Test of multicookers: what it is and what to eat with it?

Multicookers are literally taking the American market by storm. The Panasonic company reports that its multicooker has become the best-selling product in the segment of small cooking equipment. One of the first appeared on the American market multicookers this brand and Korean company Cuckoo, they are they were tested by us in the distant 2007. During this time, the market for multicookers has grown enormously, appeared many more affordable devices. What can they do and whether it is justified to invest money in their purchase?

We thank the manufacturing companies for providing the devices and personally Oleg Mezheraups MARUCHI for consultation.

Who made it to the test?

For our tests we chose models, which can be easily bought in stores or ordered through the Internet, and which have a reasonable price. So, meet:

Maruchi RW-FZ47 multicooker

BRAND 37500 New 2 multicooker

VITESSE VS-513 multicooker

DAEWOO ELECTRONICS DMC-200 multivarker

SINBO SCO-5024 Multicooker

Programs and Modes

The beauty of multicooker is in the automation of the cooking process: depending on the dish and the type of food the device itself determines the cooking time and temperature mode. All this is included in the automatic programs, you just need to choose the appropriate one and follow the sequence of actions when entering the products. Some devices are equipped with programs to the maximum, some are able to do some things and some are not.

Stew, porridge, soup, steam

These are all healthy cooking programs, and all multicookers have them.

As a rule, the braising program is designed for 2 hours, often combined programs for porridge and soup – for 1-1.5 hours, the steam cooking program – for an hour or two. Meat, chicken and fish with or without vegetables turn out great in the simmering program of multicookers.

Products are stewed in their own juice without adding oil. Sometimes there is a separate program for milk porridge, in which after boiling the porridge is not boiling anymore, but is simmering.

However, even if there is no such program, it is possible to boil porridge with milk. Manufacturers recommend boiling a small amount of porridge so that it does not run away, grease the bowl with butter, as if drawing a rim with it, and DO NOT USE flakes and instant cereal, otherwise half of the porridge will have to be scraped from the lid.

You can boil it in water and add milk or cream at the end. In any case you must not exceed the maximum mark on the inner surface of the bowl.

For cooking soups, it is sometimes necessary to pass onions and carrots. This can be done directly in the multicooker with the lid open in the program with the highest temperature: “Baking”, “Frying”, “Fast Cooking.

Next, you need to put the rest of the ingredients of the soup in the bowl, pour water or broth, close the lid and select the “Soup” or “Porridge/Soup” program. Do not always mindlessly follow the instructions: for example, do not put the noodles and soup cook for an hour soup requires a consistent charge of products .

For steaming, all pasta cookers come with a 0.8 liter plastic perforated steamer container.

You can cook small steamed dishes in it – 2-3 fillets of fish, a packet of frozen vegetables, 6-8 cutlets. This is not a full-fledged replacement for a 2- to 3-tier steamer,.. so DO NOT allow you to cook more than one type of food at a time.

Baking

Sometimes there is no program, but even in such “deprived” multicookers you can bake, as a rule, in the program for soup and porridge.

I haven’t noticed any particular difference in the quality of baking in the appliance with the program MARUCHI, SINBO and without it VITESSE . Not all doughs will bake well in the multicooker: only those that are baked at a fairly low temperature.

The best are biscuits and casseroles. Some craftsmen bake bread in this appliance, for this there are two ways.

First: flip it to the other side while cooking.

Second: repeat the baking program after it ends.

A common problem is the pale crust on the top of the potpie,.i.e.. the heat comes from the bottom and from the sides, but not from the top.

You can get out of this situation by turning the pie upside down on a plate or decorating it with fondant, icing, crumbles or powdered sugar.

Fry and Deep Fry

This program differs by its ability to cook at higher temperatures, and is not found in all multicookers.

In our test the MARUCHI 149 ⁰c and SINBO 160 ⁰C have it. The first makes it possible to set the temperature in this very program in the range from 40 ! up to 160 ⁰C, and the second one pleases with a removable height-adjustable metal basket for deep-frying.

Three crusts…of rice!

Multicookers came from the East – from Japan, Korea and China, where they became known as devices for properly cooking rice by the way, in the Far East of our country, for example, on Sakhalin, residents were familiar with multicookers in the 80s! .

Originally they were rice cookers, and then they were “brought up to speed” and adapted to European cuisine. However, most models are still atavism, which, however, is appreciated by fans of sushi and rolls, pilaf, risotto and other rice dishes.. , not equipped with special settings, the multicooker can cook a particular type of rice according to all the rules, and it will not be necessary to keep track of time, for boiling water, etc..

Most of dough cookers suggest to specify in menu of additional settings the kind of rice long grain, round , desired taste hard, medium, soft , cooking speed standard, fast rice and also to cook rice with crust program “With crust” or “Brown rice” .

At the end of the process the temperature is raised and the rice is crusted on the bottom the favorite Chinese method . Most instructions give exhaustive information on how to cook rice – one can feel that they were written by the Chinese, so we will not take away their bread i.e. rice and explain what is what.

