Back to Basics TEM500 Egg-and-Muffin 2-Slice Toaster and Egg Poacher
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Back to Basics TEM500 Egg-and-Muffin 2-Slice Toaster and Egg Poacher
Customer Review: A Pretty Cool Kitchen Gadget, but Fear Not McDonalds Stockholders
Summary: 3 Stars
The Back to Basics Egg n Muffin Toaster was a wildly popular gift this Christmas. Supply ran so short that givers were very lucky to pick one up in time. But were the receivers lucky to find one under the tree? Well, in some ways yes and in other ways no - it depends on their preferred recipe for breakfast.
This unit lets you make breakfast sandwiches at home thanks to an ingenious steam heating chamber attached to the end of the toaster. You simply add a few tablespoons of water to the chamber's cooking surface and the load up your ingredients in a series of nested pans above it. The amount of water you supply gives you control over how well done the eggs turn out and I was very pleasantly surprised how well this works. My greatest skepticism about the toaster is that you'd end up with runny undercooked eggs no matter how much water was used, but that wasn't the case at all. Poaching a real egg gave the best results, but we also tried scrambling an egg right in the toaster's pan (no additional cookware to clean up) and it was very good as well. On the other hand, liquid egg substitutes turned out a little soft/runny for my taste no matter how long they were cooked. There is also a separate basket for hard-boiling eggs in the steamer instead.
There is also a removeable shelf that can heat up pre-cooked bacon or sausage. Its results were not good at all - basically, the steam heat just made the meats soggy. If you really like some meat on your breakfast sandwich, have a microwave nearby.
The most impressive feature is the internal timer which allows you to set up all of your chosen ingredients and then simply push one button. It knows that the toast doesn't take as long as the egg, so it calculates both of the appropriate times so that all of your foods finish up together without you having to think about it. The toaster also takes into consideration how light or dark you've set your toast and it does a good job of giving you the desired result.
Cleanup was very simple after each use once the entire unit had cooled down. However, the egg heating surface showed some permanent white marks from the hot steam right after the very first use; I guess this portion will look more and more faded as time goes on. Plus, while the intent may have been a modern appearance, the black matte finish is a terrible choice by the manufacturer. Think about it: black matte + greasy food = neverending fingerprint smudges that won't come off without applying a lot of effort. These appearance considerations, coupled with its bulky dimensions, make the toaster unsuitable for everyday countertop display. We keep ours tucked away in a cabinet when it's not being used.
To summarize, this kitchen gadget and delivers good toast and surprisingly well-done eggs. However, fans of well-done bacon and sausage may still find themselves in the drive-thru line in the morning. It's simple to use and is actually a fun alternative to the usual methods of cooking a breakfast-on-the-go. Cleanup is quick and easy as well. The unit's large size and unattractive appearance make it a prime candidate to be stored out of sight, so make sure you've got some room in a cabinet.
PROS
* Accurately toasts bread, bagels and English muffins according to your preference
* Makes surprisingly firm eggs, either poached or scrambled
* Timer makes sure that all of your foods finish at the same time
CONS
* Heating up pre-cooked sausage or bacon makes it more soggy than hot
* A big boxy unit that takes up too much counterspace and has an ugly finish
Customer Review: A Pretty Cool Kitchen Gadget, but Fear Not McDonalds Stockholders
Summary: 3 Stars
The Back to Basics Egg n Muffin Toaster was a wildly popular gift this Christmas. Supply ran so short that givers were very lucky to pick one up in time. But were the receivers lucky to find one under the tree? Well, in some ways yes and in other ways no - it depends on their preferred recipe for breakfast.
This unit lets you make breakfast sandwiches at home thanks to an ingenious steam heating chamber attached to the end of the toaster. You simply add a few tablespoons of water to the chamber's cooking surface and the load up your ingredients in a series of nested pans above it. The amount of water you supply gives you control over how well done the eggs turn out and I was very pleasantly surprised how well this works. My greatest skepticism about the toaster is that you'd end up with runny undercooked eggs no matter how much water was used, but that wasn't the case at all. Poaching a real egg gave the best results, but we also tried scrambling an egg right in the toaster's pan (no additional cookware to clean up) and it was very good as well. On the other hand, liquid egg substitutes turned out a little soft/runny for my taste no matter how long they were cooked. There is also a separate basket for hard-boiling eggs in the steamer instead.
There is also a removeable shelf that can heat up pre-cooked bacon or sausage. Its results were not good at all - basically, the steam heat just made the meats soggy. If you really like some meat on your breakfast sandwich, have a microwave nearby.
The most impressive feature is the internal timer which allows you to set up all of your chosen ingredients and then simply push one button. It knows that the toast doesn't take as long as the egg, so it calculates both of the appropriate times so that all of your foods finish up together without you having to think about it. The toaster also takes into consideration how light or dark you've set your toast and it does a good job of giving you the desired result.
