Best Yogurt Makers
The yogurt maker includes seven 6-ounce glass jars with lids so you can make a different flavor in each. Timer on the side marks time when yogurt will be finished cooking.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Disclaimer – I never made yogurt before owning this yogurt maker so I can not compare it to other yogurt makers or making it in a oven or crock pot. I find that whether or not homemade yogurt is cheaper than store bought depends on your ingredients that you are using ie: organic milk vs. regular store brand milk. Example - Softer yogurt without boiling times: 8 hours for whole milk, 10 hours for 2%, and up to 12 hours for skim milk. Then under instructions it states: set time for yogurt – 8 hours for whole milk, etc. I have been making yogurt with a 6 oz container of plain yogurt from the store. I came up with a recipe that has consistently delivered great results. Coconut yogurt. • 1 13.5 ounce can of Coconut Milk (I have used Goya). • Whole milk or 2% milk ( 4 cup measuring cup filled with contents of coconut milk – add the milk so that it comes up to the 4 cup point). • 1 scoop (1/3 cup) of dried instant non-fat milk (I have used Carnation milk). • 6 oz container of plain yogurt or yogurt starter. • ½ teaspoon of coconut extract. • 8 packets of Stevia in the Raw (or sugar). Add coconut milk, regular milk and dried milk to the saucepan and heat till the milk starts boiling and climbing up the pot. Incubation times depend on milk used – Whole milk is 8 hours and 2% is 9 hours."
"The most important thing to note is that only function of the yogurt maker is to retain the temperature and humidity which is required for the yogurt to set. Boil the milk around 220 F degrees, cool it down till 110-115 F degrees add yogurt and put it in yogurt maker and cover it with the lid."
"I've had the machine for 3-4 days and the third batch of yogurt is sitting in the machine right now. I also made one batch with prepared powdered milk (used a little extra powdered milk to create a thicker liquid)."
"For each batch, it takes about 25 minutes to heat and cool the milk, mix in the yogurt starter, and set it to incubate. The yogurt maker's plastic lid fogs up in a symmetrical pattern and that tells you the interior is evenly heated. I had read that the lids don't form a tight seal, and that was my biggest hesitation in choosing this model. When I want to bring a jar to work, I keep it upright by nestling it between other items in my lunch bag."
The unit combines frozen bananas and any additional fruit or chocolate and instantly churns the ingredients to produce a treat with the texture of frozen yogurt or soft-serve ice cream, but without the additional fat, sugar, or preservatives. The chute easily accepts berries, sliced mango, or cantaloupe along with frozen banana and the integrated spinning blade mashes and incorporates the fruit into a silky-smooth confection with the texture of soft-serve ice cream or yogurt. EASY TO CLEAN: Create delicious desserts without the hassle of cleanup; as the chute, plunger, and blade are dishwasher safe.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Both models work amazingly well with the older version having a 200 watt motor & the newer Elite model having a 250 watt motor. The older model Yonanas is mostly plastic, including the base frame, except for the grinder blades, while the heavier duty Elite model has a solid metal base & just feels well made. To turn out a soft serve "ice cream" base you'll want to use frozen over ripe bananas, (cheetah spotted), that have been thawed for approx 7-12 min as that seems to be the magic number range for thawing banana depending on size. For an even "creamier" consistency when making a soft serve n'ice cream or sorbet, try freezing any nut milk/cream or yogurt flavor of your choice in an ice cube tray & when you get ready to make your dessert - take a couple of cubes, depending on ice cube size & desired consistency, out of the tray & thaw for 5-6 minutes, then alternate inserting your banana/fruit of choice then the cubes, in the chute - personally I like adding unsweetened lite coconut cream. If you're wanting to add a sweetener to your n'ice cream try adding a few drops of stevia to the grinder & running the Yonanas machine for 4-5 seconds prior to adding your barely thawed, slightly frozen banana/fruit of choice. You can also do the same thing when adding any extract flavoring - 1/4-1/2 teaspoon vanilla, etc, depending on desired taste, to the grinder blade prior to adding bananas/fruit or wait & mix it into the bowl of your n'ice cream directly. Syrupy sweeteners, i.e. Honey, maple syrup, acai syrup, agave, etc - should always be added directly to your finished bowl of n'ice cream as they will sludge up in the chute & on the blade if poured in directly onto the grinder cone while in their syrupy state & may not blend well. The key to success is to always make sure the food items are 1st frozen. then slightly thawed several minutes prior to making your n'ice cream. The Elite model is on the left & the older model 901 is on the right."
