Best Compact Refrigerators
Save time in the morning by bringing your breakfast with you or save money by bringing your lunch and keeping it warm all day. The Cooler & Warmer produces almost no noise (perfect for next to your bed to save a walk to the kitchen) and is compact and sleek enough to put on a desk at work. SWITCH FROM HEATING TO COOLING: The thermoelectric system allows for easy switching from beverage cooler to food warmer! AC/DC and USB ADAPTERS INCLUDED: The Cooluli Cooler & Warmer comes included with AC and DC power adapters – Easy to go from indoor 110V (AC) to car use by plugging the appliance into the car cigarette 12V (DC) adapter. THERMOELECTRIC COOLING SYSTEM: The thermoelectric cooler and food warmer works by transferring heat from one side of the device to the other along with electric energy. Since thermoelectric cooling works without refrigerants the Cooluli Cooler & Warmer is also environmentally friendly!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Instead, this little unit uses a thermoelectric (or peltier) effect that transfers heat from one metal inside the unit to another metal outside the unit, where is it cooled and dissipated by a small electronic fan. If you're looking for a true compressor-driven, more efficient portable refrigerator that can provide freezing-level temps, you might consider Dometic CDF-11 Smallest Portable Freezer/Refrigerator."
"With the top rack not installed, you have no issues cooling a 4oz baby bottle with the nipple and cap installed."
"Excellent item for use in an office, as it quietly takes up very little table top space and hiolds 4 soft drink cans plus 2 Muscle Milk Chocolate Shakes."
"I didn't have this worry due to other reviewers saying the fridge wasn't cold enough."
"Very cute,works great."
"The first one we use for baby bottles so there is no need to run to the kitchen for over night feedings and also to store pumped milk when mom needs to do so."
"We got this to keep bottled breastmilk cool in our nursery overnight, with the plastic shelf removed it fits 4 slim bottles (dr browns) or two thicker ones (philips avent / joovy boob)."
"I bought this mini fridge, so I could keep my cold lunches cold and my hot lunches warm, so I wouldn't have to re-heat in the micro."
The 18 energy efficient compact refrigerator has 26 cu ft capacity providing enough space for basic refrigerating needs Because of its low height it can be placed on a counter top or floor becoming a great addition for a dorm room The scratch-resista... You can add a touch of class to any room in your home or office with this striking compact all refrigerator by Danby. Enter your model number to make sure this fits.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"You are going to give it twenty minutes, get impatient as it drips and you think of wasting a Saturday on this and then you get the butter knife. You are thrilled with the great big chunks of ice coming out, that you will NOT have to wait on and the Saturday afternoon that seems wide open with possibilities. But... give it an inch of clearance on all side, wind tunnel style, and DIY it up with a fan (computer fans work well, are quiet and low energy). I received not a penny's discount in exchange for my fair and honest review, so how about a helpful clicky click?"
"More importantly, at its lowest (least cool) setting, the fridge maintains a perfect temperature of 45-50 degrees throughout, without the use of any external regulators."
"To do a more complete temperature test I left small bowls of water on each shelf overnight, and then tested the temperature of each with a Thermapen. Lower shelf was 32 (ice formed on the water near the back of this shelf). Drawer was 40. Middle of door was 41. It also seems to be pretty inconsistent. Edit: I rigged up a small fan (https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-MULTIFAN-Receiver-Playstation/dp/B00G05A2MU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1467222711&sr=8-1&keywords=ac+infinity) at the back of the bottom shelf to circulate the air."
"The compartments are great, it has curves on the door shelfs so you can stick things in like cartons of milk or juice containers."
With a space saving flush back design, the adjustable level feet and a clever reversible door allows you to open the fridge to the right or the left, so you can safely and conveniently place this fridge in any spot! If you are looking for a quality fridge at an affordable price, look no further, this RCA fridge made with decades of experience is one of the most popular on the market and will be perfect for your needs. With a space saving flush back design, the adjustable level feet and a clever reversible door allows you to open the fridge to the right or the left, so you can safely and conveniently place this fridge in any spot! If you are looking for a quality fridge at an affordable price, look no further, this RCA fridge made with decades of experience is one of the most popular on the market and will be perfect for your needs. 3.2 Cu Ft Capacity, Compressor Cooled with Space Saving Flush Back Design (Black).
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Best purchase for price and COLOR.... everyone that comes into my room asks how I got it that color."
"Unfortunately, in our eagerness to get it out of the box and plugged in we didn't notice (or even look closely) until after we had destroyed the box it arrived in. What's now clear is that the bashed in top was like that when someone at Amazon shipping or wherever it was boxed, boxed it. Now why would they keep putting boxes around damaged refrigerators? Beats me, they must know by now that there's a serious pre-delivery damage problem, or maybe they just keep boxing up the returns until people like us decided that it's not worth the trouble to rebox and return. A couple hours later another UPS guy showed up with our fridge; and surprise, this one actually had a dent on the outer box and, not surprisingly, exactly where the dent was on the refrigerator inside. Some advice if you're really eager to get a very nice little red fridge: 1) Do NOT cut, slide the securing straps off of the box...and save. 2) Lift the box off the unit, don't go Freddy Kruger on the box like I did - you may have to reuse it."
"I purchased a warranty so it's covered if anything goes wrong. I am so happy with the size and color that I don't want to deal with exchanging it at the moment. If anything goes wrong, I'll be sending it back, but for now, I am happy with this cute little fridge."
"The box has no bottom, the frig sits on a foam platform that is taped to the box. There are some thin foam boards that "protect" the frig, and they are clearly very thin and do not protect it as both mine were dented and from the rest of reviews they all come this way. The fact that the bottom is a thin piece of foam and the motor of the frig is at the bottom, in my opinion causes the malfunctioning of this item. If this refrigerator would be packed better, it would not arrive dented and most likely would be a working frig each time. I will keep the box for as long as I have time to return it in case it stops working."
"The item had multiple dents to the body, broken plastic inside, corroded, leaking, likely previously used and clearly damaged cooling eliments."
Best Beverage Refrigerators
With a 120 can storage capacity you will be sure to never be short on ice cold beverages. ft. beverage center;manual;warranty;Tempered glass door with stainless steel trim;Recessed side mount door handle;Integrated lock with key; Interior light illuminates compartment when door is opened; Color - Black with Stainless Steel; Height 33.70, Width 17.87, Depth 19.75, Weight 68.90. With a 120 can storage capacity you will be sure to never be short on ice cold beverages. Tempered glass door with stainless steel trim and black body.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I don't collect the best craft beers in the northeast, I drink them. Next day, I was saddened to notice my delicious beers weren't as cold as I would prefer. Out of nothing more than laziness, and maybe the inconvenience, I opted not to send this fridge back. We'll anyhow, there is a small Phillips head screw that adjusts the tension on the release of the thermostat."
"The other two shelves we arranged to allow for one shelf of bottles and one more shelf for cans. Our setup can hold 30 bottles (but more like 25 comfortably) on the bottle shelf, 15 cans on the top shelf, 30 cans (but more like 25 comfortably) on the other can shelf, and on the bottom shelf, since it is about half-size, can fit about 18 Bud Light Lime cans total. Per some of the other very helpful reviews and customer photos on Amazon I did purchase a couple of add-on products for about $30 total: --> This end table, so that my tall husband didn't have to squat all the way to the floor for something on the bottom shelf: DHP Parsons Modern End Table, Black Wood Grain. --> These flexible chopping mats so that the cans & bottles don't "tip" on the grill. The battery pack in this product happens to fit perfectly in a unusable notch area on the bottom/second shelving area, if the door opens on the left (since that is where the notch in the shelf is) Rtgs Micro LED 20 Super Bright Cold White Color Lights Battery Operated on 7.5 Ft Long Silver Color Ultra Thin String Wire [NEWEST VERSION] + 100% RTGS Products Satisfaction Guarantee. So ultimately, it would be fantastic if this fridge utilized glass shelves or smaller grates, and had LED door lighting, but the mods were cheap and easy enough to do on our own."
"Then I reversed the screw and went out for lunch, when I got back it was reading 30 degrees, so over shot a bit."
Best Beer Keg Refrigerators
NSF Approved Beer Line 6 5 ft. of 5/16 in. Temp Range: Low 30's to Mid 40's; Easy conversion to a refrigerator; 5 lbs CO2 cylinder included (supplied empty).
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Easy to put together although I did watch the youtube video because the CO2 stuff a bit confusing."
"My only complaint so far is the rack on top pops out all the time & the little rubber things it sits on are pretty much useless."
"We have had it working for over a full day now, but the entire thing was easy to set up and we got our first pony keg of blue moon!"
""Santa" bought this for my fiancès basement theater man-cave - and I kid you not, I swear I saw a tear (he'll deny it)."
"First of all, it came the next day!"
"My mother in law got this for her birthday and she is a craft beer guru."
"Only problem was that one of the shelves had a crack in it but still 5 stars because it's pretty amazing."
"Purchased for work and now trying to get one for home."
Best Contact Grills
Add in the durable nonstick coating and the patented fat-removing slope, and you’ve got the power to create large, tasty portions of everyone’s favorites with simple cleanup, to boot. The electric heat has an adjustable range from low (for keeping food warm) to high (for searing steaks). The high domed and vented lid helps create a circular flow of hot air to ensure even cooking--particularly important for a large roast or whole chicken. The 240 square inches of circular grilling surface lets you make over 15 servings for large groups of people.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"We had had a George Foreman counter top grilling machine in the past so we looked to see if there were any sort of electric grills and were so excited when we found this grill!"
