use the Magimix Cook Expert as one of the best soup makers, you will also enjoy being able to set the blades on a slow mode to use them to stir rice or veggies while they cook from the bottom of the cooking pot. Cleaning is very easy, because everything is dishwasher-safe.

Read our full Magimix Cook Expert review.

(Image credit: Tefal)

The best multi-cooker for under £100

Pressure, steam, slow cook, simmer, brown, bake, baby food, oatmeal, rice

Measuring cup, spatula, steam basket, trivet, recipe booklet

24-hour keep warm function

Recipe book included

Great for rice

No obvious start button

If you want the best multi-cooker for under £100, the Tefal CY505E40 is a great choice. We really loved the control panel, which made it easy to pick the right mode for you, and there’s a lot this multi-cooker can do. It made delicious, fluffy rice, the likes of which we’d expect from one of the best rice cookers. We also really enjoyed the recipe book included, which made it easier to get used to using the Tefal CY505E40.

The compact design of the Tefal CY505E40 will be a winner in smaller kitchens, but again, the lid is hinged. Using the browning program before switching on the pressure cooking mode was useful for getting the most flavour out of a delicious beef stew, and the whole process was pretty low-effort.

One issue we had was the lack of an obvious start button. Instead there’s an icon, which you’ll need to find in the control manual, but it does make getting started a little trickier. Cleaning was easy. The non-stick coating of the cooking pot was appreciated, especially from Tefal, who makes some of the best non-stick frying pans. It can’t go in the dishwasher though.

Read our full Tefal CY505E40 review.

(Image credit: Crockpot )

The best multi-cooker for cooking meat

Pressure, steam, slow cook, brown, bake, rice, yoghurt

Stirring spoon, steaming rack and sous vide rack

Makes 6+ functions

Makes great stew

Separate pressure release dial

Not great for steaming veggies

The Crockpot Turbo Express Electric Pressure Cooker made delicious stews. We were able to brown the meat first before switching over to slow cook or pressure cooking mode and leaving it to cook. The turbo settings There are presets for rice, beans, stew, meat, and ever desserts, as well as manual settings to let you get stuck in.

Steaming was a little tricky, as was cooking rice, but this is a multi-cooker that you’ll enjoy after an initial adjustment period. It’s also well-priced, and great for generous portions. The steam vent is once again distinguished from the pressure switch, so you won’t have to worry about splatters with this multi-cooker. It’s got a non-stick pot, but it’s not dishwasher-safe.

Read our full Crockpot Turbo Express Electric Pressure Cooker review.

How to choose the best multi-cooker

(Image credit: TBC)

If you’re looking for the best multi-cooker to make stews and speed up cooking times, you’ll be safe with an entry-level model. Most multi-cookers can pressure cook, so you’ll be able to enjoy cooking all types of meat and pulses with a range of functions to brown and then cook your dish. However, not all multi-cookers come with an air fryer in-built. Adding an air fryer into the equation will let you switch from pressure cooking to air frying, which will crisp up the skin of your chicken or make your roasties in minutes.

How did we review the best multi-cookers?

(Image credit: Future PLC)

As more multi-cookers continue to hit the market, we’ll be reviewing to continuously update this guide with the top options on the market, in line with our commitment to how we test products at Ideal Home.

Millie is the Head of Reviews for Ideal Home, working to ensure that the products we feature have been thoroughly tested before we recommend them to you. Previously Small Appliance and Cookware Editor, she remains our go-to expert for all things related to kitchen appliances.

She’s constantly reviewing the latest and greatest releases and has tested an array of multi-cookers on the market in order to tell you exactly what you need to know about them.

