Steamer cooking

[lmarshal1]

I'm a first-time poster here...not sure if I'm doing this correctly. I'm interested in sources of recipes for cooking with an electric steamer. Thanks. lkm

[andiesenji]

There are several excellent cookbooks available at Amazon. You can click on the Amazon link at the bottom of this page and type in "steam" on the webside to get a list of the books.

This site has some good general tips: http://www.grandtimes.com/Hot_Cooking.html

This site has some specific recipes:

http://freespace.virgin.net/yc.ks/cooking.html

[lmarshal1]

Thank you. I will check out the sites you listed. I was given a steamer/rice cooker a few weeks ago and have used it constantly for plain vegetables and for rice. It's time to branch out a bit. lkm

[andiesenji]

I use mine for many things. The frozen potstickers that are so gluey when heated in the microwave come out perfectly in the steamer. I found a small metal colander with 1 inch legs that just fits in the steamer and hold things like this above the water.

I cook all kinds of grains, plain and mixes, millet, wheat berries, teff, amaranth, etc.,

You can also make both savory and sweet steamed puddings, cooked in a deep bowl that will fit inside the steamer. You can find recipes for steamed puddings on

Recipe Source on line

You can find a lot of recipes here:Epicurius

[lmarshal1]

Has anyone used the foil packet method of steaming (electric steamer), especially for fish or vegetables? lkm

[Anna N]

Someone must have read my mind! I was going to post this very topic and here it is. I acquired a steamer on the weekend ($2.50, brand new from a garage sale). It's oval and quite large and so far I've steamed vegetables in it and some rice but am anxious to see what other tasks it might do as I am reluctant to share space with it unless it proves its worth! I honestly should not have bought it even at such a price considering my small house but am already enamoured of it since it frees up a burner. So I need some strong support to keep it or I will donate it to my daughter.

[lmarshal1]

Anna: I felt the same way. My son gave me his steamer, and I too was "reluctant to to share space with it until it prove[d] its worth." I love it. #1 - it does free up a burner. #2 - it's wonderful for fresh vegetables. #3 - it's great if you just want a package of frozen vegetables cooked quickly and correctly (crisp, no mushiness!). #4 - great for rice. #5 - Check out the other replies above for some good sites with more ideas. I've only been using mine for a couple of months, but it has earned its share of space just with the above uses. Now I want to start using it for fish and puddings too. If I steam something small in the upper basket , like green peas, I use an unbleached, basket-style coffee filter, which fits the basket perfectly. I also use the filter for asparagus. Works great! Let us know what else you come up with. I'm on the look-out for a good steamer cookbook now. lkm

[Anna N]

Anna: I felt the same way. My son gave me his steamer, and I too was "reluctant to to share space with it until it prove[d] its worth." I love it. #1 - it does free up a burner. #2 - it's wonderful for fresh vegetables. #3 - it's great if you just want a package of frozen vegetables cooked quickly and correctly (crisp, no mushiness!). #4 - great for rice. #5 - Check out the other replies above for some good sites with more ideas. I've only been using mine for a couple of months, but it has earned its share of space just with the above uses. Now I want to start using it for fish and puddings too. If I steam something small in the upper basket , like green peas, I use an unbleached, basket-style coffee filter, which fits the basket perfectly. I also use the filter for asparagus. Works great! Let us know what else you come up with. I'm on the look-out for a good steamer cookbook now. lkm

Yep, I think I'm in love with it. Needed a few cooked shrimp last night so tossed some still-frozen shrimp in the steamer and voila - cooked shrimp that were not at all dried out and tasted much sweeter than I can remember when using any other cooking method.

[Mottmott]

  Yep, I think I'm in love with it.  Needed a few cooked shrimp last night so tossed some still-frozen shrimp in the steamer and voila - cooked shrimp that were not at all dried out and tasted much sweeter than I can remember when using any other cooking method.

You're right! Steamed shrimp are soooo great. The first time I did it, I intended to use the shrimp in another dish, but when I peeled one to test it, it was so good I wound up having steamed shrimp that night. I've pretty much giving up boiling them.

[NulloModo]

Hmmm, whenever I think steamed, I think absolute lack of any kind of flavor. Maybe I have just never had good steamed food, but images of broccoli and skinless chicken with a side of cottage cheese 'diet plates' keep popping into my head.

Do all rice cookers steam? Maybe I could pick something up to play with.

[Anna N]

Hmmm, whenever I think steamed, I think absolute lack of any kind of flavor. Maybe I have just never had good steamed food, but images of broccoli and skinless chicken with a side of cottage cheese 'diet plates' keep popping into my head.

