Slow cookers again

[sudsmaster]

Costco apparently heard my complaints (or someone else's) and dropped the brain dead Rival Crockpot with the limited time selections (8 or 10 hours on low, 6 or 8 hours on high) and is now carrying a "countdown timer" version of the cooker that allows one to select a cook time of anywhere between 30 minutes to 20 hours for slow cooking with automatic switching over to "warm" at end of selected time.

Had they had this model to begin with over the summer, I might not have gone shopping for the temperature probe equipped Hamilton Beach. Which I'm very happy with. But the Rival (with an extra $10 discount a this time) might not be a bad selection for a back-up crockpot (not that I need a backup!).

 

[appnut]

Oh Rich, go for it. You know you want it. How about the current one being relegated to the outside/patio kitchen and this new one staying inside.

 

[sudsmaster]

Oh, the Hamilton Beach is already out on the counter in the patio kitchen. Until I do a massive sorting and storing effort, there's not enough room in the main kitchen for it. And another one would probably stay in its box for a while, lol.

I'm thinking what is needed is a large, deep wall unit with open shelving for storing all the useful gadgets: mixers toasters irons slow cookers bread makers toaster ovens blenders etc... Perhaps I could put my table saw to good use and fabricate something custom one of these days.

To make matters worse, also got my eye on an automatic electric 8 qt Cuisinart pressure cooker at Costco these days. But the only thing I can think I would use it for would be artichokes. Maybe beans. But I'm not so sure about the thing's sturdiness - the one on display is already tweaked.

 

[appnut]

Perhaps I could put my table saw to good use and fabricate s

Well get that table saw to buzzin!! Buzzin could be better than turkey gobblin!!

 

[sudsmaster]

I'm weak...

I admit.

The other day I picked up the Crockpot (with the mini pot included) for all of $29 at Costco.

The electric pressure cooker, too.

Both still MIB.

 

[rp2813]

Since I'm soon going to be doing a lot more cooking around here, the concepts of slow and pressure cookers are appealing to me. I'd like to try more things in the pressure cooker so the PC cook book I bought a while back for my partner should come in handy. I also like to use crock pot liners. They eliminate any clean-up, unless there's a need to give the lid a once-over.

I also saw in today's Tuesday Morning circular that they have a Max Burton induction cooktop for $79. I looked it up on line and found it for around the same price or a little lower. Even with shipping it would be cheaper than paying tax at a brick and mortar operation, and I am seriously allergic to Black Friday anyway. Does anyone know if these are worthwhile units? The price seems far lower than what I've seen for these in the past, but I have been wanting one.

 

[sudsmaster]

Costco Business Center in Hayward was carrying a large size 110 volt induction hot plate for around $80 over the summer. But since they rearranged the store and moved all the cooking stuff from the aisles to the front of the store, I haven't seen it lately.

 

[petek]

I was gonna say get the electronic pressure cooker. I really like mine. I use it more than the slow cooker, makes great stew in about 30 minutes

 

[maytagbear]

I like my electric presssure cooker!

I have an electric Presto pressure cooker from the late 60s-early70s. It is a standard 4 qt pressure cooker, with an element on the bottom of the pot and a Control Master, and I use it frequently.

I would like to find a 6 qt one, and I have heard rumours, but so far, haven't seen it.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[sudsmaster]

The Cuisinart pressure cooker is a 6 qt model...

 

[sudsmaster]

My favorite type of cooking is stir-frying. Quick, healthy, and tasty. Of course I'm of the opinion that lots of high quality veggie oil is a good thing ;-). Plus you can see how the food is cooking and prevent over-cooking and loss of nutrients and vitamins. The drawbacks are that it's a bit messy (oil tends to splatter) and the preparation time is a bit longer than many other forms of cooking.

Still, I can see some uses for pressure cooking: artichokes, dry beans, etc... I'm going to read up the recipes in the owner's manual and online sources to find out how to put it to the best use.

 

[xraytech]

Lawrence,

Just to let you know Presto does have a 6 qt electric pressure cooker on the market now. It was in a Sears catalog I recieved in the mail, but it isnt on sears.com.

If you would like I can send you the item number and catalog code if you want to order. It is $119.99

 

[hunter]

Have any of you tried Nesco cookers ?

Have y'all tried NESCO cookers? They are really mini ovens but can be set low enough (more or less) for slow cooking.

I have a 6 and a 12(?) quart that I like a lot.

Hunter

 

[tlee618]

I have three Nesco's. Virgina Olsen used to demo these on Qvc and did an outstanding job and made you want each of them I have a 4,6,and 18 qt. The 6 and the 18 have a convention fan that you can attach to the top. I really like them. They make a great second oven as well.

 

[xraytech]

I prefer the old Westinghouses over the Nescos. I only have 4 Westinghouses and one Hamilton Beach/Scovill. I would like to have an 8 qt. Nesco though

 

[tlee618]

Hey Sam, to my knowledge they never made an 8 qt. they had the 4 6 12 and 18 but I could be wrong.

 

[rayjay]

The Nesco's are nice, but..............Not very accurate with the temp. I have 2 6qt Nescos, tried to make Rice Pudding in them according to their recipe and they burnt each time. I even lowered the temp quite a bit. My 18 qt was pretty good, but the whole control knob broke so I just threw it away. I do plan on getting another 18 qt one made by Waring.

 

[danemodsandy]

Rich:

"But I'm not so sure about the thing's sturdiness - the one on display is already tweaked."

I'd be the last person to say that Cuisinart quality is everything it used to be, but you really should judge the sturdiness for yourself through examination and research, not by figuring that a display model's problems are due to flimsiness.

I spent a lot of time in the housewares biz back in the '80s, and let me tell you, there are people out there who could tear up a battleship. In particular, I remember one woman who responded to my greeting, "Hi - how can I help you?" with "Oh, I'm just looking."

Before five minutes had passed, she had broken the lid latch and smashed the carafe of a $159.00 (equal to nearly $300 today) Toshiba My Cafe mill and drip coffeemaker. We were out of pocket for a new lid and carafe; in Georgia, you display merchandise at your own risk.

The occasional broken carafe was par for the course, but no one could figure out how she'd broken off the latch for the lid; it was not in any kind of vulnerable position, nor was it flimsily made.

There are just a lot of people out there with a talent for destruction.

 

[autowasherfreak]

We just got a new crock-pot at Wal-Mart for $24.99 (7 qt) our other crock-pot was electronic and we hated it. It would over cook and you couldn't put it in keep warm. We made chili in it as soon as we got home.