"We store the electrical component/plug-in indoors immediately after use once the grill cools off and cover the body of the grill with a heavy duty grill cover. 11 months after we purchased it I noticed a strong plastic electrical burning odor coming from the grill while it was heating up and the component that plugs into the grill was super hot and I immediately unplugged it thinking it was close to catching fire. ——————————————————. Update 12/20/17: The grill has been terrific so far and is performing without any problems."
"I started off at turning the dial to "5" and that charred one side of the burgers so then turned it down to 3 and a half. It locks in the moisture and it made for the most juicy burgers you'd ever had- hold the grease! After cooking 8 burgers the grease tray looked pretty full. So i'd say maybe between batches for fatty foods like burgers that you would have to lift the plate up and drain the fat."
"I love this grill, I've cooked steak, burgers, hot dogs etc on it."
"Wish it was a $129 grill. The 2nd thing we'd add to the grilling surface besides the 1/2 inch?"
"I almost didn't buy it because reviewers said it dries meats out, they must be novice because I'm no expert and it was one of the juiciest steaks I've had."
Best Countertop Burners
The energy produced by the Duxtop is directly supplied to the cooking vessel by a magnetic field. Duxtop detects the size of the cookware base and automatically adjust so that very little energy is wasted. This versatile cooktop is great for entertaining; use it as a stylish, elegant centerpiece on the table, for outdoor parties and in the kitchen as an extra cooking zone. 7) Compatible with Duxtop and other induction ready cookware such as stainless steel with a magnetic bottom, or cast iron. Requires induction compatible cookware.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This is in "power" mode, wherein you select an output wattage divided into 10 increments. There is also a "temp" mode, wherein you select a cooking temperature and the stove constantly modifies its output to approximate that temperature in your pan, but I haven't experimented with that way of cooking yet. True that some heat conducts down into it from the hot pan on top, but not enough to burn food onto the surface and create a difficult mess for later scrubbing."
"The only reason I bought an induction cooktop was because I wore out both sides of the inserts on my [brand name] gas cooktop (they rusted to bits from constant use) and since I wanted time before I decided what my replacement would be, I ordered one of these to tide us over. Stir fry is SUPPOSED to be hot and quick (that's how you get cooked through veggies that maintain their color). I spent $25 on an all steel Wok at the cooking store with the initials W&S, and I've been making the best stir fry to ever come out of my kitchen. This is where it has been best to stir fry, near the sink (as I don't have a pot filler tap next to my stove), and having water close to a steel wok for quick rinsing between dishes is a good idea. Maybe I don't need to do anything other than buy a replacement drop-in for the exact same cooktop I already have, and continue using the Duxtop Cooktops, as I'm using them now. Why not multiple cooktops, in different cooking zones? I can't scramble eggs with it without burning them or overcooking (or anything that requires medium or subtle heat, or with copper bottom pans--which is unfortunate), but induction cooking does bring something to the party that ordinary electric cooking never had: Higher, quicker heat. Electric cooking is always going to have the same problem of hot zones that it always had, and these are not going to solve that problem. With gas heat (especially with copper bottom pans) the heat spread is even, and spreads evenly up the sides of the pan, covering the bottom. I'm sure that people who have more experience with electric cooking burn food on gas stoves, so it is what you are used to--so this isn't a magic bullet, but it is certainly better than the old-fashioned coils. I set to 10 when I want to bring water to boil, but then quickly change the setting to about 3 to keep things boiling, and 2 to maintain a simmer (for things like sauces), or 1 to keep things warm. They're handy for parties (when you need an extra burner), for emergengies (if the gas stove breaks), they'll be great for the summer for boiling corn (take it outside and put near the grill), and there is no way to get this kind of high heat for stir fry or quick boiling without upgrading your gas pipe to 3/4". The advice above, to allow the pan to warm up a bit (to setting 5) before blasting it (at setting 10) has prevented other non-stick pans from losing their non-stick coating, and having it flake off on the food."
"So far so good."
"I'm including a photo of banana pancakes I made for breakfast."
"In terms of the noise level, it's quite normal for such kind of induction cooktop to make a humming sound, which goes louder with higher power setup."
Best Rice Cookers
Duo, the number 1 selling multi-cooker, combines 7 kitchen appliances in 1, Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Steamer, Sauté, Yogurt Marker and Warmer, prepares dishes up to 70% faster to support your busy lifestyle.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"You can cook multiple items in it ( which you can also do in a regular stove top pressure cooker by stacking vessels- my mom used to do it all the time , so when ppl say you can cook multiple items in the IP as if it is a new thing - no it is just "re-inventing the Cycle". It cooks rice in less than 4 minutes( sometimes even in less amount of time) - yes it does but BUILDING UP THE PRESSURE takes some time around 8 to 10 minutes( sometimes even more than that for very big quantities of food). So total time is almost same(give or take) when compared to stove top pressure cooker. For stove top pressure cooking , you need to monitor continuosly for whistles, and turning off the stove - This you can avoid in Instant pot. Since it is electric pressure cooker with built in settings, it will automatically turn off the cooking for you , so you dont have to stand near by the. stove all the time. So many BUILT IN functions : There are so many functions you can use for multiple cooking , some of them are Yogurt mode to make yogurt , Rice mode for rice, Slow cook mode etc. Great for people who want to experiment in their cooking to find out the fastest times for. their cooking , which saves lot of time than to use preset functions. ONE POT COOKING ( multiple , if cooking multiple dishes by stacking) so less clean up. and so many more... SO PEOPLE who are looking for stainless steel cooking pot, cooking multiple items at once, dont want to stand in front of the stove baby sitting , busy parents, who wants fresh homemade food with less efforts, One pot cooking, Bulk cooking .... etc etc ... YOU MUST BUY THIS. It happens to everyone .. it takes time and some trial and error to get the exact recipe timings to your taste and texture. I do like to cook 2 things at a time and never tried 3 at a time as I am little afraid that some how they might get spilled while boiling and cooking. 3. Saves time, one pot to clean , so my cooking time on stove is greatly reduced."
"The pot visually lets you know when it's safe to open the pot, by the float valve (the little silver post that pops up when the pot is pressurized) dropping back down flush with the lid instead of being popped up. The sauté function has three temperature settings: 'Normal' heats to 320 degrees, 'More' heats to 338 degrees, and 'Less' heats to 221 degrees (all in Fahrenheit). For pressure cooking, you will probably use 'manual' nearly all the time (nearly every Instant Pot cookbook I've read relies on the manual setting almost exclusively). The preprogrammed settings each have their own timing, and *variable* pressure, which the pot manipulates by manipulating the temperature of the contents (the higher the temperature, the higher the pressure). After you hit 'manual' to start cooking, you then set the amount of time you want it to cook at pressure, after which you will have a 10-second grace period (for example to add more time, etc. So you need to take into account the time it will take to reach full pressure (which depends on many variables, including what is in the contents of the pot, what temperature they started at, and your altitude), *and* how long it will take for the pressure to be released and normalized (i.e. for the float valve to pop in, which of course is really "dropping in", but you get the point). All Instant Pot recipes will include (or *should* include) either one of these terms: natural pressure release (also known as NPR), or quick pressure release (QPR or QR). What these mean is simply either "let the pressure dissipate on its own" (natural pressure release), or "force the pressure to escape immediately by turning the steam release handle counter-clockwise to the open position (quick release). A really good example of a food needing quick release is poached eggs (which come out *perfectly* in the Instant Pot (see how to poach eggs in the Instant Pot below)). For example, for any recipe that includes sautéing in the pot first, then adding ingredients and then starting pressure cooking, you definitely want to have everything lined up before you start. I didn't fully appreciate, until several days in, just how amazing this aspect of the Instant Pot is: you can start something cooking in it, and then *walk away* - even leave the house, and it will finish cooking just like you instructed, and be *perfectly done*, and then it will *keep it warm for up to 10 hours*! (I think this is the thing that pressure cooker purists who try to talk people out of getting an Instant Pot, rather than a stovetop pressure cooker, fail to understand. You definitely will want this steamer basket for your Instant Pot (the Instant Pot comes with a little steaming trivet, but this steamer basket is *way* more useful - in fact it's how you make both poached eggs and baked potatoes). There are different reasons for doing this, ranging from "I only want to cook a small amount of something like oatmeal" to "I want to cook a cheesecake in my Instant Pot" to "I want to cook two different things at the same time in my Instant Pot (like cooking beans, and having a bowl of rice on a trivet (see why you want a good trivet?). Personally, I like to have a physical book when it comes to cookbooks, and so I like this one...you can't go wrong with America's Test Kitchen cookbooks, and their pressure cooker cookbook is no exception: Pressure Cooker Perfection. I also happen to be a strict vegetarian, and for vegetarian and vegan Instant Pot cooking, this book by J.L. Instant Pot Meals, Plant-Based & Oil-free. ..and this one: Vegan Under Pressure: Perfect Vegan Meals Made Quick and Easy in Your Pressure Cooker. And speaking of recipes - here is how to make those poached eggs, and baked potatoes. Put a cup of water in the bottom of your Instant Pot, put a steamer basket or trivet in the pot (making sure that the water doesn't come over the top), and set your Pyrex cups in the steamer basket or on the trivet. Just put water in the bottom of your Instant Pot, flip the legs down on your Oxo steamer, put the steamer in the pot and then dump your potatoes in on top of the steamer. Using the Manual setting, set the cooking time for 12 minutes, using high pressure."
