I compared SUPOR 5018Q and Midea 500S: faster release and softer food

Why pressure-cooker speed involves trade-offs

Most people will only tell you that electric pressure cookers are convenient, safe, and fast, but no one tells you that a good electric pressure cooker can cost several thousand yuan, that the ones with good results release pressure slowly, while the fast ones produce poor texture. Just as I was giving up on the idea, Supor surprisingly became the first to make an electric pressure cooker that releases pressure quickly, cooks quickly, and still delivers good texture. So how does it compare with Midea's best-selling electric pressure cooker, which is also marketed for fast cooking?

Today, I spent a small fortune buying the Midea 500S and the Supor 5018Q.

The dishes and equal-weight test setup

Without further ado, let's start testing. The dishes people most commonly make in an electric pressure cooker are rice and braised meat. The dishes people most commonly make in an electric pressure cooker are rice and braised meat. We'll test the two pressure cookers for the speed and texture of congee, braised ribs, marinated duck, and pressure-cooked oysters. First, we prepared equal weights of ingredients, put them into the pots, added these seasonings, and started timing to see how long it took from closing the lid to opening it.

Wow, that smells great.

Displayed times versus total opening time

After an intense competition, these were the times from closing the lid to opening it:

[Text: Time from closing the lid to opening it; order: Midea 500S / Supor 5018Q. Braised ribs: pressure release 8 minutes / 1 minute, estimated 6 minutes / 6 minutes, actual 16 minutes / 8 minutes. Marinated duck: pressure release 44 minutes / 18 minutes, estimated 35 minutes / 37 minutes, actual 1 hour 28 minutes / 58 minutes. Pressure-cooked oysters: pressure release 3 minutes / 40 seconds, estimated 3 minutes / 3 minutes, actual 7 minutes / 4 minutes.]

For all four dishes, Midea's preset cooking times were shorter, but it also took much longer to release pressure before opening the lid. Clearly, its preset cooking times don't include pressure release. Its preset cooking time doesn't include pressure release. Although Supor's displayed preset cooking times were usually a few minutes longer than Midea's, it released pressure and opened the lid much faster, so the total time was still shorter, saving food lovers like us a great deal of time.

Pressure, heating and release design

I specifically looked into what determines whether an electric pressure cooker cooks quickly. There are three main factors: 1. Pressure level 2. Heating method and power 3. Pressure-release speed First, the higher the pressure, the faster the cooking and the sooner the food is done. Midea's model is around 70 kPa, while Supor's reaches a high pressure of 112 kPa. Second, both Supor and Midea use 2,200 W. Second, both Supor and Midea use 2,200 W of IH induction heating.

However, Supor's heating coil is twice the size of Midea's.

[Text: Diagram labels: SUP-5018Q: 32 coils, 23 cm, curved design; MD-5175C: 14 coils, 17 cm, flat design.]

Third is pressure-release speed. Midea uses a single-valve, fan-cooled pressure-release system. A small fan in the cooker blows air over the inner pot to reduce the pressure, which takes a long time. Supor, on the other hand, uses dual-valve rapid release. During the pressure-reduction stage after cooking, the two valves quickly release the pressure, allowing the lid to open in 100 seconds and greatly improving opening speed.

Ribs and porridge texture results

But does cooking rice quickly necessarily mean it will taste good? Midea's ribs were relatively difficult to pull off the bone, while Supor's ribs came off the bone easily. Supor's ribs came off the bone easily. Midea's multigrain congee had a firm texture and looked thin and watery. Supor's multigrain congee was thick, soft, and glutinous, and the beans had fully split open. I didn't expect Supor to cook faster while still delivering good texture. That's all thanks to Supor's proprietary Fresh Breath technology.

In simple terms, while cooking rice or braising meat, this electric pressure cooker repeatedly pressurizes and depressurizes, like breathing, to maintain a continuous boil. This makes braised meat more flavorful and tender, congee thick, soft, and glutinous, and rice fragrant, sweet, soft, and glutinous. No wonder its cooking results meet a Level 1 certification standard. Finally, let's take a look at meeting a Level 1 certification standard.

Inner pots and removable-lid materials

Finally, let's compare the features of these two high-end pressure cookers. Both cookers come with two inner pots. Midea's soup and braising pot is made of 304 stainless steel and weighs 849 g; its rice-cooking pot is made of six-layer Xuangan thick metal and weighs 837 g. Supor's soup and braising pot is a 316L baby-and-mother-grade stainless-steel spherical inner pot weighing 1,160 g, while its rice-cooking pot is a ceramic-crystal spherical inner pot. Both lids can be removed for cleaning. The difference is that Midea uses 430 food-grade material, while Supor uses the better 304 food-grade material.

In terms of electric pressure cooker safety, Supor seems healthier to use.

Displays and day-to-day operation

There's also how convenient the products are to use. Supor has a color display that looks premium and attractive, and it's easy to operate. Midea uses a more traditional digital display positioned at the front, so you need to bend down slightly to use it. That makes it less user-friendly for older people.

Cloud recipes and open-lid reduction

For busy beginners who don't know how to cook, or mothers who often don't know what to make, Supor also offers cloud recipes. Just tap your phone against it and follow along to cook. For example, I made this pot of marinated duck by following a recipe. You can even open the lid at the end to reduce the sauce, and it turned out very successfully.

What to check before choosing a cooker

When people who cook often are choosing cookware, in addition to considering the quality of the materials and the features, they should definitely consider how quickly it cooks, and whether the results taste good. Because it can greatly reduce the time mothers spend cooking while also making the whole family happier.