Gotten any fun stuff lately?

[KennethT]

I had high hopes for this device:

https://www.amazon.com/STIRMAX-Multi-Cooker-Automatic-programmable-Simmering/dp/B0DC1T1F36/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=2ALKEQSAU0MDC&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.KmC0Kqgeq7oXNwgT_2sw-5hsWS7uOtFbUMINaFZa8MbHNckPFfQwRRcGqfm-B8wDUueN3WoXczgWEwjDenv-KiijkLjZaBhU7nZ6rC5uMobLeusKxQ1cCOSV_7jUAs06TV-mY6hQrfhSAbWiY8I0ZY4eykebKJ-ji4uyHhzM51xWhhhxEwD3Fy01YhW8VszGuUCoYgd9hUmWvWFRqETUcUgVaObuL6G51hRqmCKt6KM.1pEqI7ArR6lICHA15thBtJeV__Md33IBL4hngdXEXZ0&dib_tag=se&keywords=power%2Bxl%2Bstir%2Bmax%2Bmulti%2Bcooker&qid=1742489461&sprefix=power%2Bxl%2Caps%2C100&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&th=1

 

It's designed to automatically stir foods that are cooking in it - I thought it would be a great thing to use to automate frying Malay/Indo/Nyonya curry pastes (typically fried in oil prior to adding liquids) or making long cooked (and constantly stirred) stuff like rendang.  I received it the other day and finally got to try it out last night.  I tested it with frying some pureed onion.  Unfortunately, the stirring doesn't work nearly as well as I'd hoped it would - there's a decent sized gap between the stirring blade and the pan's bottom and there's 4 spots on the corners of the square pan where the food accumulates and A) doesn't actually cook there as there's only little heat and B) doesn't get out of there unless manually moved (which kinda defeats the purpose of an automated stirring mechanism, no?)

 

Disappointed... and it's being returned this weekend...

[Shel_B]

I found another supplier for the Pasilla de Oaxaca chilies, and am very happy with their product. A two-ounce package was ordered, larger than what I'd generally been getting. More importantly, they are well-sized, supple, and fragrant, with a nice, but not overpowering, smokey aroma. I was surprised to see them shipped from Nashville, TN, a place I'd not expect to find a well-stocked spice shop.  They have a varied assortment of chile peppers, and their prices look pretty good ... worth a look, IMO. The price was $8.00 an ounce and shipping was $5.25, one of the two best prices I've found for this pepper.

 

I'm a very pleased pepper purchaser and now have enough of these peppers to last a while.

 

https://www.surajspicesteas.com/collections/spices-chiles

 

Edited Thursday at 07:58 PM by Shel_B
Clarify price and quantity (log)

[rotuts]

@KennethT

 

Im glad you were able to return it .

 

 

this looks a lot like Late Night TV ad's   :  4 easy payments ,etc .

[KennethT]

41 minutes ago, rotuts said:

@KennethT

 

Im glad you were able to return it .

 

 

this looks a lot like Late Night TV ad's   :  4 easy payments ,etc .

Ha!  It seemed like a product sold on late night TV but it actually looked pretty solid when I unpacked it.  It's a good idea - just too bad it didn't work as well as it could've!  Part of me feels like I should design my own version - that could be fun.... Not of a complete cooker, but the automated stirring function...

[rotuts]

@KennethT

 

it is a good idea .  but to be done correctly , it's got to be something like a KitchenAid mixer

 

that sort of quality .  with those add-on paddles that have a flex edge that truly scrapes the edge of the bowl.

 

Consider their IceCream bowl, well made

 

but a bowl you heat .   unfortunately , heating to saute temps might make it quite expensive.

 

you bet the idea .

[TdeV]

@rotuts and @KennethT,

 

That pan cannot possibly be SEVEN quarts!

 

3 hours ago, rotuts said:

@KennethT

 

Im glad you were able to return it .

 

 

this looks a lot like Late Night TV ad's   :  4 easy payments ,etc .

 

[KennethT]

2 hours ago, TdeV said:

@rotuts and @KennethT,

 

That pan cannot possibly be SEVEN quarts!

 

 

I didn't measure, but it is pretty big...

