Presto 16-Quart Pressure Canner review
Presto 16-Quart Pressure Canner (01745)
By Tom Calder
Key specs
The maker's figures.
- Type
- Pressure canner
- Capacity
- 15 litres (16 US quarts)
- Method
- Pressure canning (low-acid foods)
Water-bath preserving only safely handles high-acid foods — jams, chutneys, pickles. To shelf-stably store low-acid food (plain vegetables, stocks, meats) you need pressure canning, and this Presto is the standard machine for it. Honesty first: pressure canning is a US technique that never took off in Britain, so UK stock is intermittent and jars/spares (Ball/Mason sizes) are import items too. Follow tested recipes exactly — the USDA guidance is the reference — because improvised low-acid canning is a genuine botulism risk.
- Best for
- The only safe route to shelf-stable low-acid food — a US import for a US-style technique.
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Researched, not used. We haven't used this product. This review is built from the maker's specifications, owner reports and our own sizing.
What we like
- The recognised standard for safe low-acid canning
- 15L takes a meaningful batch per run
- Doubles as a huge stockpot
Worth knowing
- UK stock and spares are intermittent imports
- Only worth it if you'll actually pressure-can — most UK households won't
- Demands tested recipes followed exactly — this is a safety-critical technique
Out of stock when we checked: our alternatives
Closest in size first, then by our score. None of them was showing out of stock when we last checked.
Best for The mainstream vacuum sealer — freezer burn ends here.
as of 4 Nov 2026, 19:07 GMT · Details
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon.co.uk at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Best for The proper jam pan: wide, sturdy and made for a rolling boil.
as of 4 Nov 2026, 19:07 GMT · Details
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon.co.uk at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Best for Turning a seasonal glut into jams, chutneys and pickles that keep for months.
as of 4 Nov 2026, 19:07 GMT · Details
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon.co.uk at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.ⓘ As an Amazon Associate, PreparedBritain earns from qualifying purchases. We may earn a commission when you buy, or a fee when you request a quote, through our links. When two products are close, commission can decide which one we pick. A clearly better product always wins. Amazon prices come from Amazon's own product data and show the date and time they were retrieved. Prices at other retailers are checked by us, less often. Prices and stock can change at any time, so always check the retailer's price before you buy.
Our review
Presto's 16-quart canner is the entry point to pressure canning: a 15.1-litre aluminium pot whose weighted regulator holds 5, 10 or 15 pounds so jars of beans, stock or meat reach the 240°F that kills botulism spores. What matters most is that it is an American product with no warranty outside the United States and, in October 2026, no stock at the UK stockist we track. It suits a committed preserver with a gas or ceramic hob and Mason jars.
What it is
Sixteen US quarts is 15.1 litres. Presto's spec sheet puts a pressure-canning load at seven quart jars, ten pints or thirteen half-pints in regular-mouth Mason jars; as a boiling-water canner it takes pints and half-pints only, because the body is too short to cover a quart jar with the inch of water the method needs. Pressure is set by a three-piece weighted regulator giving 5, 10 or 15 pounds, which rocks when it gets there, so there is no dial to send away for the annual accuracy check Presto requires on its dial-gauge models.
The body is heavy-gauge polished aluminium, 9.04 lb (about 4.1 kg) empty. Presto lists it for electric, smooth-top and gas hobs with burners of 12,000 BTU or less, about 3.5 kW, and does not call it induction-compatible.
Why pressure, not a boiling pan
Clostridium botulinum forms a spore that survives the 212°F of boiling water and thrives in low-acid food with the air removed, so the US Department of Agriculture treats pressure canning as the only safe route for vegetables, meat, poultry, fish and seafood: steam under pressure lifts the jars to 240°F, which the spores do not survive. The National Center for Home Food Preservation draws the line at pH 4.6; above it is low-acid and needs 240 to 250°F, which only 10 to 15 pounds of pressure delivers. Jams, jellies, pickles and most fruit sit below that line.
The NHS says all forms of botulism are rare in the UK and that anyone showing signs needs 999. Keep it rare by following research-tested recipes to the letter and never eating from a jar whose lid has lifted.