Best Food Processors
Features a 14-cup work bowl, 4mm stainless steel medium slicing disc, stainless steel shredding disc, and chopping/mixing blade. Includes stainless-steel slicing disc, shredding disc, and new chopping blade.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Thinly slicing with a knife, I can work at a pace around 15 seconds per pepper (assuming that's the only task I need to worry about). This extends to pretty much any other product that'll fit in its chute (tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, onion, cabbage, strawberries, potatoes, celery, you get the idea). Industrial standard processors (like Waring or Robot Coup) are prohibitively expensive. The 14 cup capacity is about as big as you can get before you need a much more expensive machine, and has been fine for our needs preparing food for hundreds of people per day. The plastic is prone to cracking especially from the high heats of industrial dishwashers and physical abuse (kitchen workers tend to be aggressive with their tools)."
"It is the most expensive thing I've ever bought for my kitchen (appliances not included), and I would buy it again in a heartbeat. The only thing is it's too tall to fit on my counter, beneath the upper cabinets. It now has a place of honor on my peninsula because 1) it's too heavy to move around all the time, and 2) it deserves it. Safety features- there's no way you're getting a body part anywhere near those blades while they're running, just use common sense when handling them."
"I just upgraded to this from a cheap (if you call $80 cheap) B&D model."
"MY DREAM 14 cup Cuisinart food processor....my 7 cup FINALLY died and I a was FREE to purchase a RED one for my very own!!"
"I had the older version of this classic food processor when it was made of white plastic. I finally received my new Cuisinart from Amazon which had the best price and am happy to be reunited with my old, favourite food processor but now in stainless steel."
Best Soda Makers
Contents include; (1) Jet Sparkling Water Maker, (1) Mini CO2 Carbonator (makes up to 9L of sparkling water), (1) 1L BPA-Free Reusable Carbonating Bottle, and a 60 Liter CO2 Carbonator mail-in rebate. This kit includes: (1) Jet Sparkling Water Maker, (1) Mini CO2 Carbonator (makes up to 9L of sparkling water), (1) 1 Liter BPA-Free Reusable Jet Carbonating Bottle, (1) 60 Liter mail-in rebate.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"About 30 minutes makes enough of a difference so that you can conduct an impressive chug and belch session, should you desire. I've also read comments from several cheapskates and pennypinchers contending that they get more thrifty results from refilling paintball cartridges at Dicks, The Paintball Palace or somesuch sporting goods outlets. While cheap may be the name of the game, those of you dreading GMO's, artificial sweeteners, nasty chemicals leaching from old soda bottles, global warming and other horrors, Take Note: CO2 made for paintball guns needs to be only pure enough to launch a paintball downrange. so why drink trace amounts of some potentially nasty lube not intended for consumption?"
"If it filled 60 liters, each liter of soda water would cost 16 (the cost of the canister refill) divided by 60, or 27 cents a liter. :) in fact, we've gotten an average of about 40 liters per canister refill, or about 40 cents a liter of soda water."
"The only thing is that our doesn't make the same buzzing noise that has been advertised."
"I use it all the time (and it's great to be able to have fresh ginger ale in the middle of the night when you're sick), and the canister lasts a long time."
"I bought this because they were promising a mail in rebate and then a rebate on the first CO2 refill. It's a garbage way to run a business to offer rebates and look for technicalities to deny them. If they don't want to honor rebates then don't offer them, its a good enough product that people will likely buy them anyway."
"there is no way to know how long to hold button down for proper carbonation."
Best Food Steamers
Easy-to-use, programmable digital controls with automatic Keep-Warm and White Rice and Brown Rice functions. Includes steam tray, rice measuring cup, serving spatula, and exclusive recipes and coupons for Mahatma and Carolina Rice.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"There are many cheaper alternatives with a single switch that can cook or keep warm, but this rice cooker can delay up to 15 hours, which is perfect to get it ready for coming home after work. You can open the lid of the rice cooker by pressing the button attached on the handle, and there’s more parts like the white plastic tray with holes that you can use to steam vegetables and a measuring cup to scoop out the right amount of rice. This feature was handy when I set it in the morning, went to work, and came back to find this cooker finishing up cooking my rice. You scoop rice, pour into the bowl, rinse, add enough water, press the button, wait, and eat. Pros. + So easy and can’t go wrong. + Can also steam and cook food other than rice. + Stylish. + Lid stays closed, no water splashes. + Delay timer up to 15 hours. + Stays on “Keep Warm” mode automatically after finishing. Cons. – Beeps are a bit loud for my little apartment but it may be good for you. Wishlist. – Having an actual clock like many microwaves would be nice. Check out the full review on Normal Consumer."
"The water level marks inside (none too easy to see, are calibrated for the number of these little cups of grain you use. Just use one measure of water to one measure of rice. And some rice is drier than other rices, and need more water. Rice cookers work because, so long as there is free water in the pot, the temperature cannot rise above 212F (at sea level). And that means the cooker doesn't really know when the rice is done, only when the water is gone. Now, you will see all sorts of different ratios recommended by rice cooker recipes and for different cookers. Anything reasonably close will work, so long as you use enough water for the grain to be fully cooked when the water is gone."
"i put rice in. i put water in. i turn on. rice cooks. i eat. i happy. i satisfied. end."
"It would switch off automatically when cooking was done. The first one I ordered from Amazon arrived with a big dent left of the panel, but Amazon has a good exchange policy for this item, so the replacement arrived within a few days. The warranty on the cooker is a 1 year warranty, but it's also annoying because you have to pay to ship it both ways (you have to prepay Aroma $14 to ship it back to you."
Best Electric Hot Pots
Quick temp mode brings water to desired temperature without boiling, Micro computerized temperature control system.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I'm sure this is whatever water sits in the dispensing tube and not in the boiler. Update: Amazon now offers you to select a different box for shipping: "This item's packaging will indicate what is inside."
"We went to Japan in 2004 for the first time and of the many discoveries we made on that trip, we remember the Zojirushi hot water heater in just about every hotel room. Japanese engineered to perfection, this device became our essential home kitchen appliance 11 years ago. So we gave it away and upgrade to a 4-liter version, which unfortunately, after 6 faithful years of service, started a leak at the very bottom. - Slow vs. fast drip options are great, and can come in handy especially if you are making fancy coffee or slowly pouring water over fine tea leaves. - When we contact Zojirushi about the 4-liter version that started leaking, they said: "If you have hard water in NC like we do in CA, please make sure to using the CLEANING MODE to clean the unit with citric acid cleaner or lemon juice concentrate every one to three months due to calcium build up.""
"Ordered this one due to the good reviews and the fact it's made in Japan."
"At first there was a strong odor that made drinking the hot water by itself kind of gross, but if you're using the hot water for tea and the like, the odor is undetectable."
"Best gift I've ever given to friends and family, everyone I give these to loves the functionality and the durability and the convenience of instant hot water."
"While supplying hot water at a specific temperature might seem like a non-essential...especially at $195, if you enjoy "just add water" food products or make french press coffee or enjoy high quality green tea then you'll wonder how you lived without this gadget once you do take the plunge and purchase it."
Best Deep Fryers
The unique and patented starfish design circulates hot air around the entire unit, ensuring all food is cooked evenly. Philips Airfryer is the world’s #1 Airfryer with over 7 Million units sold.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I used some gold potatoes I had at home for baking and cut them into identical sized French fries, soaked them in water for 30 minutes before air frying, sprayed the basket with cooking spray, placed the soaked potatoes in the air fryer and 22 minutes later had the best French fries of my life!!! I purchased the Air Fryer to aid in weight loss by lowering the amount of fat from regular frying and calories and I have not been disappointed yet."
"Someone told me an excellent suggestion - use Reynolds PARCHMENT PAPER directly under the food to be cooked."
"Its size is not as big as people may make you think, its smaller than a Kitchenaid mixer. The amount of fries that can be cooked at one time seems to be the same as two medium orders at a fast food chain. What I have cooked: Frozen fries - great, as advertised. Frozen samosas (Indian savory pastry) - initially turned out ok initially without any manipulation, but brushed with some olive oil prior to cooking and turned out great, similar to frying. Frozen popcorn chicken - great. Fresh Chicken wings - this is what sold me on this machine. In regards to home made fries - i have not tried this, and it seems like it would be time consuming based off the various recipes because of all the soaking etc that you need to do. Overall, I think this is a good product and best suited for 1-2 people who are looking for easy ways to cook frozen foods that turn out as good and way less oil compared to deep frying, and would be great for kids who want to eat frozen foods and maintain that high quality crunch."
"I have tried a number of things from fries to coconut shrimp to chimichangas, and I have to say it just bakes everything like a regular toaster oven would."
Best Electric Woks
Size: 17 IN |. Color: None. Enter your model number to make sure this fits.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"We had replaced all of our old Teflon non stick cookware awhile back for health reasons but not our Wok. But we weren't sure if we should do a ceramic one (which doesn't work well with high heat), a PFOE free non stick(which who knows how safe that is long term), or a stainless one. We use plenty of healthy fats when cooking in the Wok, so we haven't had sticking issues."