[Maison Rustique]

@Smithy sent me a couple of her nut picks! Sorry I didn't take a photo and I've already put them away, but I'm so happy. I won't be pickin' and fiddlin' (leaving that to Smithy), but if I've got nits or bones to pick, I'm all set!! 😉

 

I won't post the whole list, but this little envelope traveled a long way, back and forth for many days. And Nancy, if you can believe it, even though I got it yesterday, I got an email from USPS this morning saying the package had exceptions and would be delayed. 🤣

 

Thanks so much!! ❤️

[Smithy]

7 hours ago, Maison Rustique said:

@Smithy sent me a couple of her nut picks! Sorry I didn't take a photo and I've already put them away, but I'm so happy. I won't be pickin' and fiddlin' (leaving that to Smithy), but if I've got nits or bones to pick, I'm all set!! 😉

 

I won't post the whole list, but this little envelope traveled a long way, back and forth for many days. And Nancy, if you can believe it, even though I got it yesterday, I got an email from USPS this morning saying the package had exceptions and would be delayed. 🤣

 

Thanks so much!! ❤️

 

You're very welcome! And I'm glad it has arrived!

 

My little jar of Aji de Amarillo (Peruvian chile paste), that I ordered on March 6 and was shipped on March 7, is still zinging around the country! I've lost track of the delay notices, but there have been at least four.

 

[weinoo]

Ahhh, the good old USPostal Service.  Ain’t what it used to be.

[gfweb]

On 3/20/2025 at 3:02 PM, KennethT said:

Ha!  It seemed like a product sold on late night TV but it actually looked pretty solid when I unpacked it.  It's a good idea - just too bad it didn't work as well as it could've!  Part of me feels like I should design my own version - that could be fun.... Not of a complete cooker, but the automated stirring function...

 

 

Consider Thermomix!

[KennethT]

2 hours ago, gfweb said:

 

 

Consider Thermomix!

Isn't that more of a blender that heats?  Does it continually scrape the bottom or does it have blades that turn to stir a soup or something?

[gfweb]

41 minutes ago, KennethT said:

Isn't that more of a blender that heats?  Does it continually scrape the bottom or does it have blades that turn to stir a soup or something?

 

Maybe someone on eG has one and can give the details

[ElsieD]

https://www.thermomix.ca/pages/thermomix-tm6

[Dave the Cook]

1 hour ago, gfweb said:

 

Maybe someone on eG has one and can give the details

 

Where's @Kerry Beal when you need her?

[ElsieD]

28 minutes ago, Dave the Cook said:

 

Where's @Kerry Beal when you need her?

The link i posted will give you the info on the Thermomix.  My model has graduated temperatures you can set from 37C to 100C.  It also kneads bread, comes with two steamer baskets, , one fits inside the Thermomix, the other on top.  I've never had a problem with the blades not clearing the bottom.  I use mine mainly for risotto, but there are a lot of different things you can do with it.

[Kerry Beal]

2 hours ago, Dave the Cook said:

 

Where's @Kerry Beal when you need her?

I'm here - I'm here. 

 

Really about the only machine you need in the kitchen if you only have room for one. I use it for anything I would use a food processor for, to mix and knead doughs, to cook and stir. Beating cream, egg whites etc. About the only thing the model I have doesn't do well is caramel - but I'm under the impression that the next edition actually does that better. 

 

Cooking in your thermomix

Edited Saturday at 10:57 PM by Kerry Beal (log)

[Shel_B]

Mutti Merriment: My friend Barbara gifted me these four tubes of triple-concentrated tomato paste this morning. She knew my supply was at zero and, since she happened to be across town at the Berkeley Bowl market, she grabbed a few tubes for me.

 

Mutti has become my preferred tomato paste and, unless there's a tomato paste emergency, it's the only paste I'll buy. Recently such an emergency fell upon Casa de Shel, and a tube of the Whole Foods branded paste was called to fill in. It was insipid and uninspiring. My deepest thanks to Barbara.  Anyone want half a tube of Whole Foods tomato paste?

 

 

Edited Sunday at 03:18 AM by Shel_B (log)

[KennethT]

13 hours ago, Kerry Beal said:

I'm here - I'm here. 

 

Really about the only machine you need in the kitchen if you only have room for one. I use it for anything I would use a food processor for, to mix and knead doughs, to cook and stir. Beating cream, egg whites etc. About the only thing the model I have doesn't do well is caramel - but I'm under the impression that the next edition actually does that better. 