From this list, she’s had hands-on experience with the Magimix Cook Expert

Freelance Writer & Home Economist

Helen is a regular contributor to Ideal Home, reviewing appliances to let us know what they’re worth. She lives in a village in Buckinghamshire and reviewed the Instant Pot Pro, the Ninja Foodi 9-in-1 and the Sage the Fast Go Slow from this list from our own kitchen, which is in a 17th century cottage with unnervingly low beams that make her glad to be short. She tested them by using them to cook all sorts of everyday foods for herself and her husband and was allowed to keep them after the review, to see how they fare in the long run.

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Product Care Instructions

Hand Wash Only, Season with vegetable oil

About this item

ENTIRELY MADE OF CAST IRON: The Deli&Co Baking pan is fully made of cast iron, which delivers the proper heat to bake a perfect sourdough bread.
ERGONOMIC HANDLES: The top and bottom handles have ergonomic shapes and a slight difference in length to make the handling process of the hot pan easier.
EASY TO CLEAN: Its entire body is designed with cast iron and seasoned with vegetable oil ensures a smooth experience in wash time. Make sure to dry it completely after cleaning.
MULTIFUNCTIONAL: Use the base of the pan to grill steaks, bake focaccias, cornbread and vegetables. Use the lid for stews, soups and much more.
Excellent heat conductivity: Cast iron baking pans perfectly creates an environment for baking loafs because of the conductivity present in its entire body. In addition, as it accepts different heat sources, it also becomes an alternative to reduce the number of utensils during food preparation.

Customer ratings by feature

: Products with electrical plugs are designed for use in the US. Outlets and voltage differ internationally and this product may require an adapter or converter for use in your destination. Please check compatibility before purchasing.

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Reviews with images

5.0 out of 5 stars

My Bread Pan Dream Come True

I took up sourdough bread baking earlier this year and did pretty well with my Calphalon Dutch oven. But it’s round and I’ve really developed an affinity for batard vs boule so I started looking for an oval Dutch oven. I guess the Challenger pan is the gold standard but it’s very expensive. When I saw this one, it seemed to be everything I wanted. The reviewer Ann’s picture of hers hanging on the wall sold me. I have limited storage space and this seemed like an ideal solution.

I have baked one loaf so far and it came out great. I noticed the bottom didn’t ‘burn’ as much as usual so that’s a plus. Plenty of room for my 500g batard, I will try larger loaves soon. The seasoning it came with held up fine but I do plan to do a few more passes and see how that holds up. While I can use this as an actual Dutch oven, I rarely cook that big, but it’s great to know it’s here if I need it.

This is a bit pricey but it’s an investment and certainly less than the prices I saw for Challenger. All in all I think this is the best value for the most function I found and I’m looking forward to many years of producing great bread. Thanks again to ‘Ann’ for her thoughtful review and pictures.

11 people found this helpful

I’m in love with my cast Iron “Dutch Oven”

Can one actually say one is in love with a pot? I can! To all bread bakers out there, this is a game changer! My sourdough went from mediocre to pretty good if I may say so. It made the difference!

Bottom line, you won’t be sorry if you buy this Ditch Oven. It’s magnificent!

27 people found this helpful

Wonderful Baker and pot and griddle!

I’ve only used this once to bake bread (used the griddle for steaks) and it’s great! Don’t worry about my terrible scoring of the loaf 😁. It’s one (half of 1 recipe) “Tartine country loaf” so you can see how it fits.

There’s no rough edges to the entire thing. It’s very substantial and seasoned from the factory very well. It’s even coated in oil when it’s shipped.

As for baking a loaf I put aluminum/tin foil on the bottom to stop over browning but that was probably not needed.The top seals really well and there’s significant steam released when you pull it off during a bake

The only thing right now I’d change is a bigger lip on the sides or a top or top side handle to assist taking the lid off

Like someone else already mentioned I too hung it in a pantry and the side handles make this extremely easy.

10 people found this helpful

Brazillian Bread Pan

Really like my new bread pan. It has sturdy construction without being too heavy. Priced much better than a comparable US brand. I have no complaints about this product.

One person found this helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars

nice but heavy

It was too heavy for me to use – around 20 pounds – but I’m sure it would have worked beautifully.