"As a side note, I'll just add that I broke the cardinal rule of buying this kitchen appliance for my wife for her birthday... And instead of being upset about that, she frequently says how much she loves it and it's one of her favorite things that I have bought her- so that should tell you something!"
"Get yourself some Barkeeps friend for cleaning if you burn things to it, or google how to clean stainless steel cookware."
"Description exactly as written!!!"
"Just great!"
"best purchase I've made in years."
"Large wok with plenty of room to stir fry a full quart of good without steaming in."
"Because it has stainless steel interior and not the non-stick coating, I don't have to be extra cautious to use metal cooking utensil. The base of the pot will have coating of over cooked sauce or starch residue, but after some soaking with water, it is easy to remove the solidly "caked up" sauce/food with Scote-brite sponge."
Best Slow Cookers
Its secure locking lid and rubber gasket create an airtight seal, helping to prevent spills on the road -- food stays inside, and you arrive at your destination without any worry or mess. If you own another slow cooker brand, please refer to your owner’s manual for specific crockery cooking medium tolerances.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I've made casseroles, breakfast dishes, beans, roast, ribs, Mexican food dishes - all just great (including the chicken/rice recipe with the rice cooked in the Crock-Pot)! For someone who actually HATES to cook, I'm becoming a regular Betty Crocker, and even experimenting, because cooking is SO easy with this appliance. The programmable feature is really nice because you can set the cooking temperature on LOW or HIGH and set the cooking time in 30-minute increments all the way up to 20 hours. Once the programmed cooking time is finished, the Crock-Pot automatically turns to "warm." There was some extra browning around the edges so I probably need to adjust the cook time a bit ... and you'll have to do that with any slow cooker. Again, the appliance worked perfectly and the "warm" feature is great because the food finished cooking before I was ready to eat. Bottom line: the ability to truly program the cooking time/temp ... and the "warm" function ... make this my top kitchen appliance (right along side my George Foreman grill)."
"I had heard mixed reviews all around about the cooking temps on some of these being too high or too low or some models automatically shutting off before they are done cooking or even in some cases the electronics lock up to the point of having to unplug and leave unplugged for an hour...this doesn't do any of that. We've used it about 15 times since we bought it (often several times a week) and love throwing a whole meal in there in the morning and coming home after work to a prepared meal. The automatic feature of it switching to warm once the timer is done is really cool."
"This actually works out okay for me most of the time using the High setting and cooking for 5 hours or so while keeping an eye on things, but true slow-and-low cooking using the Low setting may overcook certain low moisture dishes if left alone for the day."
"Using the low setting for a tried and true recipe we had cooked in our old crockpot... our meat burned in this model. This crockpot burned every recipe that had cooked just fine in our older model."
"In speaking with his doctor and the Health Department about possible sources, I was *specifically* cautioned against crockpots and other ceramics made in Mexico and China."
Best Wine Cellars
High precision thermo-electric cooling technology ensures efficient storage at the perfect temperature. Digital touch button display panel allows you to adjust the settings without opening the refrigerator door. Adjustable temperature control (Celsius and Fahrenheit selectable for your convenience). Integrated LED light with power control adds a sophisticated look to your spaces. Reinforced glass door with air-tight seal makes sure all the perfectly cooled air remains inside your cellar. Built-in circulation fan and ventilation grill. Ultra quiet operation allows you to relax in close proximity. 12 bottle capacity makes it suitable for home or office use. Space saving, elegant design that will enhance any room décor. Includes polished chrome wine racks and placement for standing bottles Product Specifications: Internal Volume/Capacity: 35 Liters. Temperature Range: 50 - 64° Fahrenheit (10 - 18°C). Housing Construction Material: Engineered Thermoplastic ABS. Power: 110V. Dimensions: 9.9" x 19.7" x 25.0". Sold as: 1. Weight: 25.7 lbs. Equipped with a high precision thermo-electric cooling technology, adjustable temperature control, integrated LED lights and built-in circulation fan and ventilation grill, this electric cooler is a must-have for any serious wine enthusiast or aspiring sommelier. KEEP ALL THE COOLED AIR IN: Thanks to its efficient, touch screen control, you no longer have to open the door in order to change the settings in your wine cellar.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The light makes it look very nice and it works perfectly and makes no sound which I find amazing."
"I received this wine cooler as a gift."
"Just started use a few days ago."
"Have had the wine cellar for only one day."
"It is very quiet in running."
"Plenty of space for wine."
"Excellent product, quiet and easy to place in my kitchen."
"Got my wine cooler .it was easy to set up."
Best Waffle Irons
The Cuisinart Double Belgian Waffle Maker expertly bakes two 1-inch extra-deep, restaurant-style waffles at the same time. 6-setting browning control knob ensures each waffle is cooked to order.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"My 40-year quest to find the perfect waffle maker ended when I purchased this double flip model. All suffered from the same problem of requiring more precise filling than I was capable of -- too much batter and it oozed out the sides and made a big mess, but too little and the waffles ended up with bald spots. And the thermometer/timer works very well -- I set it around 4 and when the beeper sounds I have perfectly golden brown waffles every time."
"The waffle maker has arrows to tell you which direction to turn it after pouring the batter which is very helpful. We use a family recipe for the batter, so I can not comment on how it works with pre-mixed options like Bisquick. 3 - The included measuring cup make it simple to pour consistent waffles. 4 - Cooking is even and quick. 5 - Waffles lift right out with no sticking. Cons: 1- None so far. Waffle recipe -. 2 eggs (separated). 1/2 cup vegetable oil. 2 cups milk. 2 cups flower. 4 teaspoons baking powder. 1 teaspoons salt. 2 tablespoons sugar. 1 - Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form."
"We keep batter in the fridge and just make a quick breakfast of fresh waffles each morning."
"The chicken and waffles photo is from a cooking class I took with a pretty sad waffle iron."
"Shipped well."
"In the meantime, changing the rating from 5 to 2 'cause it does make great waffles but this exploding hinge thing....... 5/31/17 Got the replacement waffle maker today. In order to get it I had to: 1- Pay Cuisinart $10 to ship the replacement. 2- Send the broken one back which at the USPS cheapest rate was $30.68. Will have to think about it before I purchase another Cuisinart product (we have several)."
"Look at the attached picture of the broken hing, and the way it is designed. I strongly recommend against purchasing this product."
Best Electric Pressure Cookers
Instant Pot Duo 8 Quart is a 7-in-1 programmable cooker, it replaces 7 kitchen appliances as it has the functions of a pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, steamer, sauté, yogurt maker & warmer. 14 built-in smart programs (Soup, Meat/Stew, Bean/Chili, Poultry, Sauté, Steam, Rice, Porridge, Multigrain, Slow Cook, Keep-Warm, Yogurt, Pasteurize & Jiu Niang) cook your favorite dishes with the press of a button. It passed the stringent UL certification giving you uncompromised safety and peace of mind and protects you with 10 proven safety mechanisms and patented technologies. Duo, the number 1 selling multi-cooker, combines 7 kitchen appliances in 1, Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Steamer, Sauté, Yogurt Marker and Warmer, prepares dishes up to 70% faster to support your busy lifestyle.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"You can cook multiple items in it ( which you can also do in a regular stove top pressure cooker by stacking vessels- my mom used to do it all the time , so when ppl say you can cook multiple items in the IP as if it is a new thing - no it is just "re-inventing the Cycle". It cooks rice in less than 4 minutes( sometimes even in less amount of time) - yes it does but BUILDING UP THE PRESSURE takes some time around 8 to 10 minutes( sometimes even more than that for very big quantities of food). So total time is almost same(give or take) when compared to stove top pressure cooker. For stove top pressure cooking , you need to monitor continuosly for whistles, and turning off the stove - This you can avoid in Instant pot. Since it is electric pressure cooker with built in settings, it will automatically turn off the cooking for you , so you dont have to stand near by the. stove all the time. So many BUILT IN functions : There are so many functions you can use for multiple cooking , some of them are Yogurt mode to make yogurt , Rice mode for rice, Slow cook mode etc. Great for people who want to experiment in their cooking to find out the fastest times for. their cooking , which saves lot of time than to use preset functions. ONE POT COOKING ( multiple , if cooking multiple dishes by stacking) so less clean up. and so many more... SO PEOPLE who are looking for stainless steel cooking pot, cooking multiple items at once, dont want to stand in front of the stove baby sitting , busy parents, who wants fresh homemade food with less efforts, One pot cooking, Bulk cooking .... etc etc ... YOU MUST BUY THIS. It happens to everyone .. it takes time and some trial and error to get the exact recipe timings to your taste and texture. I do like to cook 2 things at a time and never tried 3 at a time as I am little afraid that some how they might get spilled while boiling and cooking. 3. Saves time, one pot to clean , so my cooking time on stove is greatly reduced."
