Mr D’s 4.5L Award Winning Thermal Cooker (1 Viewer)

[herbies]

anyone got one and is it any good?:

 

[golly]

I'm sure I have seen a DIY system for this type of cooking, using an insulated box, used to be called a "straw box" years ago.

 

[pappajohn]

i'm sure these a consumer law against statements like this

Prepares delicious meals in minutes

a slowcooker, powered or not, cannot prepare a meal in minutes :Angry:

the names a bit of a giveaway.

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[enery8]

We have one, bought last year at Newbury. We ummed and arred about it then bought one on the basis we could prepare a meal to take home and have a hot, tasty meal on arriving home.
I am disappointed with it. :Sad: We have found a couple of recipes that work well but the meal always needs re-heating before being served. Sue prepares the meal in one of the Double Skillet pans before transferring it to the Thermal Cooker. :Blush:
I, personally, think it was a waste of (a lot of) money and would not recommend it.
Maybe, we have not done enough research and/or had enough practice with it but we do feel it will not be going with us on rallies or trips. :Sad: If we had got our Double Skillet first I am not sure we would have bought the Thermal Cooker at all.:Sad:
Incidentally, I use a slow cooker extensively at home very successfully. :thumb:

 

[jonandshell]

Is there a cooker that isn't thermal?

A non-thermal cooker is a fridge isn't it?

There's some daft marketing people out there........

 

[pappajohn]

in reality its nowt but a posh food flask...and i havent found one of those which keeps soup or stew warm for more than 3 or 4 hours.

i did say warm...not hot, even though it goes in hot.

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[Daedalus]

Thermal Cooker

anyone got one and is it any good?:

Hi

Bought one of these earlier this year - it works well, but, as another poster said, they are not cheap.

Rather than prepare the meal in a different pan, prepare it in the cookers own large or small pot, once it has boiled/simmered (in the case of a stew for example) for about 10 minutes, put it into the 'flask' part ,seal it up and away you go.

We tend to prepare a meal early morning, prior to leaving wherever we are (well, it's early to us), by the time we are ready to eat in the evening, it's cooked, and, yes, sometimes (not always) you do need to warm it up a bit, but the cooking part is what it does best.

As another poster said, the idea is based around the 'straw-box' type of cooker, modernised to use the thermal properties of flasks, which I suppose is basically what it is.

HTH

Keith (Daedalus)

 

[Minxy]

We have found a couple of recipes that work well but the meal always needs re-heating before being served. Sue prepares the meal in one of the Double Skillet pans before transferring it to the Thermal Cooker. :Blush:

THAT is the problem! You HAVE to use the thermal cooker pan(s) to prepare the food as they need to get piping hot as they are what supply the heat to the thermal cooker in the first place. When the cooker is then sealed the heat from the pans and food create a vacuum which in turns raises the pressure and the heat increases so the food cooks! By transferring the food from the double skillet to the thermal cooker as the thermal cooker pans will be cold you are reducing the heat in the cooker, so you will never get the required amount of heat built up that it needs to work properly.

It is no different to serving a hot meal on a cold plate, the food will cool down much quicker, serve it on a hot plate and you don't end up with cold food by the time you've got to the last mouthful!

This is why when we use a vacuum flask for drinks I always warm the flask first with some hot water to reduce the 'chill' effect, so that when I put the liquid that I want to keep hot in it I find that it keeps hotter for longer.:thumb:

 

[Bellini]

I also have a version of this, although probably not the exact one mentioned by herbies. I first discovered them when living in Australia.

I bought mine a few years ago and have used it a fair bit and it's always kept food hot, and slow-cooked, from easy and quick preparation in the morning until eating it in the evening.

To be honest, and based on my own experience, I wouldn't be without it. It's a fantastic time-saver in the evenings, especially if you know you've got a late arrival somewhere.

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