Cleanup was very simple after each use once the entire unit had cooled down. However, the egg heating surface showed some permanent white marks from the hot steam right after the very first use; I guess this portion will look more and more faded as time goes on. Plus, while the intent may have been a modern appearance, the black matte finish is a terrible choice by the manufacturer. Think about it: black matte + greasy food = neverending fingerprint smudges that won't come off without applying a lot of effort. These appearance considerations, coupled with its bulky dimensions, make the toaster unsuitable for everyday countertop display. We keep ours tucked away in a cabinet when it's not being used.
To summarize, this kitchen gadget and delivers good toast and surprisingly well-done eggs. However, fans of well-done bacon and sausage may still find themselves in the drive-thru line in the morning. It's simple to use and is actually a fun alternative to the usual methods of cooking a breakfast-on-the-go. Cleanup is quick and easy as well. The unit's large size and unattractive appearance make it a prime candidate to be stored out of sight, so make sure you've got some room in a cabinet.
PROS
* Accurately toasts bread, bagels and English muffins according to your preference
* Makes surprisingly firm eggs, either poached or scrambled
* Timer makes sure that all of your foods finish at the same time
CONS
* Heating up pre-cooked sausage or bacon makes it more soggy than hot
* A big boxy unit that takes up too much counterspace and has an ugly finish
Customer Review: Nice Kitchen Gizmo!
Summary: 4 Stars
Update 12/30/09
My new unit arrived! I was not expecting it until January. The new one has some interesting changes. The new unit came with a sticker/label in the poaching pan that says "must use non-stick cooking spray"... Since I have always used that it's no biggie and no surprise but I guess they have been getting feedback that the non-stick is not as non-stick... still it worked great and I am happy with the relatively prompt delivery.
Update 12/10/09
I am sad to write that my muffin toaster, which I bought in June, is not working :-( .It worked great up to this point ( about a week ago) and then suddenly the egg poaching side would not work ( the water would not heat up). I called the number given in the manual and they asked for the CA# and what the issue was. I explained it and they said they would send a replacement in January after the holiday backlog was filled, which seems reasonable. Overall painless experience. I really like the product so I am looking forward to a working unit... will try to post again when/if I get my new unit. At this point I would still buy this....
June 2009
I don't often leave reviews but I certainly read them before I buy so I might as well leave one when I purchase something. I was a McD's Egg McMuffin junky which costs $5 per sale. I bought this to save me some money and at $30 I have already made my money back! It works great and just like some of the nicer reviews and is easy to use.Basic steps are as follows:
1) I pop in the muffins
2) Put the water in per the plastic cup ( this comes with it and tells you exactly how much water to put in... no thinking just fill to the line and pour in!)
3) I spray a dab of cooking spray in the pan and then wipe the whole pan surface. Why? Even though it has a no-stick covering... if you don't spray it the egg WILL stick, which then takes some shaking to get the egg out. The handle is slightly flimsy so I don't want to overdo it. Instead, with a quick squirt of cooking spray... the egg comes out easy. Problem solved!
4) Add canadian bacon on the rack
5) Cover it and press the button
It times the toast and the egg cooking so they all finish at the same time... roughly 4-5 minutes for mine.
While it's cooking I make my coffee and lunch and voila! in 5 minutes I am ready to go.
Afterward, I immediately wipe down all 6 pieces (water cup, cooker tray, Egg pan holder, egg pan, bacon rack and clear top) with a paper towel and it is ready to go again for the next morning.
Periodically I clean the parts more thoroughly. I put the parts in the dishwasher and the cooker tray is stainless steel... so a light scrubbing and it's OK.
The unit itself is plastic but well made for the most part.
My only reason for 4 stars instead of 5 is that the non-stick surface is not so non-stick, which means you have to shake the egg out, but the pan handle is thin and it bends. Overtime, if I continued to shake it, the continued bending could cause problems, but I have found that by using cooking spray the egg comes out easy and thus removes the issue.
Other than that, I have not had any problems at all although I have not used it for the Poaching function yet...
Overall it does exactly what I wanted it to do and you can't beat the price or the cost savings.
I would definitely recommend this to anyone again.
Customer Review: A Very Nice Appliance
Summary: 4 Stars
I have only had this lovely toaster for a brief time, but I am very pleased. It does everything as advertised and it does it well.
I already have a great Black & Decker toaster-broiler that I continue to use. I consider this item in a different class. They have different strengths.
*First Impressions:
It smells like new plastic and chemicals out of the box. Up close it's easy to see that the pretty shell is made of black plastic, but it's not cheap-looking. After thoroughly wiping down the main unit, running the removable pieces through the dishwasher (top-shelf) and running the toast-cycle a few times, the odors went away. I wasn't sure whether the little measuring cup was going to be much use.