"The pot visually lets you know when it's safe to open the pot, by the float valve (the little silver post that pops up when the pot is pressurized) dropping back down flush with the lid instead of being popped up. The sauté function has three temperature settings: 'Normal' heats to 320 degrees, 'More' heats to 338 degrees, and 'Less' heats to 221 degrees (all in Fahrenheit). For pressure cooking, you will probably use 'manual' nearly all the time (nearly every Instant Pot cookbook I've read relies on the manual setting almost exclusively). The preprogrammed settings each have their own timing, and *variable* pressure, which the pot manipulates by manipulating the temperature of the contents (the higher the temperature, the higher the pressure). After you hit 'manual' to start cooking, you then set the amount of time you want it to cook at pressure, after which you will have a 10-second grace period (for example to add more time, etc. So you need to take into account the time it will take to reach full pressure (which depends on many variables, including what is in the contents of the pot, what temperature they started at, and your altitude), *and* how long it will take for the pressure to be released and normalized (i.e. for the float valve to pop in, which of course is really "dropping in", but you get the point). All Instant Pot recipes will include (or *should* include) either one of these terms: natural pressure release (also known as NPR), or quick pressure release (QPR or QR). What these mean is simply either "let the pressure dissipate on its own" (natural pressure release), or "force the pressure to escape immediately by turning the steam release handle counter-clockwise to the open position (quick release). A really good example of a food needing quick release is poached eggs (which come out *perfectly* in the Instant Pot (see how to poach eggs in the Instant Pot below)). For example, for any recipe that includes sautéing in the pot first, then adding ingredients and then starting pressure cooking, you definitely want to have everything lined up before you start. I didn't fully appreciate, until several days in, just how amazing this aspect of the Instant Pot is: you can start something cooking in it, and then *walk away* - even leave the house, and it will finish cooking just like you instructed, and be *perfectly done*, and then it will *keep it warm for up to 10 hours*! (I think this is the thing that pressure cooker purists who try to talk people out of getting an Instant Pot, rather than a stovetop pressure cooker, fail to understand. You definitely will want this steamer basket for your Instant Pot (the Instant Pot comes with a little steaming trivet, but this steamer basket is *way* more useful - in fact it's how you make both poached eggs and baked potatoes). There are different reasons for doing this, ranging from "I only want to cook a small amount of something like oatmeal" to "I want to cook a cheesecake in my Instant Pot" to "I want to cook two different things at the same time in my Instant Pot (like cooking beans, and having a bowl of rice on a trivet (see why you want a good trivet?). Personally, I like to have a physical book when it comes to cookbooks, and so I like this one...you can't go wrong with America's Test Kitchen cookbooks, and their pressure cooker cookbook is no exception: Pressure Cooker Perfection. I also happen to be a strict vegetarian, and for vegetarian and vegan Instant Pot cooking, this book by J.L. Instant Pot Meals, Plant-Based & Oil-free. ..and this one: Vegan Under Pressure: Perfect Vegan Meals Made Quick and Easy in Your Pressure Cooker. And speaking of recipes - here is how to make those poached eggs, and baked potatoes. Put a cup of water in the bottom of your Instant Pot, put a steamer basket or trivet in the pot (making sure that the water doesn't come over the top), and set your Pyrex cups in the steamer basket or on the trivet. Just put water in the bottom of your Instant Pot, flip the legs down on your Oxo steamer, put the steamer in the pot and then dump your potatoes in on top of the steamer. Using the Manual setting, set the cooking time for 12 minutes, using high pressure."
Best Small-Appliance Sets
Metal Construction - Rugged, durable, metal construction ensures years of reliable mixing; helps reduce mixer walk on your counter as well. Powers over 12 Optional Accessories - Turn your KitchenAid Stand Mixer into a culinary center with KitchenAid Stand Mixer Accessories.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Do you need a stand mixer? If you're set on a stand mixer, should you buy this one? What you do get for the extra cost of the Pro series is a better dough hook, a metal gearbox, more power, and a slightly larger bowl. If you go the other direction with the cheaper Classic Plus, you lose 1/2 QT of bowl capacity, a handle on the bowl, the splash guard, and color choices besides white. This particular model has a glass bowl relative to the more popular metal style. Likewise, for measuring, I have my metal bowl on top of a kitchen scale because doughs turn out more consistent if I go by ounces instead of volume. My take is that if you can find an old Hobart (e.g., K4SS, K5-A, K5SS with a metal 'Hobart' placard) and it runs well, it's likely to keep running well no matter what you throw at it. Here's the full list of KA mixers (updated December 2016): KSM3311X - Artisan Mini. * Tilt-head, 250W, 3.5QT metal, soft-start. K45SS - Classic. * Tilt-head, 250W, 4.5QT metal. KSM75 - Classic Plus. * Tilt-head, 275W, 4.5QT metal. KSM95 - Ultra Power. * Tilt-head, 300W, 4.5QT metal. KSM96 - Ultra Power Plus. * Tilt-head, 300W, 4.5QT metal handle, pouring shield. KSM150 - Artisan / Architect. * Tilt-head, 325W, 5QT metal handle, pouring shield. KSM153 - Artistan Flex. * Tilt-head, 325W, 5QT metal handle, pouring shield, flex beater. KSM155 - Artisan Design. * Tilt-head, 325W, 5QT glass handle. KSM160PS - Ultra Power. * Tilt-head, 325W, 5QT glass handle, 3QT metal, pouring shield. KSM160APS - Architect. * Tilt-head, 325W, 5QT metal handle, 3QT metal, pouring shield. KSM500 - Pro 500. * Bowl-lift, 325W, 5QT metal handle, pouring shield, metal gears, soft-start/auto shutoff. RKG25H0X - Heavy Duty. * Bowl-lift, 450W, 5QT metal handle, pouring shield, spiral hook, metal gears, soft-start/auto shutoff. KV25G0X - Pro 5. * Bowl-life, 450W, 5QT metal handle, pouring shield, spiral hook, metal gears, soft-start/auto shutoff. KP26M1X - Pro 600. * Bowl-lift, 575W, 6QT metal handle, pouring shield, spiral hook, metal gears, soft-start/auto shutoff. KF2622 - Pro 600 Design. * Bowl-lift, 575W, 6QT glass handle, spiral hook, metal gears, soft-start/auto shutoff. KSM6521X - Pro 6500. * Bowl-lift, 750W, 6QT glass handle, spiral hook, metal gears, soft-start/auto-shutoff. KSM7586P - Pro Line. * Bowl-lift, 975W, 7QT metal handle, pouring shield, spiral hook, metal gears, soft-start/auto-shutoff. KSM8990 - NSF Certified. * Bowl-lift, 975W, 8QT metal handle, spiral hook, metal gears, soft-start/auto-shutoff. KSMC895 - NSF Certified. * Bowl-lift, 975W, 8QT metal handle, bowl guard, spiral hook, metal gears, soft-start/auto-shutoff. If you'd rather have a more powerful bowl lift mixer, KitchenAid's refurbished store often has the Heavy Duty Series for as little as $175 (if you Google a coupon code). It's a doppelganger for the Pro 5 and includes the superior spiral dough hook."
"Got this mixer for Christmas after wanting one for many years, but just couldn’t bring myself to spend that much for something I anticipated a few times a year, and had a lack of counter space."
"The KitchenAid 5-Qt. My Candy Apple Red KitchenAid Artisan mixer is gorgeous to look at yet it allows me to cook delicious, memorable food for my family. I am very happy with my KitchenAid mixer!"
"After receiving two KA in antique copper here is why I think this: 1. The replacement is a completely different color antique gold than the first one I received. The replacement is also lacking the cool texture the first one I received had. Amazon is sending a third replacement. UPDATE: The third KA mixer I received made a horrible clicking noise as if something in the inside of the machine is loose!!!"
Best Household Mixers
Important safeguard: Remove Flat Beater, Wire Whip or Dough Hook from Stand Mixer before washing. Includes coated flat beater, coated dough hook, 6-wire whip and 1-piece pouring shield. Includes flat beater, dough hook, and wire whip.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Most of us have seen these mixers everywhere for what seems to be decades, but it was probably just me that didn't realize all kitchenmaid stand mixers aren't created equal. There is room for improvement though, the rubber spatula sided mixer attachment is sold separately which is what can scrape down the sides of your bowl without you having to angle a separate spatula into the mixer, I would have been open to forgoing some of the other attachments in order to have this one right off the bat, but they are cheaper and easy to find at TJ Maxx, Marshalls, etc.. Also, the swing back mechanism for the top of the mixer via the hinge at the neck has no protection against it flipping up and down hard. Half star loss for the lack of slow-down mechanism for the head and the lack of spatula on the mixer attachment leaving you to clean up the walls of the bowl pretty frequently, but apart from that this machine is fantastic. CONS: No Cushion For Mixer Head When Lifting up/Down To Prevent Hard Slam, Spatula Mixer Attachment Not Included Requiring You to Scrape Down The Bowl Pretty Often, Expensive (but again, it's not bad for an investment piece-I can't see this thing breaking any time soon or ever maybe). TIPS: TJ Maxx and Marshalls have attachment for these mixers on sale regularly for 60% off the selling price so if you have one nearby go and check for that spatula attachment or even a pasta maker or meat grinder I've seen them all there!, If you are working with dough (or especially if a young one is learning) watch out for it coiling up your dough hook and into the gears-it can happen quickly if you're not careful. Last, I've found that a metal blemish extractor (bought and dedicated for mixer cleaning) is the best tool to get into the attachment holder and metal pieces in the head of the mixer in case they get dirty (or gunked up with aforementioned dough... )."