What a Breadpan!

Great breadpan! Endless possibilities!

Needs top handle

This item would be much better if there was a handle on the top which would make taking it off when hot much easier.

13 people found this helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars

Second time Open box

5 people found this helpful

This Instant Pot can pressure cook, slow cook, sauté, steam, and keep food warm. The lid is designed for easy sealing, and the pressure release valve automatically sets to sealing, so there’s no chance of cooking with the vent open by accident. Quick-cool technology helps it cool to release pressure quicker so that you don’t have to wait as long for the lid to open. This model comes in a 3-, 6-, or 8-quart size and is popular because it performs all of its functions incredibly well and makes cooking much faster and easier.

We made various dishes, including hard-cooked eggs, steel-cut oats, chickpea stew from dried chickpeas, mushroom risotto, lentils and sausages, bread pudding, salmon, and bone broth. Each meal turned out delicious and perfectly cooked, making this model precise and reliable.

The Spruce Eats / Danielle Centoni

“I tested its ability to slow cook, making chili with dried pinto beans and beef chuck, and soup with a ham hock and dried cannellini beans. It always produced tender beans and meat in four hours on high.” — Danielle Centoni, Product Tester

Courtesy of Amazon

Great for small meals and spaces
Basket for rinsing and steaming
14 pre-programmed settings

Great for small spaces and small-to-medium batches, this compact multi-cooker won’t break the bank. It holds 4.5 quarts, so it can also be great for folks who already have a larger cooker but want an extra for side dishes. It has 14 cooking presets for white rice, brown rice, sushi rice, whole grains, hot cereals, quinoa, sauté, steam cook, soup/simmer, sear/brown, and warm. It also has high and low slow-cooking options and a delay timer.

The included basket can be used for rinsing rice before cooking and steaming vegetables while rice cooks in the pot below. For easy cleaning after cooking, the removable aluminum pot is dishwasher-safe. The downside to this cooker, though, is that is doesn’t have a pressure cooking function, which would otherwise cut down on cook time for dense ingredients like dried beans.

What Our Experts Say

“I love steaming in my multi-cooker versus on the stovetop. When I steamed on the stovetop, I had to pay attention to water levels. I burnt a hole in my mom’s steamer pan once because the water evaporated dry. With the multi-cooker, I can just press ‘cook’ and forget about it until it beeps.” — Pat Tanumihardja, Author of “Instant Pot Asian Pressure Cooker Meals”

15 presets, including pressure cook settings
Progress bar tracks pressurization
Can sterilize baby bottles and canning jars

This multi-cooker is relatively inexpensive for being so versatile and offering such a large cooking capacity. It offers 15 cooking presets, half of which utilize pressure cooking for faster cook times and consistent results. You can use this cooker to brown/sear, sauté, slow cook, simmer, boil, make yogurt, keep warm, cook meat/poultry, make beans/chili, make soup/broth, make rice/grains, make dessert, steam, and even sterilize items like baby bottles or canning jars. It also has manual control of temperature and pressure along with a delay timer. A steam release dial on top of the cooker allows you to keep your hands away from the steam.

We tested the 6-quart version of this multi-cooker, which is the version featured in the full review above, and found that it performed very similarly to the Instant Pot Duo and offers similar preset programs. The Instant Pot just offers three settings instead of two (the Crock-Pot has just low and high settings, lacking a medium option) as well as a manual option for when you don’t want to use presets. It’s also about an inch shorter and narrower.

“In terms of its straight-up ability to successfully pressure cook or slow cook a wide variety of foods, the Express Crock performs just as reliably as other electric multi-cookers.” — Danielle Centoni, Product Tester

Courtesy of Bed Bath & Beyond

Oval shape ideal for roasts
Easy-to-use dial controls
Programmable up to 24 hours in advance

No handles on steam rack
Fewer presets than many cookers

This cooker has a dishwasher-safe cooking pot, so cleaning is easy when you’re done cooking and serving. One dial controls the cooking mode, with three slow-cooking temperatures, an oven bake mode, browning and sautéing, steaming, and rice cooking. A second dial controls the temperature, making it easy to set the cooker for any of your favorite recipes.

