Prestige 4L Deluxe Alpha Pressure Cooker Review

Welcome back to Top Pressure Cooker Reviews and today we have another stainless steel pressure cooker to review.

Prestige is a company which has been making pressure cookers for a really long time! They were originally known as TTK, a company from India. In 1959 they began their pressure cooker journey with a “technical collaboration” with another company, Prestige from the UK. Hence, we now have TTK Prestige, or simply Prestige to most pressure cooker buyers!

As they have been around in this industry for so long, we should expect great things then! Right!

Well, let’s dive deep and find out!

So, to begin….

The first point of confusion was how to say the name of this product? Some websites list it as the Prestige Alpha Deluxe, whereas the sticker on the product clearly seems to have the name the other way around!

A quick visit to the Prestige official website does in fact back up that the sticker is in the know here! So, throughout this review we will use the proper and correct name of “Deluxe Alpha”.

Stove top vs Electronic

As I do at the start of all my reviews, I want to give a word of warning (or advice). Before buying a pressure cooker, please decide whether you want an electronic variety or a more traditional stove top (usually stainless steel) pressure cooker. We have a quick crash course on the lower half of our home page to help with this monumental decision!!

With all that chit-chat out of the way, let’s (finally) get on with the review!

In this review we will go over all the features of the product and, at the end, whether we recommend it. We will also touch on the important subject of pressure canning.

Is the Prestige Deluxe Alpha well designed?

I like to start reviews looking at the design of the product. We all know that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so of course this is just my own opinion!

This stainless steel pressure cooker has a kind of rugged and utilitarian look to it. This is probably due to the fact that it is a traditional design, without bells or whistles. It doesn’t attempt any modern sweeping lines or chiseled good looks.

Personally, I want something that looks hip and cool in my kitchen. If you want this, the Prestige Deluxe Alpha is not for you. However, if you like a more traditional style, you may love it!

Along with this traditional design, comes a rather old school feature. I have seen this feature in very old pressure cookers from my childhood, so I know it is old!

The lid has a rather old interlocking design, where you get a metal on metal lock from lid to pressure cooker. The problem with this is that, if you put the lid on slightly wrong, it can become quite tight and hard to unlock. I almost feel like I would need to oil the contact points to stop this from happening, but that could just be me!

What are the Prestige Deluxe Alpha’s main features?

Quality and Simplicity

The expectation with most stainless steel pressure cookers is that they will offer a higher quality construction, which usually means they will last longer. Their simple nature means their is usually much less to go wrong.

I wouldn’t put the Prestige Deluxe Alpha into the top bracket of quality, but would definitely say it is a solid mid range quality offering.

Size Options

This Prestige pressure cooker comes in a wide variety of sizes. We are currently looking at the 4 liter version (around 4.2 quarts), although you could go as small as 3.5 liters or all the way up to 10! So, Prestige certainly have you covered in terms of size.

And, the difference in price between the sizes is usually just a few dollars.

Alpha Base

Now we come to the whole reason is it called the “Deluxe Alpha”, the Alpha Base.

This base is a sandwich of aluminum between two pieces of steel. The heavy duty and quality nature of this base should help give an even level of heat across the pressure cooker. It also means it can be used on both induction style hobs, as well as regular gas ones.

Again, I would call this base a solid mid tier offering, without being anything particularly outstanding.

Precision Weight Valve

I know I said I don’t like the design of the Prestige Deluxe Alpha earlier, but for some reason I do like the look of this valve! Maybe I am just weird, but to me it adds a slightly more quality look to the pressure cooker. It’s a shame the rest of the design doesn’t follow through.

The actual purpose of this precision weight valve is to make sure that the pressure inside the cooker stays under a safe level. If not, this valve will release pressure.

Pressure Indicator

All stainless steel pressure cookers have some kind of pressure indicator, to indicate to the user that the pressure cooker is at the desired pressure level.

The Prestige Deluxe Alpha’s way of covering this feature is to have a pin that pops up from the lid slightly when the pressure is built up. This seems to be the go to system for this in most Prestige pressure cookers. The problem I have with this, is the pin is a little on the small side. This means it is not always easy to see at a glance from across the kitchen.

Safety Features?

Does the Prestige Deluxe Alpha have any safety features? It pretty much has the same basic safety features as any half decent stainless steel pressure cooker.

It has a “controlled gasket release system”, which will release pressure in the event that the main pressure release valve not working for some reason. They also have a 3rd option to release steam, the “metallic safety pug”.

To me, these features are not anything exciting or special. They are not mould breaking in any way, but at least you know that your Prestige pressure cooker shouldn’t explode with pressure!

What does the average consumer think?

A quick glance to Amazon will tell you all you need to know about this! The Prestige Deluxe Alpha (4L variety) currently has 62 reviews. Not a metric ton of reviews, but enough to give us a picture. I mean, how often can you ask 62 people want they think before you buy something!

Currently, the reviews are averaging out at a 3.6 out of 5. The general consensus is that this stainless steel pressure cooker is actually good when it works. A lot of people report it working as intended as a pressure cooker.

The problem is with the quality. A good percentage of reviews talk about the handle coming loose, the pressure cooker leaking and even some complaints about the pressure valve not maintaining the desired pressure. Accusations of cutting corners and bad quality are quite easy to find.

So would we recommend the Prestige Deluxe Alpha?

This particular Prestige pressure cooker is a missed opportunity. If you were in the market for a more traditional style stainless steel pressure cooker, this one could fit the bill. Coming in at around $52 currently, it could have been a go to mid range traditional pressure cooker.

However, we would not recommend a product with so much potential for quality problems. I believe the quality of the actual stainless steel body is good, but some of the small fittings on the body are where the problems will likely arise.

Also, that very traditional lid locking mechanism will probably get annoying over time, as it gets stuck together an increasing number of times.

It is a shame, because it had the potential to be much better!

A lot of consumers also look at stainless steel pressure cookers as possible pressure canning devices. Personally, if you want to do pressure canning, I would go for something of higher quality. When preserving food by pressure canning, you need to be sure that the pressure cooker can maintain the required pressure level. With all the talk of quality problems and leaking, etc. I would look elsewhere if pressure canning interests you.

Of course, this is just my opinion. If you have any personal experiences with the Prestige Deluxe Alpha, we would love to hear all about it in the comment section below.

Originally posted 2019-09-24 19:46:09.