Do all rice cookers steam? Maybe I could pick something up to play with.

Perhaps there's an element of that in why I resisted so long! But for lunch today, I made the following and it was anything but flavorless. (Of course, no need for an electric steamer so long as you have a way to steam the cauliflower.)

Steamed Cauliflower with Garlic-Paprika Sauce

(Adapted (by me) from a recipe by Deborah Madison and published in The Best of Eating Well, 1994)

1 cauliflower (about 1 ¼ lbs)

1 T olive oil

3 cloves garlic, peeled

2 T fresh parsley, chopped

salt

1 T sweet paprika

2 T red-wine or sherry vinegar

¼ cup chicken stock

Remove the florets from the cauliflower and cut into bite-size pieces. Steam until barely tender. Cover and set aside.

Heat the olive oil in a small skillet (preferably non-stick) and saute the whole garlic cloves until just barely browned. Remove the garlic and leave the oil in the pan. With a mortar and pestle pound the garlic cloves with a few pinches of salt, half of the parsley and the paprika into a coarse paste. Put the skillet back on the stove over low heat. Add the paprika, vinegar, chicken stock and garlic paste. Heat through and pour over the cauliflower and garnish with the rest of the parsley.

As for your last question - I don't know the answer but would guess if you can steam rice in it, you can steam anything - but I will leave it to people with more knowledge on the subject.

[andiesenji]

All rice cookers do steam -

You can also use the small bamboo steamers in the rice cooker, as long as they are above the water level.

I have a little round wire trivet that will fit in the bottom of the smaller rice cooker and on which I can stack two of the small (6 inch) round bamboo steamers - no need to use their own lid as the top on the rice cooker holds in the steam.

I also have a couple of "berry baskets" which are little colanders which also fit into the rice cooker and can be used to steam anything you want to keep out of the liquid.

Someone gave me an oval steamer/cooker that has a separate water chamber at the bottom and two stackable plastic grids above, one divided in half, with a dome cover. I have never used it but it looks like it would work quite well.

As for flavor, you get out what you put in. I cook all kinds of grains and seeds as well as rice in various liquids for different flavors.

I season baby potatoes with rosemary, salt & pepper, parsley, then toss with butter.

Steamed dumplings can be made in any flavor, savory or sweet.

I have a very large steamer that cooks 20 cups of rice, the Zojirushi "Neuro-Fuzzy logic" rice cooker, 10 cup, a slightly smaller one and a 5 cup for small jobs.

I use the smaller ones for steaming dried fruits and vegetables prior to adding them to yeast or quick breads or to other recipes. This makes them tender without becoming soggy as they are when soaked. Dried mushrooms also......

some spices and herbs also benefit from steaming before crushing, if I am going to use them in an infusion instead of directly in a mixture.

Once you get into the routine of using the steamer you will wonder how you ever got along without it.....

[Anna N]

I use the smaller ones for steaming dried fruits and vegetables prior to adding them to yeast or quick breads or to other recipes. This makes them tender without becoming soggy as they are when soaked. Dried mushrooms also......

some spices and herbs also benefit from steaming before crushing, if I am going to use them in an infusion instead of directly in a mixture.

Once you get into the routine of using the steamer you will wonder how you ever got along without it.....

See, that's what I mean about justifying the space for steamer - it can be made multi-tasking - almost feeling guilty now about teasing my daughter about hers!

Hmmmm - dried mushrooms and dried fruit - use both of these quite a lot.

Thank you.

[NulloModo]

Interesting. It is my understanding though that any flavorings in the liquid won't make it into the food though, as it is just steam evaporating off and causing the cooking, so, would steaming with chicken stock or an herby water be any different from regular water?

[andiesenji]

Interesting. It is my understanding though that any flavorings in the liquid won't make it into the food though, as it is just steam evaporating off and causing the cooking, so, would steaming with chicken stock or an herby water be any different from regular water?

With the grains, seeds, etc. the food starts out in the liquid which boils away until there is just steam.

Have you never had couscous which is cooked in a steam basket over the meat etc., which is stewing in the bottom of the couscousierie?

The steam definitely carries the flavor into the couscous.

[lmarshal1]

Anna: Thanks! It's steamed shrimp for supper at the Marshall abode tomorrow night. Sounds wonderful. I usually saute frozen shrimp in butter with which ever spices or herbs strike my fancy. I'll definitely try the steamer to avoid the butter or to use less of it. lkm