"The fact that there have been many posts in the past several years about grey residue does not speak well of KitchenAid's ability to resolve issues of quality control. I purchased this model KitchenAid (Aqua Sky) in the past week (in March 2016) and had the problem many have reported of grey residue around the bowl. After throwing away my ingredients, I re-washed twice with a Scotch-Brite scrubby sponge and hot water and detergent, and then twice more scrubbing extremely vigorously with Comet cleanser, then rinsing thoroughly."
"The purpose of this review is more to help with the color selection, in case anyone out there was like me and struggling to differentiate between Ice Blue and Aqua Sky. But I could not find Aqua Sky in person, and struggled with trying to figure out which online pictures were accurate. (for reference I have included a picture of it beside an actual Ball jar lol). In the other photo I have placed a baby blue cup and a light mint green plate, so you can see how the shade of Aqua Sky kind of falls in between the two."
Best Electric Skillets
Great for every meal--big 16-inch base and high sidewalls provide extra cooking and serving capacity. Fold down handles to detach skillet pan from base.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I use an electric skillet almost daily, instead of cooking on my stove top. It's just cleaner and easier that making a mess in skillets or pans, having to clean the stove and surrounding counter tops, pan, etc. That said, there is absolutely a ring that gets hotter directly over the heating element that you will notice when making sauces or gravy, etc. The base folds up and stores inside the pan. Put in the power cord, flip the lid upside down and it does not take up much cabinet space at all."
"If you are looking for a skillet that has fast, even heating, easy cleanup and a compact footprint in a cupboard, this is definitely one to consider!"
"We celebrated Reunion Dinner (i.e. the meal enjoyed by Chinese all over the world on the eve of the Lunar New Year) with this skillet. Furthermore, washing the skillet was a snap: just warm water, a little dish soap and a soft sponge (we prefer to wash most cooking utensils by hand)."
"The base of the skillet has a metal strip around it (see first picture) that when put inside the skillet to stow it away, rubs against the Teflon coating."
"After making the mistake of equating quality with a high-end and high-cost name brand (begins with "C", think food processors) I listened to recommendations from friends and reviews on Amazon, and bought the Presto."
"Because of the other reviews I do not store the base inside the cook top for fear of scratching."
"The non-stick coating makes cooking and clean up a breeze, and the compact design is great for easy storage."
"He likes that it's deep enough to make pasta sauce, and he can make scrambled eggs and saves a lot of money, not having to eat out."
Best Bread Machines
A revolutionary heating element built into our Home Bakery Virtuoso Breadmaker changes the way you can bake bread at home. For a basic bread recipe, simply add in measured ingredients, close the lid, make a selection from the user-friendly LCD control panel, and the Home Bakery Supreme takes care of the rest--baking up a rectangular-shaped 2-pound loaf of bread to perfection. Choose from three crust shades--light, medium, or dark--and from 10 pre-programmed settings that consist of Basic, Basic Wheat, Basic Dough, Quick, Quick Wheat, Quick Dough, Jam, Cake, Sour Dough Starter, and Home Made. Best of all, the machine's timer can be set to delay the end of the baking cycle by up to 13 hours, which makes it possible to wake up to the smell of freshly baked, homemade bread in the morning or to come home to a warm loaf at the end of a long day at the office. Bake a Variety of Recipes From cinnamon-raisin bread for breakfast to buttery dinner rolls or garlic bread sticks to serve with dinner, this counter top appliance makes it easy to create delicious bakery-style artisan bread right at home. Cake No need to get out the whisk or mixers; the Home Bakery will mix the ingredients AND automatically bake the cake for you. Home Made The Home Made cycle allows you to program the knead, rise and bake times to create your own menu setting. Bake Bread with Ease Use Fresh Ingredients First, prepare fresh ingredients. loaf Exclusive Home Made Menu function includes 3 memory settings Additional heater on lid for even baking Quick baking cycle prepares bread in a little over 2 hours 13-hour delay timer LCD clock makes it easy to check the completion time and set up the Timer Includes as easy-to-follow instructional DVD, manual and recipe booklet Menu settings include: basic bread, wheat bread, gluten free bread, sourdough starter, dough, jam, cake, quick bread and 3 home made menus. Bakes a large traditional rectangular shaped 2-pound loaf; Gluten Free and Custom Menu settings will accommodate gluten free and organic baking ingredients.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"For us, it ultimately boiled down to these key features: Zojirishi: +Longer loaf tub (makes a more normal sized loaf like you'd buy at the store. +Heating element in the lid for consistent and even browning all around. Breville: +4 loaf sizes. +Nut dispenser. PICTURE DESCRIPTIONS: First loaf we baked was white bread (regular speed, medium crust). Also compare it to a mostly eaten white bread made from the Breville. Second bread we made was olive bread from an online recipe. Again I compared it to the size of a regular bread from the grocery store (half the bread is missing from the plastic bag). +Zojirushi allows you to create 3 custom profiles in which you can adjust the timings for each phase (Rest->Knead->Shape->Rise1->Rise2-Rise3->Bake->Keep Warm) whereas the Breville allows you to create 9 custom profiles and adjust the timings AND temperature for each phase (Knead 1->Knead 2->Rise 1->Rise 2->Rise 3->Keep Warm). +The Zojirushi has a "Shape" option where it will beep before the first rise phase and give you an hour to open the lid, take the dough out and shape it with your hands so it looks nice and even, put it back and then close the machine. +The Zojirushi has 2 paddles and the Breville has one. Don't really care, because we remove the paddles before the final rise even on the Zojirushi, so the holes are super small (1 centimeter diameter). +The Zojirushi has much sturdier build quality, whereas the Breville is made of thin, unpolished brushed aluminum. +Zojirushi says it can be used for meatloaf and sourdough starter, Breville has a yeast free option or something...personally I don't care, plus you can probably customize settings on the Breville to make those work. I use my phone's flashlight when using the Zojirushi (though you can kinda see what's going on without it). +The nut dispenser was a pretty awesome get sure in favor of the Breville, but I want to point out that the Zojirushi will beep when it's time to add those ingredients. But check out the olive bread we made on the second try...compared to a regular loaf you'd buy at a store, the size is spot on. However, the white bread was our absolute first loaf we tried, and we could've done one or two things to make it as perfectly formed as the olive bread (see below). With the Breville, you might be able to achieve these sizes by using a lower bread loaf setting and adjusting the amount of ingredients. While we really liked the ability to choose multiple bread sizes with the Breville, we liked that the Zojirushi makes a standard looking loaf right out of the box. For the white bread regular setting, this should be 55 minutes after the Knead phase ends. The second recipe we used is some southern olive bread recipe I googled in which they happened to use a Zojirushi as well! Here's the "Kalamata Olive Bread Recipe from Southernfood/Aboutfood : http://southernfood.about.com/od/breadmachine/r/r70412a.htm. Don't forget to let your bread sit for 30 minutes before slicing! Bottom line: The Zojirushi's even browning and standard loaf size make me feel it makes an overall better bread loaf."
"Surprisingly, this machine actually has exceeded our expectations; even 100% whole wheat bread, which in the ancestor Zo could be iffy, is perfect. A "Shape" stage can be used to remove the dough to specially form it or remove the paddles before baking (the splines will remain, but the resulting holes will be much smaller without the paddles), and raising the lid will stop the machine temporarily without interfering with the program. for whole-grain breads w/nuts/fruit/seeds, banana bread, cakes, and pizza dough so far, and hopefully noodles soon), we're delighted with our new Zo and recommend it without reservation; we also appreciate Amazon's free shipping and right-on-time arrival before Christmas. Just an added note if you're new to bread makers (and to set straight some previous detractors' comments) - for best results with any machine, take the time to measure ingredients by weight rather than volume and add them in the order recommended in your machine's manual, since order can vary by manufacturer and doesn't necessarily match that listed in cookbook recipes."
Best Ice Cream Machines
Pure and Simple Indulgence Add fresh ingredients to the mixing bowl, turn on the machine, and go. Perfectly Delicious The large capacity mixing bowl lets you make up to 1-1/2 quarts of your favorite smooth and creamy frozen treats. Also use to add ingredients, like chips or nuts, without interrupting the freezing cycle. Easy-lock Lid Transparent to let you watch the freezing process as it progresses. Freezer Bowl Contains cooling liquid within a double insulated wall to create fast and even freezing. The length of time needed to reach the frozen state depends on how cold your freezer is. Be sure to place the freezer bowl on a flat surface in its upright position for even freezing. Reminder: Your freezer should be set to 0°F to ensure proper freezing of all foods. NOTE: Ingredients must be added to the freezer bowl after the unit is turned on. If you desire a firmer consistency, transfer the dessert to an airtight container and store in the freezer for two or more hours. Easy lock transparent lid with large spout makes adding ingredients simple and mess free.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"3- 20 -25 min is proper time, Slightly less than is ok if you put less total ice-cream mix. 5- Avoid filling the bowl to the top, ice-cream grow bigger when set and will over flow and will make a miss and hard to clean. 6- *** I noticed that I can increase the hardness of my ice-cream by manually spreading the ice-cream mix to touch all inside surfaces of the bowl while still on by using rubber spatula. The ice-cream when start to freeze tend to stop moving or just touch one area inside the bowl and by spreading it you make it set faster. the colder your mix the faster and easy to set and freeze inside the bowl. 9- Price of ingredients to make a nice ice-cream? will I say fair to ok. As I mentioned, I use heavy-cream for hard serve ice-cream and I buy 1 quart around $6 (and I use it 2 times or two bowls, 2 cups each). you also add the price of regular milk and other flavors and ingredients as preferred. I will move to frozen yogurt and I will add more tips to my review."