"The larger motor powers through the frozen fruits better and will probably last a lot longer, especially with heavy use. Well, it takes all of ten seconds to rotate off the grinder head, scrape out the bits left behind and add them to the rest of the mix. We keep a freezer bag with up to a quart of frozen Greek yogurt cubes ready to go. We tend to add more ingredients besides bananas to the mix than are suggested in the recipes in order to get a flavor balance we prefer. They looked at the problem of how do you market your packaged frozen fruits to more people than the limited group who are already buying them. They came up with creating a whole new food product that acts more like a juicer than a blender and keeps the antioxidants alive while letting you make your own flavors of a healthy version of ice cream and takes two minutes to make. As a result, Dole obviously hopes to sell more frozen fruits to folks who wouldn't have otherwise bought their products and who don't want to grow or buy fresh and then freeze their ingredients other than the bananas. This will be a gift that will find its way to many friends' homes for the holidays and birthdays where they are certain to be appreciated."
Now you can prepare Greek yogurt dishes quickly and easily with Euro Cuisine. Transform up to 2qt of plain Yogurt into Greek Yogurt.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Easy Way to Remove Yogurt from the Euro Cuisine GY50 Greek Yogurt Maker. I was a little apprehensive about purchasing the Euro Cuisine GY50 Greek Yogurt Maker because of the comments about the fragility of the mesh. Then I read some reviews that recommended inverting the yogurt strainer onto the lid to release the yogurt when the straining process is complete."
"Definitely will be looking for another method to strain my yogurt."
"I have read the negative reviews and it is almost like we have different items.. We run a community house and we are fermenting foods especially yogurt and kefir ...for health and to save money. We work with DV victims, combat veterans, the homeless etc...many people come to us in poor health and we teach cooking and techniques for a healthy lifestyle on a low income using organic and whole foods. You can get an amazing product and it is alot cheaper which is important if you are low income and using food stamps or supplies from the food bank. We looked at many heating yogurt machines but due to volume we make on a weekly basis decided to keep our method going, which is basically to do a gallon batch each time. We use a pressure cooker to heat/cool down milk, We then put culture in and put in quart mason jars, we are moving to two quart jars purchased from Amazon.Com because they fit inside the Pressure Cooker when we are fermenting. We tried other methods to strain yogurt but decided on this product because of the cost and the fact we do not like to strain products into paper towels or coffee filters. We are plugging Nancy's Cultured products as a prepared yogurt to use because of the volume but there are many others that simply cost more. Either way it is much cheaper to make Greek Yogurt from scratch or straining your own."
"I strained two quarts with the Euro Cuisine and two quarts with a double layer of coffee filters on top of a wire mesh strainer."
Best Crepe Makers
Simply plug the crepe maker in to let it heat up, spread a thin layer of batter and watch it cooks in seconds. The aluminum plate is also ideal for using as a griddle, perfect for making stacks of pancakes, bacon and other breakfast favorites.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I love thin lacey french crepes and they turn out perfect everytime on this."
"After 5 weeks in France, my husband and I were highly interested in continuing our access to warm, fresh crepes. It's easy, heats evenly, and makes consistently great crepes. Below, you will find some advice I have to offer, based on our experience; I believe the suggestions may also answer some questions you have about the griddle itself. In her cook book, Martha Holmberg explains that this allows the flour to fully hydrate. I DO use a blender as Holmberg suggests, and this works well, though I believe letting the batter then "rest" in the fridge, is essential. It was the perfect match for the ham and cheese (we used her optional suggestion of Smoked Gouda) crepes. I substituted sour cream for creme fraiche, and stayed with the Dijon mustard. I also added a bit more sour cream than called for (to taste), so the mustard did not take over. Calories - Think about this: Each crepe, which is quite large, uses only 1/3 cup batter, and 50% of that is milk and eggs. Each guest ate two crepes - one sweet and one savory, with filling, and we were stuffed!"
"My only complaint is that the recipe for crepe batter that comes with the crepe maker has the crepes coming out rather thick. I recommend Julia Child's crepe batter recipe which can be found on the internet."
"So much easier than a crepe pan."
"We followed the instructions of the booklet and the how to make crepes tutorial and we made crepes like the ones we buy!!!"
"Would definitely recommend as a fun and versatile way of making new and different meals."
"Works really well for pancakes."
"This one works really good, I don't make crepes everyday but overtime I use this crepe maker, I enjoy it."