In a British kitchen
The routine is fixed: heat the loaded canner with the regulator off until steam streams from the vent, vent for a full 10 minutes, then fit the weight and wait for it to rock. Timing starts only then, and if pressure dips the clock restarts. Afterwards the canner cools on its own; forcing it cracks jars. Presto says weighted-gauge canners process exactly as the recipe states at 1,000 feet or below, and its comparison guide calls the 01745 best suited to that height because the weight cannot be fine-tuned above it. 1,000 feet is about 305 metres; if your home sits higher, as some hill villages do, use the recipe's altitude chart.
Check your hob can carry a full canner; Presto's manual sends smooth-top owners to the range maker's weight limits. The reward is shelf-stable stock, pulses and meat that need no freezer, so a long power cut does not touch them; our power cut food safety guide covers what does spoil.
How it compares
On our food preservation page the other routes are water-bath kit: the Kilner Preserve Jar Set of six 0.5-litre jars and KitchenCraft's 9-litre stainless maslin pan handle high-acid preserves well and cannot safely do low-acid food. Inside Presto's range, the 01755 is the same 16-quart body with a dial gauge, and the 23-quart 01781 takes quart jars in boiling-water mode and twenty pints double-decked under pressure. A home freeze dryer, on our dehydrators and freeze dryers page, is the other freezer-free route for low-acid food.
Living with it: the UK catch
Presto's warranty on stovetop canners runs twelve years and, in its own wording, does not apply outside the United States; in America the 01745 is sold only through Walmart. The UK stockist linked from our catalogue showed no stock on 21 October 2026 and says it does not intend to import Presto canners for the foreseeable future, so buying one now means an import, spares included. The recipe book works in US cups and pints and assumes Mason jars with two-piece lids, whose flat discs are single-use.
Our verdict
Buy it if you grow or buy in bulk, will pressure-can several batches a year, have a gas or ceramic hob, can source Mason jars and lids, and accept that support ends at the US border. Skip it if your preserving is jam, chutney and pickles, if you cook on induction, or if you would rather not follow American recipes exactly. For most households a freezer and a sealer such as the FoodSaver FFS005X cover the same ground with less ceremony.
A researched review, built from the maker's specs, manual and UK listings; facts checked 21 Oct 2026. Sources: Presto — 16-Quart Pressure Canner and Cooker 01745 spec sheet (PDF); Presto — Pressure Canner Comparison Guide (01745 weighted gauge, 1,000 ft note); Presto — 16- and 23-Quart Pressure Canner instruction and recipe book, form 72-719M (PDF; covers the dial-gauge 01755 and 01781, same 16-quart body); Presto — Limited warranty (12 years on stovetop canners; does not apply outside the United States); Presto — Pressure Canning Method (venting, altitude rules); National Center for Home Food Preservation — Ensuring safe canned foods; National Center for Home Food Preservation — Using pressure canners; NHS — Botulism.
This is a Researched review: we haven't used this product. We check every specification against at least two independent sources, re-check the UK price on a schedule where we can track it automatically, and say plainly who it isn't for. Commissions never change a rating.
Questions
Does the Presto 16-quart canner work on an induction hob?
No. Presto lists the 01745 for electric, smooth-top and gas hobs with burners of 12,000 BTU or less. Its induction model is the 23-quart 01784 with a stainless steel-clad base.
How many jars fit in the Presto 01745?
Presto's spec sheet gives seven quart jars, ten pints or thirteen half-pints (regular mouth) per pressure-canning load; for boiling-water canning, pints and half-pints only.
Do I need to adjust the Presto canner for altitude in the UK?
Presto says weighted-gauge canners process as the recipe states at 1,000 feet or below; above that the recipe's altitude chart applies, and the weight's only step up from 10 pounds is 15. 1,000 feet is about 305 metres, so check your home's height on a map if you live in the hills.
Is there a UK warranty on the Presto 01745?
No. Presto's twelve-year limited warranty, in its own words, does not apply outside the United States. Your statutory rights against the retailer still stand.
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