Customer Reviews

Black & Decker Food Steamer

5 star:		(114)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When some friends gave this little steamer to my husband & me almost 10 years ago, we thought it was a dumb idea! "What do you need a whole separate appliance like this for?" we laughed. After all, we assured each other, we had a complete set of pots & pans, running water, etc. We thought this was just a silly affectation. We were wrong. We finally decided to use the steamer when our friends were coming to dinner, cooked some broccoli in it and....had our revelation. That night the broccoli was crisp, bright green & "al dente" after 12 minutes of steaming. In other words, "perfect." So was the asparagus we steamed the next night, the rice we steamed the night after that, and so on.

1001 nights later, having used this handy little appliance almost each & every night, we finally had to admit that we'd been wrong, completely wrong, totally wrong! This is no affectation! Not only did our vegetables, rice, couscous, etc. come out perfectly every time, steaming preserved their nutrients & this little steamer was incredibly easy & convenient to use. I've even used it to sterilize my younger child's bottles & to steam foreign stamps off envelopes for my son's collection. The only small appliance we all use more frequently is our electric kettle! This steamer's compact size, however, makes it easy to store & all of its plastic bowls/covers/baskets fit easily in the diswasher for easy after-dinner clean-up. After nearly 10 years it still works as well as it did that first night!

You need this steamer. You may not realize it till after you've owned it for a bit, but if you don't find yourself discovering multiple uses for it, well, your imagination is lacking!

I've been really happy with this little steamer. It does exactly what it's supposed to and it does it well. My in-laws, from Germany, were really impressed with it when we made a seafood dinner last summer and it has also doubled as a (small) humidifier when my Chihuahua puppy had a bad chest cold. The steamer's other benefits are that it travels easily to friends' houses for impromptu dinners, it cleans up very quickly and it takes only a small amount of storage space.

I have had one of these for nearly 9 years and just had to replace it because the motor died. Tip: if you replace it with same model, don't throw out your steam basket and lid because then you have two for you new one. This isn't just for veggies as most people assume. It has a great guide giving you steam times for all sorts of foods, but I've used it for steaming Salmon, wontons, clams, shrimp(forget having the store steam them!), veggies, rice, fruit(for making baby food). It's so inexpensive and soooo useful. I've bought several for people who have "wow'd" over my use of it!

My steamer is always dirty, because Its always in use. You can cook an entire meal at once, PERFECT for the person that lives alone, and is trying to eat healthy. Throw in a chicken breast, some carrots, broccoli & potatoes and voila! I'm considering buying a second one because its used so often.

I've been cooking for over forty years, and that's a lot of cooking. Like most people, I want to serve healthy meals to my family, but while I don't mind cooking those main dish recipes, I hate cooking veggies unless they can be microwaved. But this steamer had great reviews so I ordered it. I USE IT EVERY SINGLE DAY. I can throw a whole bag of baby carrots in it and steam them while everything else cooks. Corn on the cob is fantastic. I just love this thing. My only negative is I waited so long to buy one. Very easy clean up.

My 6 year old Black and Decker Steamer just went out. I am looking for another one of the same brand but larger. I discovered that there were weekends that I was having to make two batches of rice. My 9 year old foster son can eat an entire batch on his own which leaves me out if the cold.
I have used it for rice, veggies, fish, It is also one of the best ways in the world to warm things up. I have even used it to steam tamale's. It is great to start the rice and about half way through top if off with veggies.

I just got the steamer in last week because my old rice cooker died on me. I thought I would try steaming, and this seemed like a good opportunity.

So far, I've tried rice, broccoli, salmon, and chicken. I messed up the instructions on the rice (didn't see to add water to the bottom part so it didn't cook :( ), but the broccoli and chicken came out perfectly. The salmon was simply awesome, almost as good as grilled. I expect the rice will turn out fine also, after some experimenting. I like to mix brown and white rice because my husband won't eat straight brown rice, and the instructions don't cover that.

The steamer is very easy to use, but the instructions say to hand wash it. With the chicken and fish, bits of fat get stuck in the holes of the clear portion of the steamer, and I had to use a brush to get it out. Kind of a pain, but I think it's worth it. Just make sure you have some kind of brush on hand if you plan on cooking meat. I would like to put some of the pieces in the dishwasher, but I'm afraid that they will melt.

The instructions say to get food stains out of the bottom part (the heater area) with baking soda. The heating element had turned brown after cooking with rosemary, and that did not do the trick. I put some water and vinegar in there, and it came off much more easily after soaking for about 15 minutes. (Don't mix baking soda and vinegar, of course, unless you want a mess.)

All in all, I'm happy with the purchase. I may go out and get another rice cooker, though, because you can't make both the steamed meat or veggies and rice at the same time.

I purchased this in March 2003, it is now September, believe me when I say I use this every single day, it is really GREAT! I steam my meats and watch all the fat collect in the water basin. It is easy to clean up and my food comes out tasting great. Once you refill the reservoir you can set it for up to one hour and just walk away, it takes care of everything, no worry about burning. Great machine.

I have had the Black and Decker Rice Cooker for years. It last and lasts. I use it at least three or four times a week. I make everything in it from shrimp, to veggies, to rice and special rice dishes. The kids in my neighborhood were crazy about my rice. I would add a a little bit of red pepper, garlic powder, and dried onions to the rice while it cooked. Right before the rice was finished I would add sharp shredded cheddar cheese and mix it into the rice. It makes a fabulous dish for the kids or a great side dish for adults at dinner. The rice cooker is dependable and never lets you down. I even bought one for my folks.

You have to be careful not to empty the water out until it is COMPLETELY 100% room temperature otherwise the heating element will turn this white-ish color and stop working properly. I bought two steamers and ruined them both so be careful.