Customer Reviews

Dr. Weil 9811 The Healthy Kitchen 5-Quart Slow Cooker

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I have used this several times now, and it is a great crockpot. It seems to have good temperature control, things are cooked perfectly, and the post cooking keep-warm feature is worth its weight in gold to me. I can start it in the morning before I leave for work, and set it to cook per the instructions, and it will finish and switch to warm. I used to have to just use recipes that could tolerate the 10 hours of cooking that they would have to endure. This is also a nice shape, for cooking a variety of items.
Update Dec 2010 - I feel like I should add an update to this review, given the quality problems some people have experienced - I have used this regularly for almost a year now, and it is holding up spectacularly. I store it in the back of a kitchen cabinet, so I have to drag it out to use it, so it is not being coddled. Most Sundays I roast a chicken in the oven, and then as I pull the meat off, I throw everything else in this crockpot (including pan drippings), cover it in water, add 1 TBSP of apple cider vinegar (for extracting minerals from the bones), and set it to cook on low for 10 hours, then switch to warm. Then I forget it until morning, when I wake up and unplug it, and let it cool a little. Then I strain it, and have 2 quarts of nice stock to use through the week. I love this thing, but it does sound like you either get a good one or a bad one, I would hope the company would send a replacement if it falls apart as quickly as some are experiencing.

I was going to get the 7 quart model which had excellent reviews here but decided the 5 quart would suffice for my cooking needs. I have already used it a handful of times in the last few weeks since I've purchased and it is as nice to look at as it is to cook with. As with any slow cooker with ceramic insert, take extra care when washing to not bump the insert against the sink, faucet, etc. This slow cooker takes up considerable room on the countertop but I love how I can put a whole chicken in here and still have room to spare!

After few uses control panel fall off, plastic parts that hold the screws in fall apart in pieces. Otherwise works fine. It's a shame. Now I am not sure what to do !!!

Did a lot of research before buying this crock pot. Didn't save me from ending up with a base unit that is of little use as the pot insert cracked early on. Kept using it as it originally cracked on only the top side. However, several months later with light use and NO abuse I noticed that the other side of the pot also has a crack on the top. You can hear liquid seeping out and sizzling when cooking with this pot so decided it was time to ditch it before I ended up with my entire dinner resting in a totally split pot. What a disappointment! Did not own this pot long, maybe a little over a year (of course, out of warranty). There are only two adults in our family and we don't use the cooker often so it's not like extensive use or abuse caused this. Sadly, I remember when reading reviews that another buyer had this same problem and predicament and warned that you could not get a replacement pot. I did like the features of the cooker although have to say that the lid never did fit very well and I often had moisture escape due to that. I suggest you buy a Crock Pot as they do provide replacement parts should you need them. That's what I'm off to do now.

After a few uses the control panel came off and I threw the damn thing out. It looks like the plastic washers holding the screws get brittle from high temperatures. 100 bucks for such garbage. Deserves the good doctor's name.

We have really enjoyed this cooker - we had purchased 2 All-Clad cookers in 2 years at Williams Sonoma and both failed - took a chance on this one and it has been flawless. Have not used the preprogrammed functions but I see where they could be useful.

Liked the slow cooker very much until the week after the warranty expired and the front control panel fell off/became detached from the pot. Apparently, the cheap plastic screws that hold the control unit to the pot broke off. I rarely move the pot from the counter, so this was not from rough use. Very disappointed in what otherwise would have been a good product, though slightly pricey. From the other review, apparently, this was not just a fluke.

I ordered the 5 quart unit. It arrived with the control panel hanging off the housing. Also, the booklet that came with it only had 4 short recipes. One was for applesauce. It called for apples, apple juice and cinnamon. I don't need a recipe to tell me how to cook applesauce. I am still going to buy a slow cooker, just not this one.