Best Pizzelle Makers
Pizzelle (pronounced with ts sound, like "pizza") (singular pizzella) are traditional Italian waffle cookies made from flour, eggs, sugar, butter or vegetable oil, and flavoring (often vanilla, anise, or lemon zest). The iron stamps a snowflake pattern onto both sides of the thin golden-brown cookie, which has a crisp texture once it is cooled. It is also common for two pizzelle to be sandwiched with cannoli cream (ricotta blended with sugar) or hazelnut spread. Cookies measure at 5 inch, the perfect bite size for cones.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I have always liked pizzelles at weddings and other functions, and bought an iron a few years ago to make my own. I remember eating around the flower shape when I was little and THAT was the texture I wanted! I was actually scared to open that lid the first time fearing bits of cookie stuck in all those grooves!! There is a little light under the handles that has an audible click and changes from yellow to green when it is ready to go. It does cycle on and off during baking to maintain the temperature, but I didn't use it as a "ready" light for each batch...it doesn't seem to be exact. Some people just watch for the steam to stop, but I like mine to have a tinge of toasty color, not just pale. vanilla extract. 3.5 cups of flour (minus one Tablespoon...see below). 4 tsp. 1 Tablespoon cornstarch. 1/4 cup water...more or less as needed (see below). Beat the eggs and gradually add sugar until they it light and fluffy-ish (I used a kitchen aid stand mixer because I am lazy!). Slowly add melted/cooled butter (you don't want to cook your eggs!). You don't HAVE to if you're eating yours right away, but needed mine for close to a week for holiday visitors, so I used it. It depends on lots of things (humidity, subtle variations in egg size, etc.). I used a level scoop this OXO small one, so mine would be consistent in size and so I wouldn't have to use two spoons (or fingers.). You do have to squeeze the handles a little further-closed to latch and unlatch it, but it isn't strenuous or hard at all (and my fingers are tired from baking all week!). I used a silicone spatula to lift them to a rack too cool (this is when you need to shape them if you are making cones, bowls or tubes.). Even a shirt size gift box lined with waxed paper would work or a tin (if you have one.). I know people have favorite recipes for these, but I wasn't blessed with a mom or grandma who ever made these!!! Please feel free to ask me any questions or post YOUR recipe if you think I could make these cookies even better than they are now!!!"
"It makes beautiful impressive pizzelles in 45 seconds."
"bought as gift."
"Excellent heat and retention."
"Used to do on gas burner with hand held iron, made lots of mess."
"the best there is great recipes also."
"Heats quickly, cooks evenly, nothing sticks (so easy peasy clean-up), and it doesn't take up much space at all."
"my son is so happy I bought this."
Best Cotton Candy Makers
Bring the carnival right into your kitchen by creating fluffy, melt-in-your-mouth cotton candy. Works with hard candy, sugar-free hard candy or flossing sugar.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"What finally gave us a real stick of cotton candy was laying the stick against the edge of the top of the machine, holding it perpendicular (like across it level to the base) and turning it as if we were roasting a chicken or something! We found that one scoop of sugar gave us 1 stick of cotton candy."
"First off, here is what WON'T work with this machine: * Skittles, Lemonheads or Boston Baked Beans. * Hot Tamales or Ike & Mikes. * Gummy Bears or Worms. * Gumballs or Round Candy. * Citrus Slices or Starburst. * Anything chewy, gummy or with too much cream. For best results, use no more than two pieces of candy (so it spins faster), but you can also cut/break candy into halves. Good candy choices include Lifesavers (fruit, Hawaiian Fruit, Fruiteria, butter rum) but not their Mints (won't fluff), Werther's Original & Chocolate Hard Candies, Butterscotch, Cinnamon Discs, Peppermints, and Coffee (but not Nips). * Cherry Garcia: 1 Cherry LS + 1/2 Werthers Choc + 1/2 Vanilla. * Candy Apple: 1 Green Apple + 1 Cinnamon Disc. Your cotton candy will be fluffier with sugar-based candy, though sugar-free still works fine."
"Yes the hard candy version of cotton candy comes out a bit different from the granulated sugar and floss sugar but trust me it is DELICIOUS!"
"We bought it to use at my son's birthday party, as it was cheaper than renting one for the day and I didn't need to hassle with picking one up, dropping it off, etc."
"Of course I refused to buy the toy kind she saw in the store so I researched them on line and stumbled across this one. It got good reviews and was the same price as the toy version so i decided to give it a chance! If your kid (or you) are cotton candy fans... buy this nifty machine!"
Best Egg Cookers
How do you like your eggs? Make 6 hard, medium, and soft boiled eggs, individual omelettes, 2 poached eggs and scrambled eggs.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I toss six eggs in with less than a 1/4 cup of water and 14 minutes later the unit shuts off by itself and I come back and easily peel the eggs. And I'm guessing if I forget or run behind I could have these ready while he get dressed for school in the morning!"
"or "suggest" that we prick each egg with a needle prior to cooking to avoid explosion, all units except for the Chef's Choice Egg Cooker. This unit is marketed with the claim that you should prick or pierce the egg and I decided to test that claim for this and two other machines. While the Cuisinart could do more eggs at once, it didn't cook them as well when we did more so we found that six or seven was as many as we would do in that machine so we were back to each machine cooking the same number of eggs and, once again, that issue of pricking the eggs was our greatest concern. We then pricked the eggs, using a sewing needle (because the little needle cups they send out with some units get lost so easily that they may as well not even send them) and, low and behold, all batches in each machine came out perfect, that is to say, un-cracked and cooked identically. The eggs never seem to come out exactly as the label would suggest and, at least on the machine we tested, the unit had to be set higher in order to cook to the lower level."