Settings can be programmed up to 24 hours in advance, and the keep-warm mode makes sure the food stays at the perfect serving temperature without overcooking. A recipe app is available with 50 recipes designed specifically for this cooker.

Wide temperature range
One-touch browning and cooking

No delayed-start option
Less versatility than other multi-cookers

Most multi-cookers hold 6 quarts or less, but this cooker gives more cooking space with a 7-quart cooking pot. It has four cooking functions: slow cook, roast, brown/sauté, and steam, so it’s great for all types of cooking. Even better, all functions except steam can be customized. Make sure to select the 7-quart version if you’re going for the large-capacity option, as it comes in 3.5, 4, 6, and 6.5 quarts, too. It has sturdy handles for easy transportation and looks beautiful on a buffet line.

Slow cook can be set for high, low, simmer, or warm. Roasting temperatures can be set from 250 to 450 degrees, so it’s great for low-and-slow roasting or high-heat cooking for a great crust on a roast or crisp skin on a chicken. The brown/sauté setting can even be cranked up to 500 degrees for an impressive sear. The cooking pot has a nonstick coating, but it’s dishwasher-safe for easy cleaning when cooking is complete.

“Red cooked pork (braised pork in soy sauce) is one of my favorite meals to cook in the multi-cooker. It usually takes at least a couple of hours of simmering on the stovetop for the meat to turn out tender and soft. In the multi-cooker, it takes only 30 to 40 minutes. The same goes for other long-simmering braises, like curries and stews.” — Pat Tanumihardja, Author of “Instant Pot Asian Pressure Cooker Meals”

Adjustable time and temperature
Separate lids allow pressure cooking, air frying
High wattage for quick heating

Multi-cookers are known for their array of functions, but Ninja takes this further by adding air frying to the mix. Swing the multi-cooker’s attached lid closed to air crisp, bake, roast, or broil. Leave it open and it can be used to sear and sauté. Lock on the separate pressure cooker lid and the 6.5-quart unit can be used for pressure cooking, steaming, slow cooking, and making yogurt. The FD302 model can also be used to dehydrate, cook sous vide-style, and keep food warm.

Each of the multi-cooker’s functions can be activated at the touch of a button. Although each has a default temperature or pressure and time programmed into the cooking mode, you can adjust these in most cases if your recipe differs from the presets.

Courtesy of William Sonoma

Attractive on the table
Three slow-cook settings

All-Clad might be best known for its quality cookware, but it also makes quality cooking appliances like this multi-cooker. The mirror-finished exterior will look classy in any kitchen and stunning on the buffet table.

The center dial sets the cooking mode for slow cooking, rice, steam, sear, or simmer, while buttons fine-tune the choices. You can preheat the pot, select temperatures, or use the keep-warm/buffet button to keep food warm without overcooking it. The nonstick surface in the cooking pot is safe for metal utensils, so there’s no need to panic when a guest grabs the wrong serving spoon, but softer utensils like wood or silicone are preferred. The lid and steam basket are dishwasher-safe, but the insert should be washed by hand.

Built for small batches
Pour spout and lid vents for straining
Attractive retro design
Easy to use

There’s no doubt about it, this multi-cooker has a unique look, somewhat like the child of a toaster and a tea kettle, with a jaunty lid and handy side handles. The control panel is arranged in a neat circle with settings for risotto, rice, sear, sauté, simmer, soup, yogurt, boil/steam, low or high slow cook, and keep warm.

