Duluth Pack just sent this info in an e-mail. I've never heard of it before. Looks like it has potential for power outages, as well as camping, etc.

I Googled and Bass Pro Shops and Cabela's are carrying them. Amazon has it for $71. Anyone here have experience with one?

http://duluthpack.com/seth-mcginn-s-canc...mpaign=20110210


"It all started two generations ago in eastern Nebraska when a young Seth McGinn participated in a cattle round-up on his grandparents ranch. All the ranchers in the area would get together and everyone, including women and children would participate. Before the roundup, each family would bring food which all went into a cream can which was put on a fire to cook while they worked. At lunch time, they would come back to a hot, hearty, homemade meal that easily fed the entire group and included something for everyone. Recently, Seth and Sonja McGinn, in an effort to reduce the preparation and clean up time at a family gathering, tried to recreate the cream can meal. It was difficult to find a cream can but they did and had it filled with 50 lbs. of food. Unfortunately, when they lifted the can from the fire, the bottom fell out. Undeterred, Seth tried numerous alternatives and finally made his own. The eventual result is the CanCooker."

Seth McGinn's CanCooker is designed to cook abundant, great tasting food fast (in about an hour) no matter the heat source! CanCooker is ideal for camping, hunting, fishing, tailgating, family gatherings, picnics or any outdoor get-together. It cooks with steam so you get a healthier, better tasting meal than you could ever imagine! Includes some recipes and a convenient storage bag.

* Pressure Clamps hold the lid in place
* Wide mouth design for easy stocking and removal of food
* Premium high temperature silicon gasket
* Vented lid - when the steam starts coming out of the vent hole you know things are cooking!
* 4 Gallon capacity
* Riveted heavy duty handles
* Anodized FDA grade 1060 aluminum is completely safe, offers heat conduction for faster cooking
* One-piece construction
* Cooks with steam for healthier, better tasting food
* Weighs about 4lbs

So basically it's a really big pressure cooker.
From the design I wonder if food touching the bottom is going to burn and also how hard it'll be to clean the thing.

-Blast

I guess there's no "tray" in the bottom, a sort of steam tray? It does seem like things would burn... maybe it's really thick on the bottom?

HJ

Looks to be pretty dangerous if it is a steam pressure or even a steam partial pressure cooker. Exploding pressure cookers can be lethal and scrapping 50lbs of 110C food off the kitchen ceiling even if it doesn't kill anyone would be really tiresome. If you need a large volume pressure cooker then it might be worthwhile getting a decent quality pressure cooker even if you have to pay double the price.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/WMF-Stainless-Pe...mp;sr=1-2-spell

The WMF 2.25 Gallon (8.5 litre) Pressure quality is German manufactured from 10/8 Stainless steel (far more robust than 1060 Aluminium) and can be used even with a highly efficient programmable induction hot plates for home use. A range of accessories such as trivet trays etc are available as well.

< it's a really big pressure cooker >

It is just a pot with a vented lid.

That's my thought as well.

A genuine pressure cooker has a pressure regulator, emergency relief valve, and an interlock system on the lid to keep you from blowing yourself up or suffering third-degree steam scalds. (This also keeps the manufacturer from getting his arse sued off.)

Regarding this unit: even though it's not really pressurized above atmosphere, it'll still get mighty hot in there. Any implied claim of faster cooking than a covered pot is likely exaggerated.

Why wouldn't it pressurize above 1 atmosphere? It has a gasket and those latches look like they lock down fairly effectively.

Maybe it's just a really strong sucker and can withstand the pressures? It's also quite large which would tend to reduce the pressure build up.

Still, I'd feel a little hesitant sealing up something like that. A pressure relief valve would make me feel a lot better.

HJ

The description above says it has a vent hole in the lid.

If you blocked up that hole, you could indeed raise the pressure above atmosphere. The point is that you shouldn't do that, ever, in a vessel not engineered and certified for the stresses. Basically, you would have created a live bomb, even though it's filled with the fixings for beef stew.

Ah. Got it.

HJ

Yeah, you are right. A really big stockpot would be just as good...
-Blast

Don't get me wrong, it is an interesting design for a pot that looks well made. But I really don't think there is anything particularly special about the milk can design from a functional point of view. Having a firmly attached lid, nice latches, is a plus but otherwise it is just a pot. Albeit a rather nice pot.

If anything I would think that a wider bottom would spread the heat and better allow some fluid motion that might keep the contents from burning on the bottom.

Given that stainless steel latches of similar design are commercially available, and I happen to own, and be fairly handy with a pop-rivet gun, I don't see why I couldn't find a suitable stock pot and install my own heavy-duty latches to help keep the contents in and dirt out during rough handling over a campfire.

That assumed the lock-down lid is really desirable. Seems to me our ancestors did a lot of cooking over fires and most of their pots lacked any way of locking on a lid.

I've seen what must have been ten gallons or more of stew cooked over a fire in a large stock pot. The only special provision they had was a large steel ring with two short lengths of chain and hook on the end. This was hooked onto the handles on the sides and a stout wooden pole inserted into the ring to allow two people to lift the pot without having to stand in the fire.

I don't think I'd pay $70-ish for one. Especially considering I can snag large stainless stock pots for a few bucks at yard sales.

On the other hand, if I won one in a draw or through a charity auction, I would certainly keep it. Handy item if you need to boil up a lot of water/soup/whatever in a hurry. The aluminum is so much more efficient in terms of thermal transfer compared to stainless steel.

Gives me an idea for another use for my two gas turkey friers. Right now, I only use them to make maple syrup.

Only one time did I cook in a pressure cooker and not use the perforated plate in the bottom. It was an impressive lesson in cleaning, and I hope to never do it again.

I'll pass on this unit. If I want a pressure cooker, I'll use steel.

Sue