"But, since there's no on/off, just plugged in and unplugged, it makes sense they put on something to make sure it can't be left in after the water's steamed out. I followed the direction to the letter, placed the tray squarely in the middle, and got one hard boiled egg and one under done egg. I actually did it twice, and got nowhere. Disappointed at the false advertising (just make it a good egg boiler and don't try to sell us with features that don't work!"
"The cooker works fantastically, I make fresh hard "boiled" eggs every single morning during the week and often will do poached eggs or omelets in it on the weekend. If you dont have super fresh eggs and you pierce the top sometimes you get egg white that bubbles out the hole and makes a mess in the cooker."
Best Popcorn Poppers
That’s not to say you can’t add butter; in fact, the 1/2-cup measuring cup on top of the popper doubles as a butter melter. Simply put in the desired amount of margarine or butter (room temperature is best), and it melts from the heat produced during the popping process. The clear plastic cover and cup, which must stay on during popping so the popped corn doesn’t fly all over the room, easily remove for hand cleaning with warm, soapy water. The popper measures 14 by 9 by 6-1/2 inches, and is identical to Presto’s Orville Redenbacher Hot Air Corn Popper except for color and logo. Pops faster than a microwave- up to 18 cups of gourmet corn in less than 2 1/2 minutes.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"On the eve of 01/04, I read the reviews about it shooting hot unpopped popcorn kernels, the top melting, and billowy smoke. Then I tried cancelling online plus calling Amazon customer service. It comes with a red slip that warns, if you have it heating without popcorn in it, it can damage/melt the cover. If you add a really small amount, you'll get more unpopped kernels that will spit out while it's warming. I put a metal strainer under it instead of a large bowl. On the bright side, hot unpopped kernels don't shoot across the room or anything."
"The pic is 1/2 cup yellow corn in the blue bowl and 1/2 cup white corn in the white bowl. Lots of fun and if you eat popcorn regularly, the popper pays for itself."
"Looking at a few other models, in particular this fountain-style popper, I thought about making some sort of a guard to prevent the kernels from flying out before they're popped. Kernels that get ejected before they've popped hit this wall and bounce back down into the popping chamber rather than flying all over the kitchen."
"Her favorite part is the duds at the bottom of the bowl, and I always enjoy the slow routine of the air popping experience. Three scoops of kernels, plenty of time to measure and microwave the butter while I wait for the bowl to fill. In the meantime, sit and ponder the meaning of life as the popcorn slowly spills out of the popper. I was intrigued by the difference in design to our old popper, and after opening it Christmas morning, she of course wanted some fluffy, buttery wonder. Tossing the directions, I dump in three scoops of kernels, and smile, as now it's time to get out the butter and contemplate. It fills the bowl to the line of the previous purple popper in just moments, but it doesn't stop! I ask myself as the microwave tells me the 16 seconds for the butter is complete, and the final, lonely kernel gives a weak, yet audible "poof", and leaps onto the mountain that was once an empty bowl. my mind tries to comprehend as I stare into the emptiness I have come to expect be filled with dud kernels and peaceful contemplation."
Best Quesadilla & Tortilla Makers
Make perfectly natural, flat and consistently thin tortillas with the internationally known Victoria Cast Iron Tortilla Press. Heavy-duty cast iron for easy and even pressing, New & improved base & handle for resistance. Tortilladora casted in Colombia since 1986, Authentic by Victoria, don't trust imitators!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Also, let the weight of the cast iron flatten the dough, not much strength needed to get the job done."
"Took a few tries to get it just right, but if you place the ball of dough slightly off-center, closer to the hinge, it comes out thin like it should."
"Makes really good roti!"
"Very sturdy and very easy to use."
"Slit the sides of a gallon ziplock bag and press tortilla between the layers. Google "tacos al pastor j kenji lopez-alt". If you don't have a tostonera, this works really well as a tostone (fried plantain) press, too."
"Very well made and heavy duty."
"If you place the ball of Masa a little above the center between either waxed paper or plastic wrap, they come out perfectly round and thin."
"The handle snapped off the second time we tried to use it."
Best Vacuum Sealers
Combining both a handheld and standard vacuum sealer, this 2-in-1 FoodSaver appliance is vacuum sealing versatility at its best. Starter Kit includes: (1) 11"x10' Roll, (3) Qt Heat-Seal Bags, (2) Gal Heat-Seal Bags, (3) Qt Zipper Bags, (2) Gal Zipper Bags.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Below is a picture of the older came show model with a separate vacuum bag roll storage and cutter. One problem with the older unit was that it would not allow you to heat seal the bags closed until it achieved a very thorough removal of all of the air. Again the newer model allows me to seal the bags to achieve a tight shrink wrap but without making a mess. I recycled some plastic take-out Chinese containers, filled them with some delicious bean and bacon soup that my wife made today. I bagged several helpings of soup and with the concavity achieved by the plastic containers they stack perfectly in my freezer."
