Customer Reviews

Turbo Cooker 4-Piece Cooking System

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

This is the best thing I have ever purchased, no joke. I don't know how to cook and was tired of pizza, basic pasta, take out, and frozen meals. The Turbo Cooker has changed my life! The recipes are extremely easy to follow (if I can do it, anyone can), and taste like some of the best meals I've ever had, even in fine restaurants. And most of them are good for you! I have lost over 20 pounds already cooking with this thing, and I don't feel I'm on a diet at all. The recipes serve 4-6, but they store for 2-3 days easily. The meals are delicious. And yes, you can really bake a cake on the stove top, it is an amazing cake, too! Try to buy the extra recipe cards, I have about 100, and they are great. That's the only word for it. Only two dish out of about 50 I haven't liked. It does not cook *quite* as quickly as they make out in the ads, and some of the prep time on the dishes takes about 15-20 minutes, but it is still very easy and faster than usual cooking. And the results are outstanding. If you're a gourmet cook with a lot of time on your hands, you probably won't need this system because you already know how to make good, tasty food, but if you want really great dishes in a lot less time that are good for you and with fool-proof recipes to follow, this is the cooking system you need. The only thing I have found "bad" about it is that the non-stick surface is only fair. I have had some problems cleaning it a few times, so I now use some non-fat non-stick spray, but I still wouldn't recommend frying, you can do that in another dish. The ads are accurate, and this is a great item. If I didn't have one, I don't know what I'd eat now because it has spoiled me so much! Buy one and enjoy.

If you buy this thing, be careful of the lid. The plastic knob on top broke after only 3 months -- and it is useless without it. I have tried in vain to contact the company, they will not return phone calls or emails. The number is not toll free, and you must wait forever to get through...if you have enough time.
They say you'll save time in cooking, but they'll waste your time as you try to get customer service!
Their website makes no claims about quality, which I should have checked before buying this. I haven't had it long enough for it to start rusting (see comments below). I like the idea, I only wish the product was sturdier, and the company responsive to customers who have already purchased. I'm sure my calls would be toll free and answered QUICKLY if I were calling to buy their product.
The old adage holds true: caveat emptor.

I have had a Turbo Cooker for over a year now and I am completely satisfied with the results. I really like the ability to toss dried pasta into a pan with other ingredients and have a complete meal in 12 minutes. It is however, a product that you will have to 'tinker' with to get good results. I have found that on my stove, using high heat for half the cooking time and medium high for the remaining time prevents burning of the food. The recipe cards are great and I purchased the additional set and these too, are very helpful. I would suggest that you use wooden or plastic utensils with the pan as most nonstick pans scratch when metal is applied to them.
Overall, if you are pressed for time or you want to cook something ahead of time, the Turbo Cooker will be a good investment.

I have owned a Turbo Cooker for 8 months now. It truly cooks just like they show in the info-mercials. It cooks frozen solid chicken breasts, pork chops & steaks in no time at all. I cooked a frozen steak for my son in about 15 minutes & it was perfect. The lid practically rinses clean, so the only part to wash is the inside of the pan.

The only thing that I am not happy with is that the black teflon is wearing away on the inside bottom from washing, & the steamer rack has a little rust in the corners from where I didn't get it completely dry. I recommend this product, but be careful with what you choose to wash it with.

It's really good for a quick tasty meal. The food turns out really moist. The recepies are easy/basic and easily customizable. The food quide that explains how to cook other foods is very useful.

My big complaint about turbo cooker is that it is really cheaply made! Don't expect that the nonstick surface will last very long if you use this pan regularly - and even if you really take care of it! Manufacturers promise that the domed lid fits securely into a groove, creating a seal for steam produced in the pan - it doesn't. The handle will also get a little "shaky" after a while, also rust spots keep appearing around heat vent. I have never had a pan that "got old" so fast!

I no longer use my Turbo Cooker and have given it to Goodwill. The pan was just too big for my needs plus it scratched my porcelain sink. :( But for those of you looking for more recipes you can find additional cards at Chef Randall's web site or join the Turbo Cooker mail list at Yahoo, when I was on the mail list Chef Randall and Cathy were also on the list. I'd post the URLs but its not allowed, so do a search at Yahoo groups for Turbo Cooker and you'll find both it and Chef Randall's web site.

I enjoy my turbo cooker, but mostly because I am able to cook 3 meals at once and cook pasta without boiling water first. In my opinion, it really is not that much faster than a fry pan with a tight lid and it is true that the teflon coating is way too easy to scratch. It does get a little annoying to have to add water during the cooking and adjust the valve on top.

I was actually shopping for a covered skillet with a gift certificate I received for Christmas. I saw that the Turbo Cooker was on sale for less than half of the original price and ordered it because I figured it would serve as a skillet also. It comes with an instruction video but not a written one. That should be a SIGN! Based on supposed "handy" cooking tips for various items, I "roasted" a chicken. It was 10 minutes with valve open, 5 minutes with valve closed, 5 minutes of this, 5 minutes of that, and you had to keep adding water at different intervals so that basically you had to stand over this cooking PROJECT the entire time. It took much longer to cook than the chart estimated and came out steamed, more than anything else. I had to put it in the oven under the broiler to crisp up the skin and to continue cooking it. It would have been easier to put it in the oven and ignore it as the chicken would have cooked nicely without so much attention. I did steam some shrimp and vegetables on the rack that came with it. But I could have gotten the same results with something else. It think it will work great as a skillet and the domed lid should be handy as it provides vertical space for steaming/cooking.
Otherwise, had I paid full-price for this item and with my own money, it would be on its way back for a full refund.

I have many kitchen gadgets and this is one of the best. I use it everyday. There is a learning curve involved but once you have found the right temperature for your particular stove, it is one of the fastest ways to cook. The recipes that come with it are wonderful, along with the cooking guide, and you can adapt your family favorites, using the recipes cards as a guideline. There is also a great list on yahoo groups that will answer any questions and share recipes. Chef Randall, the inventor, and Cathy Mitchell, from the infomercial, are also on the list. You can even bake a cake that will knock your socks off, it is so good. It is so moist that you won't even need frosting.

The Turbo cooker is the best kitchen gadget that I have ever purchased. The turbo cooker really is amazing. I cook very healthy meals in 1/2 the time. You use no butter or oil when cooking only water. Fresh vegetables and meat and pasta -( rice to noodles) can all be cooked in one pot and all retain individual falvors. The recipe cards are easy to folow and are things that every family eats and the seasonings are things common to any pantry. This is the only pot I use any more and dinners are easy and so simple to clean up. This pan just wipes clean! You can even use it for desserts and breakfast. The turbo cooker is worth ever penny..!