Oster 5712 Electronic 2-Tier 6-Quart Food Steamer
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Oster 5712 Electronic 2-Tier 6-Quart Food Steamer
Customer Review: My new favorite toy...
Summary: 5 Stars
I saw this steamer in an ad in Runner's World and just had to have it. Since going on the South Beach Diet, I've upped my intake of eggs, fish, chicken, and vegetables tremendously. And because I live an extremely active lifestyle, I never have time to wait for things to thaw before cooking. I was defrosting frozen meat and nuking scrambled eggs and frozen vegetables in the microwave everyday when I did some reading and found out that microwaving destroys over 90% of the healthy vitamins and nutrients in foods. Researchers have found that steaming is the best way to preserve nutrients if you have to cook a food.This steamer gets the job done better than I'd ever hoped. While it does take a little longer to cook with steam than in the microwave or on the stovetop (add 5-15 minutes of cook time), it is a more hassle-free way to prepare food. You don't have to constantly check your food to see if its burning or stir it. No more exploding eggs in the microwave or rice stuck to the bottom of the pan. Just load it up, set the timer, and leave it to cook. For example, I stuck a couple of frozen chicken breasts and a cup of brown rice in, set for 45 minutes, and left to do something else. Halfway through I poured in frozen vegetables and seasoned the chicken and rice. The chicken cooked through perfectly, the vegetables were tender, and the rice was perfect. Hard boiled eggs are easy too.
Clean up afterwards was a breeze. The plastic containers are easy to wash off, but the drip pan fills up quickly and when full is hard to get to the sink to pour out without spilling. Cooking directions and times are approximate, so there is some trial and error involved. But since I love it so far, I will definitely be using it several times a week and get lots of practice. I highly recommend.
Customer Review: Makes GREAT FOOD could be better
Summary: 4 Stars
I love the food steaming makes, I hadn't ever steamed before purchasing this product and I cant believe what I have missed.
I purchased primarily to make rice since I suck at doing it on the stove :)
It makes Wonderful rice just like you get from Chinese Takeout, vegetables and meat come out GREAT in this if you have never have steamed broccoli or cauliflower you don't know what your missing.
Now for the problems.
Has to small of a drip pan tends to overflow especially when doing meats or other items with a high moisture/oil content, I personally gave up on it and drilled 2 holes in the drip pan so it just drips into the water reservoir and I don't have to attempt to empty it during the middle of cooking a meal and this way I don't have to fill during the middle of cooking something aether.
Secondly the rice bowl would only go in the top steamer because of the handles the lid would not go on if you tried to put it in the bottom one since they go above the bowl. I fixed this by taking a torch and bending them down. I did this because a lot of times if you going to make meat you need the bigger part of the steamer to put the meat and this way you can make your meat and rice at the same time however some of what drips from the top can land in your rice but its not to bad. Didn't seem to affect food quality any and rice was still very good Just had a bit of meat flavor to it.
I am thinking about buying a bigger steamer now my parents like this one so much I am probably going to give it to them and get a 3 tier from another manufacturer not that I don't like the Oster its great but this is the biggest one they make.
Customer Review: So close to perfect...
Summary: 3 Stars
I bought this food steamer a little over a month ago, and I can't say enough good things about how it has changed the way we cook and eat. We're already eating far more vegetables in a week than we used to eat in a month, and have cut way back on the unhealthy prepackaged stuff like mac & cheese and other pasta side dishes.
My one and only problem with this product is what seems to me to be an obvious design flaw. The drip tray.
We routinely steam chicken, using both the upper and lower containers to allow for even cooking. Eight chicken thighs, skinless with the fat trimmed off, generate enough liquid that within 30 minutes, the drip tray is overflowing into the 'clean water' section where the steam is generated. Naturally, we decided that draining the drip tray at 20 minutes would be necessary. Easier said than done. The tray is extremely HOT (since this is midway through cooking, I'm not willing to let it cool enough to touch comfortably). Not only that, but there are no handles on the drip tray - one must remove it by grasping it in the center opening and lifting..which is impossible when it's hot and is a downright disaster when it's full. We end up using a ladle or a turkey baster to get the hot liquid out to avoid overflow. A bit of a hassle, that.
I really think the drip tray needs a redesign - either mold handles into it that would rest just over the lip of the steamer, or come up with a tool to safely remove the drip tray.
Next time I want to buy a steamer, I'll be looking very closely at the design of the drip tray for ease of removal.
Customer Review: Cooks everything perfectly!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is the first steamer I have ever purchased and I must say that I'm very pleased with it. My original intent was to buy a rice cooker, but after checking reviews and prices I came to the conclusion that purchasing a regular food steamer would be better. After several weeks of use I think it's a shame that I did not get one sooner. The clear sides of the steamer make it very easy to keep track of broccoli. I'm horrible about over cooking it. I also like the double layers. I cook a lot of veggies and in this steamer I can cook 4 separate types all at once. This gives me more than enough for dinner, lunches and left overs. So far I've only used this steamer twice to make rice and I must say it does an excellent job at that too. I cooked up two large batches of sticky rice and both times it came out perfectly. As far as ease of use this steamer couldn't be easier. Just put your food in, fill the reserve with water, punch in the time you want the food to cook and hit the start button. The steam starts rising almost instantly. If you cook your food a long time (over an hour) the machine will beep at you to refill the water reserve. The only complaint I can say about this machine is that the drip pan is a bit of a pain. You have to wait for the machine to cool before you can lift it up and if you've been steaming for about an hour it can be pretty full which makes it easy to slop water over the edges. But in all, I'm very happy with this product, so much I purchased another one for my mother for Christmas. She's trying to cook healthier and I think that this steamer will be a welcome addition to her kitchen.Customer Review: Mechanical is Better than Electronic
Summary: 4 Stars
Two of the first things I bought when I moved out on my own were my own copy of The 1997 Joy of Cooking and the Oster steamer. My aunt is on her second one now, after MANY years of using the first one fairly continuously (especially in the summer and fall). They only had this electronic one when I bought mine, which I find annoying, since you have to punch up the numbers one at a time, whereas on the mechanical one you just turn the dial right to the number you want. The steamer works great for cooking things like asparagus and summer squash which can get mushy easily, since it drains so well, and you can keep a close eye on the color through the clear steaming baskets. I don't use it to cook regular rice, I still find the stovetop to be simpler and quicker. I have used it to cook sticky rice a few times and it works great for that, although I think it takes a little longer than a rice steamer would, since it does vent steam. My favorite thing to cook in it is any kind of delicate green, since you can get them cooked through without turning them to goo. Also, the 2 baskets are different sizes, so they nest for storing, which is nice, since it is a rather bulky item anyway. I give 5 stars to Oster 5711 Mechanical Food Steamer, 4 for the electric, since the electric controls are unnecessary and less functional.