"I thought having the control panel on top would be a good thing (in use it doesn't really make a difference), and I found the brushed stainless steel chassis wrap attractive... neither affects the function of the sealer, and a buyer can get the same functionality and save $30 by purchasing the 4440. Automated sealing works well, and the amount of vacuum can be controlled from the panel for fragile items or partial vacuum sealing. The attached hose unit is used for sealing vacuum zipper bags or vacuum sealing jars or drawing a vacuum in a marinating dish. I found that 2 1/2 inches from the edge to the contents in the bag results in a reliable seal. After 10 or so days, I have used the first beans, and replenish the containers from the freezer, maintaining FRESH ground coffee for a couple of months."
Best Bagel Slicers
Color: White. The cradle holds the bagel while two clear acrylic safety shields keep fingers away from the patented bagel piercing blade.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It is kind of hard to clean if something got stuck onto the blade, but a quick soak in some warm soapy water does the trick. As for some of the smaller bagels from grocery store, I kind of have to angle the blade slightly while cutting down so as to not end up with unequal size/thickness top/bottom."
"It truly solves that problem of slicing your hand and bleeding all over the crumbs that were once an English muffin in your hand.. I don't know if it's supposed to go in the dishwasher, but I have put mine in a few times without any problems."
"My bagels tremble in fear."
"I want to give this 5 stars, the only problem is there is no crumb catcher."
"We bought this so our daughter can slice the bagels we buy at Costco that aren't already pre-sliced."
"He purchases about 4 dozen bagels from NJ and then takes out a bag of 4-6."
"A couple of local establishments provide their day-old bagels; only problem is they are uncut!"
"Was supposed to be able to handle "bagel shop" sized bagels."
Best Dehydrators
It's top-mounted fan eliminates the worry of liquids dripping into the heater chamber, and an opaque Vita-Save exterior helps block harmful lights in order to retain more of the food's nutrients and vitamins during the drying process. Accessories include two fruit roll sheets, perfect for drying semi-liquids like soups, sauces, and fruit rolls; two Clean-A-Screen flexible screens, which allow for easy drying of small items such as herbs, spices and potpourri; and three original jerky spice packets for making jerky. Opaque Vita-Save exterior helps block harmful light which destroys nutritional content of food being dehydrated. The hot air is forced horizontally across each individual tray, converging on the core for fast, even and nutritious drying.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I bought this dehydrator sort of like many people did: after reading the things you can do with it, I got all excited, thinking, "I'm going to dehydrate EVERYTHING and it's going to be amazing!!!" So far, I've used the dehydrator to make a couple of batches of each of: - Apple chips (thin apple slices soaked for a few hours in a combo of lemon juice and cranberry juice, then dried). - beef jerky (this dehydrator comes with a starter park for jerky, plus I made my own marinade the next time). - chicken jerky. - bacon bits (the ends and "bad cuts" of my own home-cured, smoked bacon, finely chopped, cooked, and then dehydrated. The temperature can be dialed in from 95ºF to 160ºF as printed on the top (remember that problem I mentioned? Well, I have tested the actual running temperature of the dehydrator against the printed values on the dial, and they're not even close. I used several methods to determine the temperature: 1) A Mastercool Digital Infrared Thermometer pointed directly into an exhaust vent (see photo) with the dial set to the maximum 160ºF. 4) A digital metal probe thermometer (Lavatools Thermowand) inserted into both the upper and lower exhaust ports. In all cases (except #3, which responded too slowly) I was able to see the lower temperature at which the heater kicked on, as well as the upper temperature at which the heater turned off (in theory, this would be right around the number printed on the dial). - At the 135ºF setting on the dehydrator, the actual temperature maxed out at around 120ºF, at which point the heater turned off and the temperature dropped slowly until the heater came back on. - At the 160ºF setting (maximum), it was the same story but with an actual temperature topping out at around 135ºF. What concerns me is this unit's suitability for jerky -- the minimum recommended temperature for any meat is 160ºF when making jerky. I'm not too terribly concerned about the beef jerky because I routinely eat beef at a much lower temperature than that (though it does make a good case for refrigerating the jerky in this case), but the chicken jerky could have gone pretty badly!"
"The 3rd reason I love this dehydrator is simple, it produces the best tasting dehydrated foods I've ever had, I'm and avid outdoorsman and have dehydrated everything from deer to turkey, family friends insist I start selling the jerky made with this product. With all that being said, if you have a dehydrator that is getting old/malfunctioning or just want to start making your own dehydrated foods, this product is for you, don't pass this one up, you will not be dissatisfied with your purchase."