"The recipe in the owners manual for vanilla ice cream is HEAVEN. there are a few things about this ice cream maker which I think could be improved, and maybe on newer models they are, but these are what reduces this review by one star. I feel like in this day and age, there is no reason to not make kitchen tools dishwasher safe. Now you have to freeze the bowl for about 24 hours in advance, but that's just the type of ice cream maker this is. It's a solid ice cream maker and the few drawbacks are not a big enough deal that it would sway me from buying this all over again if I had to do it over."
"Please look at the warranty info before you purchase this unit. We just received this one, and we tried to use it once, and the chemical smell coming out of the motor was terrible as soon as we started it. If you have a issue with the unit during the warranty period, YOU have to pay $10 to ship it to them, and then another $10 for them to ship you the replacement."
Best Electric Griddles
Compact in size but big in features, Cuisinart's countertop Griddler offers five-in-one functionality as a contact grill, panini press, full grill, full griddle and half grill/half griddle. Open the cover and customize the cooking surface with removable and reversible nonstick grill and griddle plates that snap in and out easily and drain grease to an integrated drip tray for healthier cooking. A hinged, floating cover and one set of removable and reversible cooking plates turn the Griddler into a contact grill, panini press, full grill, full griddle, or half grill/half griddle. Parts & Features Base and Cover: Solid construction with stainless steel self-adjusting cover Panini-Style Handle: Sturdy cast-metal handle adjusts cover to accommodate thickness of food Removable and Reversible Cooking Plates: Nonstick and dishwasher safe for easy cleanup Grill Side: Perfect for grilling steak, burgers, chicken and vegetables Griddle Side: Prepare flawless pancakes, eggs, bacon and seared scallops Controls: Indicator lights signal Power On and Ready to Cook Selector: Choose the Grill/Panini or Griddle function Grill/Panini: Adjust temperature from “warm” to “sear” Griddle: Adjust temperature form 200°F to 425°F Drip Tray: Collects grease and removes from base for easy cleanup (dishwasher safe) Cleaning/Scraping Tool: Helps clean grill and griddle plates after cooking Plate Release Buttons: Push in to release and remove cooking plates Hinge Release Lever: Allows the cover to extend back for cooking in the flat position. Contact Grill Use the Griddler as a contact grill to cook burgers, boneless pieces of meat and thin cuts of meat and vegetables. When cooked on the contact grill, food will cook quickly because you are grilling both sides of the food at the same time. The ribs on the grill side of the plates, combined with the grease spout at the rear of the plate, allow the grease to drip from the meat and drain off the plates. When the Griddler is used as a contact grill, the grill side of plates is recommended. When the Griddler is used as a panini press, the grill side of the plates is recommended. We recommend the grill side of the plates because traditional style panini sandwiches have grill marks on the bread. Full Grill Use the Griddler as a full grill to cook burgers, steak, poultry (we do not recommend cooking bone-in chicken, since it does not cook evenly on a full grill), fish and vegetables. When the Griddler is used as a full grill, the grill side of the plates should be used. You have the option of cooking different types of foods on separate plates without combining their flavors, or cooking large amounts of the same type of food. When using the Griddler as a half grill/half griddle, simply place the unit in the flat position and insert one plate with the grill side facing up and another plate with the griddle side facing up. Turn the Griddler around and insert the second plate on either its grill or griddle side into the upper housing as you did with the first plate. 5-in-1 countertop unit works as a contact grill, panini press, full grill, full griddle and half grill/half griddle.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"So far I have cooked eggs, bacon, pork chops, toast, a Philly steak sandwich, and waffles (with the waffle plates I purchased separately). Everything has turned out great except the first time I cooked eggs on it because I didn't use cooking spray on it beforehand. So keep in mind that you will need to lightly spray the plates with cooking spray or use butter before placing your items on it that may stick. The plates (including the waffle plates) are dishwasher safe but after owning the George Foreman for years I am choosing to hand wash my plates on this Cuisinart. The non-stick plates make it where I can just wipe the mess right up with little to no effort. I love that I can fold this unit flat and make bacon, eggs, and toast all at the same time."
"I figured we could just use it as a panini press but let me tell you, after we did delicious grilled cheese and how fast and easy it was, we decided to make burgers on it. It seared the beef right away, all liquids were pouring into the container, it was draining excess fat perfectly and it took probably 5-7 minutes to make the burger well-done. If food got dried so badly on the plates, soak them in hot water for a few minutes and that’s it. The one I bought is the one with dripping tray that goes inside under the Griddler and I have metal clips. And don’t freak out if it splatters a little when you put a piece of steak on it and then give it one star and say "Oh my God, I hate this product!" So just use your common sense and don’t rely on those reviews that say It’s “crap” or “doesn’t work”, and make sure you get the right model."
Best Juicers
BJE200XL: Juice Fountain Compact Key Feature. Die-cast juicer with soft fruit attachment and variable speed capability. 'Rolls Royce' of Juicers: die-cast metal matched wtih power. Variable speeds maximize yield across variety of fruits. Makes thicker juices and yields more juice for leafy greens and wheatgrass than non-masticating juicers. Great entry price point for Breville juicers. Compact design takes up less space, with all of the juicing capabilities of the other juicers. Type of Juicer. Centrifugal. Centrifugal. Centrifugal. Masticating/slow juicer. Centrifugal. Centrifugal. Motor. 1200 watt. 1000 watt. 900 watt. 240 watt. 850 watt. 700 watt. Speed. 5 speeds ranging from 6,500rpm to 13,000rpm. Low speed of 6,500rpm, high speed of 13,000rpm. 5 speeds ranging from 6,500rpm to 12,500rpm. 80rpm. Low speed of 6,500rpm, high speed of 12,000rpm. 14,000rpm. Materials Heavy grade die-cast metal body Titanium cutting disc Stainless steel micromesh filter Stainless steel puree disc. 3" circular feed tube processes whole fruit Centered dual knife blade asssembly Stabilizing knife Dual high/low speed switch for hard or softer fruits and vegetables. 3" circular feed tube processes whole fruit Centered dual knife blade asssembly Stabilizing knife Dual high/low speed switch for hard or softer fruits and vegetables. 700-watt motor operates at 14,000 RPM for maximum extraction ; Safety Locking Arm: Juicer will not operate without juicer cover in place and safely locking arm in place in the vertical operating position.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"One thing I would recommend is to spray all the parts out and spray/scrub the fine strainer IMMEDIATELY after use. Half the time I don't even use soap, just spray it all out over the sink (scoop the big chunks in the trash obviously), and then I just spray it all down with some food grade sanitizer. OH, also, if you want to, you can use all of the fibrous stuff that the juicer spits into the main compartment for healthy muffins!"
"I did some pretty good research and though this may not be considered the best juicer, it did seem to have very good reviews. Basically, spinach, celery, apples, oranges, limes, beets, cucumbers, pears, ginger and anything else that's laying around."
"Stack spinach leaves about 2-3" tall and place on a large kale leaf. Small spinach leaves won't fly out the food chute or end up whole in the pulp collection bin. The shredding disc and steel mesh were showing signs of staining and minor clogging. All the residue came off easily, opening all the clogged mesh holes and rejuvenating the shredding disc. Update Dec 2012 - The Breville Compact Juice Fountain works like new after 11 months of daily use! As with any centrifugal juicer, the pulp may not be "bone dry" due to the nature of the juicing process. The toughest veggie I've juiced is a quarter head of purple cabbage, no problem. Whole kale leaves, celery, carrots, broccoli, beets...juiced regularly without any trouble. *Quick and easy to clean because there are only 4 parts: the food pusher, feed chute / pulp collection lid, pulp collection container and steel micro mesh filter. * Compact size makes it easy to leave on the counter to encourage frequent, if not daily, use. * Juicer cover, pulp container, filter basket and pitcher are listed as dishwasher safe. Note that the inside of the juice collector (under the mesh filter basket) needs to be scrubbed well to prevent build-up. CONS of this unit. * One speed means you cannot slow the shredder basket down for tough or leafy greens. to the food chute while there is still some spinach at the bottom...no more broccoli florets all over the kitchen =). * Nest and roll big leaves like kale and collards."
"What wasn't mentioned is that the reason it does that is because the motor is so beefy that stuff will shoot straight up. When juicing soft stuff I immediately cover the top with my hand. Breville uses a combo of ingenious design and magnets to hold it in place! Carrot juice would make a great dye :-). The pulp on this juicer is a bit wetter than the Jack LaLanne. This juicer makes much smaller pieces of pulp though - and my experience so far has been that it gets just as much juice from a pound of carrots."
