| Product: |
Tesco Value Steamer 3TS04W |
| Date: |
26/04/07 (201 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: a great buy
Disadvantages: none at all
Tesco Steamer 3TSO4W
I do try and get my recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables a day but I did find all the washing up of various pots and pans to be rather tiresome. A friend told me that steaming vegetables was so much easier on the washing up because of the plastic trays that are used instead of all the different pans and was intrigued to find out more.
I asked around at work on how many people used a steamer rather than the boiling method and was surprised that the majority of people had bought a steamer within the last year or so and were all really pleased with their purchase. I was told that not only it is a space saver but also that the vegetables taste so much better when steamed rather than boiled.
I had a look in the Argos catalogue at a few which really did range in both price and size. Since I was pushed for both money and room in my kitchen I wanted one that was cheap and small enough to store in limited space. The prices seemed to range from £15 to around £50 and I was interested in paying the smaller price. I thought nothing more of it till a trip to Tesco found me strolling down the appliances isle and stumbling across this Tesco 3TSO4W Steamer for the bargain price of £9.97 pence. This was cheaper than alt he ones in the Argos catalogue and I was sure that I was not going to find one much cheaper elsewhere (plus its an added few points on the Tesco card). I bought it without second thought and couldn’t wait to try my crispy vegetables that night.
The steam was housed in a box, which wasn’t overly large so I assumed it must be a reasonably compact steamer inside. The box it came in was very basic as the steam itself is from the Tesco Value range so therefore had the usual blue and white striped logo of the value range. There were instructions that came with the steamer but those were pretty basic due to the ease of which the steamer could be used anyway. The instructions give a few details of for how long certain things take to be cooked thoroughly with steaming. This was pretty helpful as things could be steamed that I had never even thought about such as chicken and rice.
Unpacking the steamer was easy and took seconds to get out and set up ready for use. The steamer comes in 5/6 main pieces that comprises of 3 clear plastic trays for which to put the food inside, a top lid which is also clear plastic, the lower unit with plug attachment and timer dial and also the water tray that’s main job is to catch grubby water from the vegetables that has already been used and to keep it separate from the clean fresh water that is to be used.
The clear plastic trays come in 3 different sizes so that they can be stacked on top of one another easily but you are still able to use each tray singularly or within a stack. There are lots of little holes in each of these steamer trays and this is to allow the steam to pass through and fill up each tray giving the vegetables there steam cooking. The lids are exceptionally easy to clean and really just need a swish round and no scrubbing is ever needed. The plastic lid although designed to fit perfectly on top of the 3rd tier of the steamer can fit easily on to any of the other different sized trays giving the ability to use with just the one tray. The trays are also easy to pick up as they have small handles at each side.
The main part of the steamer is the base that has simply got one read light on to tell you that the steamer is switched on and a timer on the front giving a possible count down from 40 minutes. The timer also has little pictures of food next to certain times to show you how long things need in order to be cooked well but obviously if you like your vegetables crispy then this time will need to be altered somewhat but roughly vegetables take around 20 minutes to cook.
The only way to operate this steamer is to fill up the water area, which is held inside the lower base unit of the product to the correct fill line indicated on the side very clearly. The covers the element inside which is what heats up to give you the steam from the water. The water always needs to be cold and fresh. The water drip tray sits over the element and this will catch the used water nicely inside. You are then able to stack the steamer trays on top of this section, coving it up, either by using 1, 2 or 3 of the plastic trays. The desired vegetables are peeled and placed in each tray and the lid is placed on top. The timer then needs only turning to start the cooking process and once the time has counted down a ringing alarm bell will go off to tell you that the vegetables are ready.
I tend to put my potatoes in the largest of the trays and they would then go on first at the bottom of the tier stack. I would them put my carrots in the second tier but adding it a short while after the spuds had been cooking and then my third set of vegetables I would add t the top of the stack and they would all be cooked perfectly.
The steamer unit does get very hot and be careful when removing the lid when the unit is cooking, as the steam will burn! The unit does steam a fair bit, funny enough! But I would say be careful not to use it whilst it is under any units as by the end of the cooking these will be dripping wet.
At the end of the cooking experience with the steamer I was very pleased indeed and have been ever since. The steamer seemed to cook the vegetables even better than I could have ever dreamed of. They tasted far stronger than usual and actually I do think I had boiled all the life out of them. They tasted far crispier and fresher than I had eaten in a long time. The washing up too was so much easier as I had not used the hob at all meaning no cleaning around those horrid electric rings and scrubbing splashes off the stainless steal splash back. While the vegetables were steaming I was able to clean the kitchen and do a lot of the washing up that I wouldn’t of been able to do till the end before.
The whole process was easy to do and the steamer far easier to use than I would of imagined. The food tasted better and it does seem to save me time and energy on the cleaning up. The price I paid was obviously a total bargain and I would suggest anyone to get a steamer and especially this cheap and cheerful one. Tesco’s are still doing these steamers and for this cheap price I can’t see why anyone would pay more for something that does the same job. This unit looks smart and clean, as it is a very nice white colour. It fits well in my kitchen cupboard and is far easier than getting out all those pots and pans.
I have had the steam now for nearly a year I would say and it has been fantastic purchase that has had tons of use. Ti is still going strong and is looking and working as good as it did on the first day of purchase. I have probably been eating ore vegetables because of the total ease of now doing so much cooking. I have not yet however been brave enough to try and cook anything other than vegetables as I am not sure on the idea of steaming chicken but I am soon to buy some fish, which can also be steamed inside this appliance and I will update you on how that goes.
Overall this steamer is great! So cheap and works so well! Buy it you wont be disappointed.
Summary: a great price for a great steamer
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