"First, lets talk about performance: Only in a few ocasions I could dry something with less than 12 hours using a moderate temperature and thin slices. But a 4,5 or 4,7 stars would be more fair, since this dehydrator has a lot of good points and we live in a very humid area, in the sea coast. I think if you are willing to put some peppers in a dehydrator, you should use very low temperatures, those used to dry herbs and other fragile stuff. I can not believe some people say this dehydrator makes some undesirable noise to the point that they need to put them in a room far from their bedroom otherwise they couldn't sleep! The gray and white marble finish fits incredibly well in any room, like it's camouflaged, hard to explain. Dehydrated fruits leave virtually no residue, they stick very lightly to the trays and can be easily pulled out. Not a single banana or any other fruit like apples got stuck in the trays to the point that they couldnt be removed easily with the fingers, and entire, not in fragments. (Room temperature: 28 Celsius) With 9 trays full of fruits: 1st hour: 650 Watts (average). Explanation: the first hours take more power because the machine is heating the trays so the thermostat rarely turns off. After a few hours, the thermostat only activates ocasionally to refresh the temperature, since the trays are already heated and only need a maintenance to keep the warm air flow. When the electric resistance turns off, the measure of wattage reads 28 watts, that's the power consumption of the fan (negligible). I will update this review if anything unexpected occurs, or if I have any important thing to add, like new food experiences, et cetera. To finish this review, I'd like to apologize for my awful English, I had a hard time writting this because I am not a native speaker, so tell me if something sounds odd or particularly unusual, I can clarify your questions in the comments section."
Best Sous Vide Machines
The Anova Precision Cooker connects to your phone, so you can cook amazing meals by the touch of a button -- spend less time tied to the kitchen by relying on the app to notify you when your food is ready to eat. The Anova Precision Cooker brings sous vide to your home, so you can enjoy a cooking technique made famous by professional chefs for its incredible results.To help get connected through WI-FI, checkout our WI-FI Connectivity Troubleshooting steps in Specification Sheet [pdf ]. Sous vide cooking produces restaurant quality results that are impossible to achieve through any other cooking method.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"(Think of it like cooking with a crock pot... low temperature cooking over long periods of time ... slow and steady) . As you may know, one of claims of sous vide cooking is it can make the toughest cut of meat tender. Be aware that tough meats need to cook for a much longer period of time. Following the instructions for cooking a tough cut of beef to medium rare... we cooked ours at 149 degrees for 19 hours ( recommended time is 16 to 24 hours) . We then have a supply of ready to cook meals waiting for our Anova Culinary Bluetooth Precision Cooker, Black And "Yes" you can cook frozen food right from the freezer by just adding two hours on to the recommend cooking time. Just be aware when cooking for long periods (like cooking a tough cut of meat for 24 hours) water will evaporate so you want to make sure the water is always covering the food being cooked and to add more water if necessary. Anyway, by using a cooler... the water heated by the Precision Cooler is insulated from outside air so the cooker doesn't have to work as hard to keep the water hot thus saving on electricity, and with the lid closed the water that evaporates, condenses on the underside of the lid and drops back into the cooler."
"Once it got to 160+/- the temperature began to fluctuate again like the original unit did. After some testing I discovered that when the hot steam is allowed to enter into the vents on the rear of the unit, the fluctuations of the temperature began."
"How could Anova design a 200 hundred dollar cooking unit, that can heat water to 210 degrees, and then sits on top of that steaming water, but is susceptible/prone to malfunction because of inevitable steam intrusion into the control head??? Check the 1 star reviews - this is not a fluke, and is so common that ANOVA addresses it in the customer support section - their solution - put your unit in a bag of rice for 24 hours to dry it out and hopefully that will fix it, but if it doesn't "you have a problem"????"
"Then Anova pushed an update to their app that requires you to pair your kitchen appliance with your facebook profile. I mean, i'm looking at my blender and my pressure cooker and they seem to work fine without needing access to my social network."
"I returned the item because Anova updated the phone app to force you to buy Wifi access."
"Anova changed the app to require a login just to cook a meal."
Best Sandwich Makers & Panini Presses
With the Hamilton Beach Breakfast Sandwich Maker, you can enjoy a hot, homemade breakfast sandwich in under 5 minutes. Cook delicious breakfast sandwiches in the comfort of your own home. Cook delicious breakfast sandwiches in the comfort of your own home.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I purchased the Hamilton Beach Dual Breakfast Sandwich Maker in hopes that my kids would get a healthier fix of that popular fast food sandwich! Is it easier to just toss an egg in a frying pan and cook it and toast the muffin? My husband is old school and happy to just dirty yet another frying pan, spatula, use butter, etc. Roast beef from the deli and some sharp provolone and you have an awesome lunchtime/dinnertime sandwich! The picture that I have selected is the very first sandwich made by the young teen - without reading directions. We have since perfected it and will be uploading more photos of our expanding menu of grilled sandwiches!"
"So easy to use; simply just plug it in and wait for the preheat light to turn green; which doesn't take long. Once the light is green you simply place the bottom portion of your English muffin with a slice of cheese and bacon into the lower portion of the sandwich ring then put egg and the rest of the muffin on the top. Once you have all your ingredients placed you shut the lid and set the timer for 5 minutes."