Best Ovens & Toasters
Top and bottom heating elements bake foods from both sides. There are independently controlled top and bottom heating elements, so all types (frozen or fresh) and sizes (7 to 12 inches) of pizza can be custom baked. With a rising-crust pizza, for example, you should run the lower heating element for 10-12 minutes before turning on the top element. For a crisper crust, bake the pizza with both heating elements, then finish it off with a few minutes of bottom-only heating. Heating elements are separately controlled, allowing you to select top, bottom, or both elements for perfect results every time.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Pizza rolls come out wonderful, because you can watch them and stop it right at the moment the filling starts to pop out. Takes about 16-18 minutes to cook raw chicken breasts, and they come out perfect and juicy. I am not sure what kind of ovens these people use, or if they like, don't close the door all the way or something hehe, but it is much like running a space heater. I am gonna throw in a pic of those biscuits cause damn they cook nicely."
"Lessons learned from my first one: The non stick pan coating is thin, so be sure not to use anything but wooden utensils on it. Also, this can easily be wiped off to clean, instead of scrubbing; that can also scrape off the non stick coating."
"I've also made chicken strips & fries, at the same time I was making a personal size DiGiorno pizza. I've made the mistake of touching the pan or bumping into it & it "leaves a mark!" I also love that you can set the heat either on the top, just the bottom or both. Makes crisping up Garlic Cheese toast so simple. (except for toast) I can make so many more things on here, at the same time, than I can in the toaster oven. I HIGHLY recommend this great, inexpensive piece of heaven!"
"We primarily bake pizza on it but have made taquitos and quesadillas on it and will soon be trying cookies and cinnamon rolls."
"I hate waiting on the oven to preheat and with this thing, you can start cooking immediately."
"When we bought our first one four years ago, we didn't realize this under $50 cookware would be our family's most used and favorite kitchen tool."
"I bought a Large Papa Murphy bake pizza and it did a great job."
Best Microwave Ovens
The consistent delivery of microwave energy means delicate foods can simmer without the edges and surfaces overcooking. Inverter Technology for even cooking and delivering delicious flavor and Inverter Turbo Defrost for quick defrosting. 1200 Watts of High Power; One-Touch Genius Sensor Cook and Reheat for automatic cooking settings and even Keep Warm feature.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Put in a plate of cold food, press Sensor Reheat, and no matter the quantity of food it will heat it up the right amount of time to get the right temperature. Some other microwaves have a Reheat button, without a sensor, but just gives a set amount o time, which is useless. Reheat used to mean it had a sensor, but apparently now you have to look for the word Sensor. You have to press a number 1 through 12 after pressing the Sensor Cook button, for different kinds of food, as listed in the manual. I have gotten used over the years to press 11, 22, 33 seconds and so on, fine tuning the amount of time while minimizing the button presses."
"It was also well packaged and arrived pretty quickly. I also like that you can just press the buttons for the time that you want instead of having to hit a specific input time button or turn a dial or do some other form of annoying time wasting step."
"This microwave works fine, and is faster than most others I've used. Several people commented negatively that the coating on the number pad started bubbling right away. Overall, while it's not perfect it works well and is a good value."
"This is our first inverter microwave oven."
Best Household Blenders
The Nutri Bullet NBR-12 12-Piece Hi-Speed Blender/Mixer System by Magic Bullet is portable, safe for kids, easy to use and effortlessly pulverizes fruits, vegetables, superfoods and protein shakes into a delicious, smooth texture. Eating extracted food is great for EVERYONE in any state of health – from top performing athlete to someone suffering from fibromyalgia – because extracted food is virtually predigested, so your body can effortlessly absorb and utilize all of the nutrition that food has to offer. When we prepare extracted foods with the NutriBullet, the foods are consumed in their most absorptive state, so we get the nutrition WITHOUT having to rely on proper chewing, effective stomach acids, digestive enzymes and the like to break down the food. Baby Bullet Features The SuperFood Nutrition Extractor. The SuperFood Nutrition Extractor with more power: 900 watts. Does any job in 10 seconds or less! Uses Breaks down food to its most absorbable state. Breaks down food to its most absorbable state. Everything from chopped onions and grated cheese to pasta sauces and snacks. Make fresh, healthy, all-natural desserts. Make fresh, healthy, all-natural baby food for every stage of baby's development. Lifestyle The health-conscious will enjoy nutritious beverages made from the natural ingredients they select. Athletes can rejuvenate quickly and efficiently with the powerful 900 watt motor and 2 extractor blades. Busy chefs can rely on its ability to create a wide variety of key ingredients. Hosts will delight in whipping up fresh desserts for dinner parties. New moms will appreciate time saved while creating wholesome foods for their babies. Includes power base, 1 tall cup, 2 short cups, 1 flat blade and 1 emulsifying blade, 2 re-sealable lids, pocket nutritionist and manual with recipes.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Twice a day, I blend fresh kale/spinach, frozen banana, frozen strawberries, frozen apples, frozen blueberries and frozen raspberries. Once a week, I buy fresh fruit and then I put the combination in a ziplock and I freeze it so that my smoothie is slushy!! Long story short; I was recently diagnosed with diabetes and a few months later, I almost died from a severe pulmonary embolism."
"OK - so I read a lot of reviews - when it came right down to it - the only real gripe I saw that people were having was this "leak" issue. Leak Issue: OK - Here is the deal....for all you people who cannot read the instructions in the manual that comes with the unit. DO NOT OVERFILL - SCREW BASE ON SECURELY. Still don't understand - how about this - DO NOT FILL ABOVE THE LINE MARKED ON THE CONTAINER WHICH STATES - MAX FILL LINE. I don't know how much clearer I can be without demoralizing someone at this point. Follow the instructions, do not overfill and screw the base on securely and it will work beautifully. If while blending you keep an eye on the base where it meets the clear plastic container - you can see the leak working its way up through the threads of the base. Best practice is though to NOT OVERFILL - DO NOT FILL ABOUT MAX FILL LINE - TIGHTEN BASE SECURELY. Price: I purchased mine at Target for $99 as most customers were complaining about the leak issue and if I had to return it, better to do it at the store where I bought it. I then went to Target's online website, looked it up there and did a "Stock Check" for stores in my area - All were sold out except one which was about 30 miles away - so I made the trek up and go there to find ONE last unit on the shelf - MINE!!! You shouldn't need to return it because it doesn't leak if your remember to NOT FILL ABOVE MAX FILL LINE and TIGHTEN BASE SECURELY. Overall Opinion: Have had this unit about a week and have done several dozen drinks with it so far and have absolutely no complaints - works great, is powerful and does not leak if your remember to NOT OVERFILL and NOT FILL ABOVE MAX FILL LINE.....lol. I realize "common sense" has lost its way in many areas of our society these days and when people cannot read the instruction manual which clearly says "Read First Before Using" then I start to wonder if maybe "literacy" is more the issue than "common sense". Either way - if you are reading this and feel offended by my comments about you not being able to understand what it means to NOT FILL ABOVE MAX FILL LINE or TIGHTEN BASE SECURELY, then I am sorry.....for you. I contribute much of the success to the NB and all the good things I can put in there and the benefits of having all of the stuff back in my drink rather than tossing it from using my old Juiceman Juicer. - DH. [Update:}. Nov 21, 2013 - OK folks, time for me to chime in on this "rust and blade issue". I find it very hard to believe this is rust in these other pictures - are you all not drying your unit after you wash it and then just leaving it in the cabinet for 3 or 4 months before taking it to use again and then NOT washing it before you use it? This is the same original unit I bought and it is still working fabulously and I use it ....8-10 times a week and my wife also uses it. So bottom line on this update - I still love it, new base is best, make sure you get one with new base."
"Generally I stick to some combination of spinach, carrots, Greek yogurt, bananas, strawberries, mango, blueberries, apples, and papaya. I add crushed ice and have a delicious smoothie every day for breakfast and it keeps me going till lunch. Another benefit of the Nutribullet is that it will enhance your ability to preserve produce in season, which I get from relative ' s gardens or the farmer's market."
"This item is counterfeit."
"I ran to the kitchen sink to put the fire out and saw that the bottom of the blender had melted."
Best Specialty Kitchen Appliances
Style Name: Without scissors |. Product Packaging: Frustration-Free Packaging. This can opener will easily open all standard-size cans and cans with pop-top lids.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I'd been using the same small dependable hand-held electric can opener for the past 25+ years until it finally gave up the ghost. After getting hand cramps from my old manual opener, though, I finally opted for this Hamilton Beach model. I'd never much cared for the side-cut openers before because liquids inside the can seemed to spill more easily with the lower edge, so this higher-cutting model is much better IMO. The top push-down lever depresses easily and the magnet on the opener holds the can securely in place while it's cutting. I found that this is important because if you allow it to continue making rotations, it cuts long narrow slivers of the can which are noticeable when you remove the top (looks like a tiny strand of steel wool)."
"This Hamilton Beach Can Opener had caught my eye from all the great 5 Star reviews it showed, and from Reviews as far back as year 2009 which shows Hamilton Beach knows they have a high quality well built very popular can opener. The can opener is what you would design in your mind as having every feature a High Quality Can Opener would have, well designed and solidly built."
"I'm 72 years young and this is the BEST can opener i've ever owned or operated.!!"
"Reviewers who said it has a short cord probably did not pull it all the way out."
"I have never seen or had an appliance sold with a cord that is basically 'useless' unless you have a connection with nothing in the way. Buy an extension cord, or maybe Ham Beach will correct this incredible design blunder."
"Given that, I doubt we've used this opener more than 30 or 40 times on a total of 150 - 200 cans. I've noticed the last few times that we used it that it was struggling with opening the cans and was creating metal slivers."