A steamer is an electric appliance that allows you to prepare food by steaming it. You can cook anything in it: Vegetables, potatoes, rice, meat, fish and more. You use water to make the steaming process possible, but you can also replace it with broth or wine. This way, you’ll add even more flavor to your food. Most steamers have several levels, so you can steam the food separately.
Healthy and delicious results
By using a steam cooker, the flavor and texture of your food, as well as the vitamins and minerals, are better preserved. Moreover, you don’t need any oil or fats, making the preparation maximally healthy. Doesn’t sound wrong, does it? With the proper use of the steam cooker, you will indeed achieve delicious results. However, there are some things you need to take into account. We list 5 for you.
1. A steam cooker takes up extra space on your countertop
A set of pans, a sandwich maker, a coffee machine, a kettle and now a steam cooker: it’s just one more appliance to put on your countertop. Or to store in your kitchen cabinets, of course. Before purchasing a steam cooker, think about how often you will actually use it. Certainly those who usually only cook for themselves may find this point worth reconsidering.
2. A wet work surface
When you’re cooking, your kitchen countertop obviously won’t stay spotless. That’s not a bad thing either, but remember that a steam cooker gives off a lot of steam, which deposits in water not only on your countertop, but also on the underside of your kitchen cabinets. So turn on the extractor fan, but know that you’ll probably also need to wipe a cloth over your kitchen after cooking to rid it of excess water.
3. No crispy cooking
Because a steam cooker uses steam and does not add cooking fats, you will not be able to create a crispy coating on your foods. In many cases, this is not necessary either, but when preparing meat or fish, you may find this to be a miss.
4. In a steam cooker you can hardly prepare sauce
Most people prefer to have their dish accompanied by a sauce. Although you could in principle steam this, the steamer basket creates a challenge here. The sauce will leak through, making a mess. Want to be able to enjoy a sauce with your food? Then it’s best to prepare it separately. So that means you still have to do a separate operation.
5. The price
Fair is fair: a simple steam cooker doesn’t cost the most, but you will easily pay at least 100 euros. The exact price depends on several factors, including the type of material and the size of the steam cooker. Usually the plastic versions are the cheapest and you pay more for the stainless steel ones. The latter last longer.