"My favorite is a Tex-Mex sandwich. Bottom: English muffin bottom, cilantro, 3 slices of jalapeño bacon (cooked and halved), and Jack cheese. Slide in under the eggs when it's done: tomato and avocado. The kids love using this, so I precook bacon, and leave it in a ziplock in the fridge door."
"We bought this in July 2016 and I am updating my review in Feb 2017 to say that we are still happy with this and use it an average of 3x a week, sometimes a lot more. However, my husband would eat frozen Jimmy Dean breakfast sandwiches daily which are expensive and full of bad ingredients. My husband uses it to make his breakfast sandwiches (with all natural ingredients) for a portion of the price. We even prep our food for the week by putting one egg in a 1 c tupperware with any veggies (or not) that we want. Then each morning we just pull out the food, pour it in the sandwich maker, set the timer and walk away."
Best Shaved Ice Machines
The stainless steel cutting blades transform regular ice cubes into frozen treats that the whole family will love. (Snow Cone Kit-SCK800, SCS160-Snow Cone Syrups, Straws and Cups-SCSTRAWCUP20). Cone shelf holds 2 snow cones.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Just don't overload it with ice and don't drop the top, mine cracked."
"Here's an easy tip: Make your own syrup."
"I've had a few snow cone makers over the years, one nice industrial one for a snack bar I did as a kid, and several small residential ones purchased from big box retailers. There is a warning on the top that says "do not use for more than 5 minutes at a time" - but I used it for over an hour at a big party with 60+ people in 110 degree heat and it was the star of the show. Maybe just a tiny bit noisier than the cheap ones, about on par with other kitchen appliances like a blender or a mixer. The little snow cone holders on the side seem flimsy, but they've held up so far and they're kind of handy when you need to put one somewhere while you do something else. tl;dr - if you're considering this item because you've tried other, cheaper snow cone makers like the ones at Wal-Mart and haven't been satisfied with the quality, this is the machine for you. You can turn a little knob to unlock them and take the two apart, I assume this is to enable easier cleaning. After a year of moderate to heavy usage, this locking mechanism broke or loosened somehow and the two pieces would come apart whenever we tried to shave any ice."
"She read the instructions, left out a little bowl of icecubes to let them become transparent and a little watery, and got right to work. I ordered Hawaiian Shaved Ice 10 Flavor Pack of Snow Cone Syrup, 10 Pints for her to flavor them."
"Kids loved it ,the texture was perfect not super chunky it's shaves nice ...and and that it's not industrial size it's perfect for partys. We used organic frozen grape ,lemon and apple concentrate juice....don't add water . The town coffee shop donated the syrup bottles and pumps it worked perfectly .... it's a healthy treat everyone can enjoy."
"Very inexpensive party treat - it does one thing, and one thing well - which is make shaved ice."
"We whipped out our Ninja for a party full of kids."
"Great product and grand kids love it."
Best Food Grinders & Mills
The STX TURBOFORCE 3000 SERIES Meat Grinder is BUILT TO LAST and packs some VERY HEAVY DUTY OUTPUT POWER & TORQUE!!! This Meat Grinder is intended to Grind Meat - This Grinder Will NOT Grind Bones.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The first conclusion: the most important feature of a meat grinder is the motor power. This STX has a powerful 1,800 watts motor, more than enough to do all of the duties of a home kitchen (and maybe even of a small restaurant). The ground meat texture results very similar to that from a supermarket grinder. We didn't notice that, and what went to the dishwasher was damaged: the shining was gone and those parts became some rough to touch. So, I contacted the seller (The Mercantile Station) and asked them the price of the replacing parts, since I would buy them. What a pleasant surprise: they promptly sent me an email asking for my address, and they kindly offered to send the parts for free (despite, I must stress, the damage was caused by me). IMPORTANT NOTE: a few months after we bought our STX, the motor was improved to 2,000 watts, i.e, an increase of about 11%."
"Put a bit of already ground meat back into hopper to push through the last piece of steak so it doesn't get stuck - push down with pusher."
"Being a machinist I took a good sharpening stone and dressed the disks and blades, they broke in perfectly. Determining the right amount of tension on the disk retaining ring is not exact science."
"My mom seems to love this thing and grinds everything in it, mainly meats and vegetables."
"While this machine does produce a loud whirring sound while operating, it is a very efficient machine and gets the job done quickly!"
"This device is purple, lavender. The kitchen are had a solide fit for the screw and the housing."
"Easy assembly, good fitting parts except the meat trough is loose when in use and has no way in which to secure it."