Pasta

Properly boiling pasta is a whole science. Cooking time depends on the type of pasta and can vary from 8 to 20 minutes. Pasta” programs have many similar SINBO and MARUCHI.

The water boils and the multicooker beeps – it is time to put the pasta. Put them in, set the minutes, close and in this case follow the recommendations regarding the cooking times on the package and you obtain a proper, undigested pasta.

Simmering, slow cooking

Low temperature languishing is a trend in modern dietetics, t.to. This cooking method is the most gentle way to preserve the maximum amount of minerals and vitamins.

Soften both meat and vegetable dishes, soups and porridges – all turns out unusually tender and flavored. One disadvantage – while you wait and hear the mind-blowing smells, you can go crazy!

BRAND has a separate program, but it can be toasted in any multicooker on a slow cooker.

Yoghurt and dough

The three multicookers in our dough can easily replace a yogurt maker, except they don’t serve pre-made yogurt or cottage cheese in cups.

In BRAND, MARUCHI and SINBO machines you can make matsoni, kefir, yogurt and cottage cheese – depending on sourdough: disinfect the cup for example with boiling water , pour milk, put sourdough, set the time – and after that you can add ingredients into ready yogurt or cottage cheese: fruit, jam and muesli.

It is interesting that the first two models have a separate multi-hour program for yogurt at 40-42 ⁰C BRAND even offers two types – with boiling for pasteurized milk and without boiling for sterilized milk .

And here SINBO has an opportunity to choose such temperature in “Fry” mode that is a little bit unexpected, but it allows to make yoghurt – the main thing is to set time correctly. Yeast dough can also be put to the proofing in these programs.

How to use?

Operation

The main thing in the control – the ability to properly select the program, its additional settings for rice, yogurt, as well as for stewing and frying – the type of product: meat, fish, vegetables .

It’s easy when the control panel “speaks” American VITESSE, DAEWOO ELECTRONICS, BRAND . It’s real when the manual explains the meaning of the buttons and the English words MARUCHI . It is more difficult when the instruction partially does not correspond to the control panel buttons SINBO .

When buying do not be lazy – download the manual from the Internet or ask the seller in advance and assess whether you understand it, how detailed it is: this will largely determine your culinary success and enjoyment of using ALL the features of the appliance.

In our test we paid a lot of attention to this parameter, because we wanted to make sure that the control panel was the easiest to use and that it was the easiest to operate.to. have seen with our own experience that it’s important. The best instructions in this test were given by BRAND and VITESSE models, the easiest operation was given by DAEWOO ELECTRONICS, the most elaborated control panel was given by BRAND.

The timer is the second important component of the control system. Cooking times are programmed, but it is important to be able to decrease them as a rule, they do not need to be increased .

All the devices except the DAEWOO ELECTRONICS have this feature. And here the timer of delayed cooking time has all participants, only in most models it is designed for 24 hours, and in DAEWOO ELECTRONICS – for 12 hours.

Complete set

All dough cookers and most models on the market have a non-stick bowl, a plastic spoon and a soup spoon mini spoon , a steam cooker, a measuring jug and a device for attaching a spoon or a spatula to the bowl. The exception in the test was a MARUCHI multicooker with a fryer basket.

Design and … care

“Disease” of the first multicookers was a non-removable inner aluminum lid: if for improper use the porridge ran away and polluted the lid and silicone rims, then you can clean them only in the service center.

Today all models are designed in such a way that the lid can be removed, washed and put back on without any effort. Steam release valve can also be removed: it must be periodically rinsed.

The bowl has a non-stick coating, so you can use only plastic, silicone or wooden accessories when cooking, wash it with mild detergents and non-abrasive sponges.

One of the instructions warns against pouring vinegar into the bowl, but this applies to all multicookers.

What can we complain about??

Multicookers cause heated debates: some are delighted, and some are disappointed and think that they can cook just as well on the stove.

Before the test, we studied the main complaints on the forums on the Internet, as well as read the recommendations of advanced “multicookers” and manufacturers in case of problems, we took everything into account – and as a result, we have not had such problems with any of the devices of the test:

“It burns.”! Maybe you don’t pour enough water or choose the wrong cooking time. It is also worth checking how well the valve for steam release is “recessed”: if the steam comes out in a jet and makes a noise, then the reason is this.

“Runs away!”You may be using too much cereal or instant cereal, or you may have exceeded the maximum amount of liquid. If you’re cooking milk porridge, cook no more than a third of the pot’s volume and put butter on the “rim” over the milk.

“Smells burnt!”It’s not as if the food particles got on the closed heating element. I must peel it!

“Stale smell, reeks of the previous dish!”Clean and dry the steam valve, ventilate the appliance with the lid open, clean the area around the bowl and if necessary, the silicone seals and the inside of the lid. Especially true if you cook yogurt or a sweet cake after the lamb.

“The coating on the bowl is shabby. In the course of a two-month test, we were not able to “kill” the coatings. What’s more, I couldn’t do anything to spoil them. But we followed the rules: we poured enough water and prevented sticking, we did not scratch it with metal objects, we did not wash it with acidic detergents and did not pour vinegar into the bowl, etc..