*First Cooking Trials:
I made hard boiled eggs. The eggs weren't boiled so much as steamed in the shell, but that's being picky. The eggs came out perfect on the first try. The little measuring cup was very useful as the amounts of water needed for different yolk-hardness were clearly marked on it. The process was almost idiot-proof.
The eggs went from refrigerator to sandwich in around 10 minutes and cleanup took another minute or so, consisting of rinsing the steamer tray and lid and wiping the heating tray with a damp paper towel.
A poached egg sandwich takes about 5 minutes from fridge to plate. It's a simple matter of placing the food on the appropriate tray (with a good bit of oil for the egg or else it will stick), pressing the right buttons and then coming back when you hear the toast pop up. The tray for heating sausage is more than large enough for a Garden Burger veggie patty if that's what you prefer and if you don't mind it soft and steamed. The toaster-slots can fit a wide range of breads, but perhaps not a thick bagel. The toaster has a clever timer so that toast is done at the same time as the egg.
The black plastic shell on the oven turns out to be an excellent heat-shield.
*Cleaning:
The trays can get messy -- in particular, the heating tray ends up with hard water deposits. Everything is easily cleaned with the exception of the steaming tray used for hard-boiling eggs, which has little bits that protrude to catch a sponge or a paper towel. The trays are made of plastic and are already showing scratches after just a few uses, but it's not noticeable from 3 feet away.
*One Annoying Thing:
If you cook something in the sausage tray, you'll find that its juices will drip down onto your egg and pool on the surface of the egg. Keep a bit of paper towel handy to swab the top of the egg before you remove it from the poaching cup.
*Usefulness:
Quickly hard boil eggs for tomorrow's lunch while you prepare for bed. Have it make your breakfast in the time that it takes you to make your morning cup of coffee. Make the kids a quick after-school snack. Make yourself a quick late-night snack. Any time you're in the mood for eggs and want them quickly. And it also makes toast.
*Summary:
I really like my new toy. It has that cool-gadget-chic that makes it fun to use, the black case looks sweet on a kitchen counter. It's easy to clean. When I ordered it on the advice of a friend, I thought that it was about $10 dollars too expensive, but the expense appears to be the consequence of making a high-quality product.
Customer Review: A Very Nice Appliance
Summary: 4 Stars
I have only had this lovely toaster for a brief time, but I am very pleased. It does everything as advertised and it does it well.
I already have a great Black & Decker toaster-broiler that I continue to use. I consider this item in a different class. They have different strengths.
*First Impressions: It smells like new plastic and chemicals out of the box. Up close it's easy to see that the pretty shell is made of black plastic, but it's not cheap-looking. After thoroughly wiping down the main unit, running the removable pieces through the dishwasher (top-shelf) and running the toast-cycle a few times, the odors went away. I wasn't sure whether the little measuring cup was going to be much use.
*First Cooking Trials: I made hard boiled eggs. The eggs weren't boiled so much as steamed in the shell, but that's being picky. The eggs came out perfect on the first try. The little measuring cup was very useful as the amounts of water needed for different yolk-hardness were clearly marked on it. The process was almost idiot-proof.
The eggs went from refrigerator to sandwich in around 10 minutes and cleanup took another minute or so, consisting of rinsing the steamer tray and lid and wiping the heating tray with a damp paper towel.
A poached egg sandwich takes about 5 minutes from fridge to plate. It's a simple matter of placing the food on the appropriate tray (with a good bit of oil for the egg or else it will stick), pressing the right buttons and then coming back when you hear the toast pop up. The tray for heating sausage is more than large enough for a Garden Burger veggie patty if that's what you prefer and if you don't mind it soft and steamed. The toaster-slots can fit a wide range of breads, but perhaps not a thick bagel. The toaster has a clever timer so that toast is done at the same time as the egg.
The black plastic shell on the oven turns out to be an excellent heat-shield.
*Cleaning: The trays can get messy -- in particular, the heating tray ends up with hard water deposits. Everything is easily cleaned with the exception of the steaming tray used for hard-boiling eggs, which has little bits that protrude to catch a sponge or a paper towel. The trays are made of plastic and are already showing scratches after just a few uses, but it's not noticeable from 3 feet away.
*One Annoying Thing: If you cook something in the sausage tray, you'll find that its juices will drip down onto your egg and pool on the surface of the egg. Keep a bit of paper towel handy to swab the top of the egg before you remove it from the poaching cup.
*Usefulness: Quickly hard boil eggs for tomorrow's lunch while you prepare for bed. Have it make your breakfast in the time that it takes you to make your morning cup of coffee. Make the kids a quick after-school snack. Make yourself a quick late-night snack. Any time you're in the mood for eggs and want them quickly. And it also makes toast.
*Summary: I really like my new toy. It has that cool-gadget-chic that makes it fun to use, the black case looks sweet on a kitchen counter. It's easy to clean. When I ordered it on the advice of a friend, I thought that it was about $10 dollars too expensive, but the expense appears to be the consequence of making a high-quality product.