We recommend purchasing the compatible stir tower, which has the ability to stir food while it cooks, allowing you to achieve perfect risotto every time and cook onions that won’t stick or burn. The tower has three constant-stir speeds and two intermittent modes so it can be customized to what’s cooking. The cooker has a 4-quart capacity, so it’s great for singles and couples and perfect for side dishes.

For an easy-to-use multi-cooker that releases its pressure valve automatically, consider the Instant Pot Duo 7-in-1 Electric Pressure Cooker. For a solid buy that won’t break the bank, we recommend the Hamilton Beach 4.5-Quart Digital Multi-Cooker.

What to Look for in a Multi-Cooker

Size might be your first consideration when buying a multi-cooker. These devices can be bulky and heavy, so overall dimensions can matter if you have limited storage space. If your kitchen is large and you use your multi-cooker often, you might be able to devote countertop space to it. If you’ll be storing it in a cupboard, pantry, or closet, it’s best to not have to bend over or reach overhead to lift the cooker in and out.

Interior size matters, too; most multi-cookers have their capacity listed in quarts. A 6-quart model works well for four to six people. For larger batches, you may want a bigger unit, while one- or two-person meals may cook best in a smaller device.

Versatility and Features

Multi-cookers typically come with numerous presets that let you cook certain foods, from soup to rice, without digging out a recipe for specific cook times and temperatures. Each model can vary in its offerings, and one of the biggest differences between cookers is that some offer pressure-cook settings while others do not. Having pressure-cook settings is a big deal, as they can cook dense items like dried beans and thick cuts of meat in much less time and with very consistent results.

The most versatile multi-cookers give you plenty of manual control, too. These may be important if you want to use them for your favorite stovetop recipes, choose your preferred tanginess for yogurt, or adjust pressure or temperature to handle delicate foods like eggs and fish.

Even though multi-cookers are meant to properly cook meals without you watching exactly how that magic happens, a few key specs are worth considering. High and low settings for pressure cooking and slow cooking let you keep vegetables crisp, fish flaky, and pulled pork moist. A high-powered device reaches pressure more quickly than a low-watt model, which may be more appropriate for steaming rice and slow-cooking stews.

Many multi-cookers have nonstick interior pots that can be cleaned in a dishwasher, but most manufacturers still recommend washing by hand and avoiding metal utensils to keep that surface scratch-free. Models with hinged lids or pressure valves can be harder to clean by hand than those with glass lids.

FAQs

Some multi-cookers include a bake function that can make bread much like you would in a standard oven. For others, the slow-cooker setting can be used to bake bread or other baked goods. Breads take longer on a slow-cook setting than in an oven, but with a multi-cooker, you can bake indoors or outside without heating the house.

Can you fry in a multi-cooker?

Frying can be challenging in most multi-cookers. As noted by Pat Tanumihardja, author of “Instant Pot Asian Pressure Cooker Meals,” the sauté function rarely hits the temperature you can reach on a cooktop, leaving a stir-fry soggy.

Air frying may be the best solution for cooking frozen breaded chicken or crispy potato wedges in a standalone device. Some multi-cookers, like the Ninja model in this round-up, come with a built-in crisping lid and air-frying functions. Some other bands sell a separate lid that turns the multi-cooker into an air fryer.

Can you boil eggs in a multi-cooker?

Not only can you hard-boil eggs in a multi-cooker, but fresh eggs can be boiled and then easily peeled, which is one of the biggest challenges after stovetop boiling. To achieve this, you’ll want a multi-cooker with a pressure cooking function that can be set to low pressure. At high pressure, the shells can crack before the egg is cooked.

Why Trust The Spruce Eats?

This roundup was updated by Katya Weiss-Andersson, a writer and editor who has nearly a decade of experience as a professional chef. Katya is a big Instant Pot fan after being a hardcore skeptic for years; she loves that cooking beans, lentils, risottos, and stews in her multi-cooker takes less time and effort than on the stove.

Sources

Pat Tanumihardja is the author of “Instant Pot Asian Pressure Cooker Meals.”