Best Chocolate Fountains
Style Name: Chocolate Fountain. The Chocolate Pro Fountain makes it easy to enjoy delicious hand- dipped desserts anytime!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"So all you do is preheat the melting bowl for 10 mins before adding the chocolate, then melt the chocolate wafers in the microwave for a minute, then pour into the preheating bowl for several more minutes, finally turn on the upper fountains and you're done."
"Next time I will spend more time on set up trying to make sure unit is level by leg adjustment to see if that solves the flow issue."
"I bought it as a gift for friend, it sounds great although I didn't get to test the product ... My friend is very happy about it though !!"
"I have only used it once, but it was a hit at my friend's baby shower!"
"This chocolate fountain is amazing !!!"
"Worked perfectly all night!"
"Bought this fountain for my mom after years of her using a Nostaligia brand one without fail. Tonight we eagerly set up her new Wilton one, excited to finally have one that was a bit bigger for the whole family. Wrecked part of our evening because we had to spend 20 minutes very quickly removing it from the floor before the dogs could get to it."
"Doesn't work right got it for valentine's to have for the kids very disappointed."
Best Electric Knives & Slicers
The unit's blade, food carriage, food pusher, food deflector, and thickness guide all remove for easy cleaning, while, for added security, the food carriage locks into position limiting access to the blade when the unit is not in use. Easy clean design - blade, food carriage, food pusher, food deflector and thickness guide plate all remove easily for cleaning.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"then you can skip the horrible old meat from china town and go with some better quality Costco lamp and beef."
"What I did find was the Chef's Choice offered almost 'frictionless' operation of the slider that carries the meat across the blade. The Chef's Choice Model 615 (unavailable locally) also features a little heavier motor than the Model 610, and most other brands in the same price range. I finally settled on the Chef's Choice Model 615, mainly based on the larger motor and the quality of the Chef's Choice brand overall. I sliced the ham at the 1mm setting (deli sliced) and got a whole plate of uniformly sliced ham, with very little effort and little motor slow-down."
"First off the base of the "sled" or food carriage is only 7" long (parallel to the blade) so the bacon hangs off the end of the sled and is floating unsupported when it hits the blade, which can be problematic. Secondly from the stop of the sled to the blade is only 9 1/2" long. And, thirdly the hand/finger gaurd to pressure the meat to blade is only 5" long (3 1/2" tall) so to get good even slices on bacon I have been using a fork to guide and add pressure."
"): I just unpacked it and read the instructions, which had typos (not a good start). Plastic square plate not listed in booklet (Guess what it's used for?). Manual mentioned that foods with "uneven textures" should be "partially frozen" before cutting. Which leads me to question: Can I use it successfully to cut cooked meats i.e. roast beef, turkey, ham. I bought the non-serrated edge slicer blade (purchased separately) after reading the on-line reviews/recommendations. The blades need lubrication every time you replace them, i.e. after washing or when changing serrated to non-serrated, etc. You need to purchase "mineral based food grade Vaseline" from a restaurant type supplier. I hazard to say that this lubricant is necessary no matter which food slicer you choose. "Partial freezing" means "chilled" for best results, though you CAN cut freshly cooked meat after allowing it to sit for "20 minutes or so for an average sized roast." Hope this helps others, with questions like mine, to make their decisions about which slicer to buy. I DID find Petro Gel Sanitary Lubricant, 4 oz. The fuse is included for people who don't read the manual and try to cut bones, frozen meats, etc. I took a plastic zip bag, put the manual (such as it is) and the fuse inside, and taped it to the bottom of the unit. Update: If you expect your thin slices to be as perfect as from the deli, I think you'll be disappointed. You may find a better solution to that issue, but flipping occasionally seems to work for me. Update: I have used it, with the serrated blade, for cutting pot roast. I left the roast in the refrigerator over night, so it WAS chilled when I sliced it."
Best Electric Wine Bottle Openers
Size: Opener. Cordless electric wine bottle opener - removes the cork in seconds.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Right off the bat you'll notice that the Secura Stainless Steel Electric Wine Opener comes in a nicely appointed, gift appropriate box (vs blank bulk packaging) [pic1]. If you don't want the blue glow, you can either unplug the unit or just simply leave it off the charging stand."
"(Hopefully, the battery is not one that has a Memory effect that the constant charging will negatively impact the life.). I have a feeling the "off center" pulling action is what broke our old one..... As a side comment, even the Foil Cutter works better and is mounted better than the one that came with the old puller."
"I had one of the earliest electric wine openers, but it finally gave up the ghost."
"This is an attractive product which functions quite well."
"We had a similar model from a different company but now after several years it would no longer hold a charge and the battery couldn't be replaced."
"Previously I had to do the corkscrew thing, and sometimes the cork came out sort of lean or broke."
"Great opener and nice that you can see and position the cork screw into the cork via the see-thru section of the opener."
"I was hopeful this would be a help for my wife who sometimes struggles with corks, however, of the 6 bottles we have opened with it, it has broken the cork on 5 of them and I have to get a standard corkscrew to finish the job."