 

Cooking in your thermomix

Thanks, but can it stir small quantities while frying in a small amount of oil?  Not a quart of soup, but stirring (and wiping the bottom so it doesn't burn) say a half cup of spice paste?

[Smithy]

Folks up the road from me are getting ready to move away, so they had a yard sale yesterday. I came away with some low plastic resin tables and a step stool of the same stuff that will come in handy for reaching things in my trailer or loading things into my pickup, and a rusty but serviceable set of tin snips that I need. I resolutely did not pick up the other things that caught my eye.

 

Until today. 

 

I'd noticed that some sensible person had taken the vintage set of 3 Cornflower Corningware baking dishes for $10, but they'd left behind the Corningware baking dish that I thought I could use. I spotted the couple outside, packing to go. They were finished with the yard sale, but happy to sell me that baking dish. And load me up with other things I admired. They were happy to get rid of them! 

 

 

Two Corelle pie pans, the 2.5 liter Corning baking dish, a 6 cup Corningware kettle, and a Japanese lacquerware tray that I simply couldn't resist. If I never entertain company again, I'll have this to entertain myself.

 

5 bucks for the lot!

[KennethT]

45 minutes ago, Smithy said:

Folks up the road from me are getting ready to move away, so they had a yard sale yesterday. I came away with some low plastic resin tables and a step stool of the same stuff that will come in handy for reaching things in my trailer or loading things into my pickup, and a rusty but serviceable set of tin snips that I need. I resolutely did not pick up the other things that caught my eye.

 

Until today. 

 

I'd noticed that some sensible person had taken the vintage set of 3 Cornflower Corningware baking dishes for $10, but they'd left behind the Corningware baking dish that I thought I could use. I spotted the couple outside, packing to go. They were finished with the yard sale, but happy to sell me that baking dish. And load me up with other things I admired. They were happy to get rid of them! 

 

 

Two Corelle pie pans, the 2.5 liter Corning baking dish, a 6 cup Corningware kettle, and a Japanese lacquerware tray that I simply couldn't resist. If I never entertain company again, I'll have this to entertain myself.

 

5 bucks for the lot!

How does the Corningware kettle work?  My mother used a Corningware baking dish (similar, if not the same as, the one you just got) and it was oven-safe, obviously.  But a kettle requires direct heat - like over a gas flame, or electric burner which are much hotter than oven temp air.  Or is the kettle more of a tea pot that is meant to have boiling water poured into it?

[ElsieD]

1 minute ago, KennethT said:

How does the Corningware kettle work?  My mother used a Corningware baking dish (similar, if not the same as, the one you just got) and it was oven-safe, obviously.  But a kettle requires direct heat - like over a gas flame, or electric burner which are much hotter than oven temp air.  Or is the kettle more of a tea pot that is meant to have boiling water poured into it?

 

I th8nk it's a tea pot.

[Shel_B]

1 minute ago, ElsieD said:

I th8nk it's a tea pot.

 

 

Definitely!

[Smithy]

8 minutes ago, KennethT said:

How does the Corningware kettle work?  My mother used a Corningware baking dish (similar, if not the same as, the one you just got) and it was oven-safe, obviously.  But a kettle requires direct heat - like over a gas flame, or electric burner which are much hotter than oven temp air.  Or is the kettle more of a tea pot that is meant to have boiling water poured into it?

 

6 minutes ago, ElsieD said:

 

I th8nk it's a tea pot.

 

4 minutes ago, Shel_B said:

 

 

Definitely!

 

We had stovetop Corningware (saucepans and so on) when I was growing up, so I assume this is also stovetop safe. It isn't marked either way. I may get a bad surprise! But I may be saving it as a tea pot no matter what, for the times I'm visited by tea drinkers.

 

Really, as long as I don't boil it dry, it should be stovetop safe.

[Shel_B]

4 minutes ago, Smithy said:

We had stovetop Corningware (saucepans and so on) when I was growing up, so I assume this is also stovetop safe. [...] Really, as long as I don't boil it dry, it should be stovetop safe.

 

You are correct, to a point, IMO.  You don't know how well this teapot was treated, how many heat and cool cycles it's gone through, or how many shocks going from cold to hot and reverse.

 

Were it my pot, I'd not put it directly on a burner, but if you insist on using it on the stovetop, then use it with a diffuser of some sort.