What to buy Electric Steamer or Steamer Pan

aimless_2

Hi all, I bought a digital steamer from mrT today, haven`t used it yet but it says I can steam boiled?? eggs in it but gives no times in the manual, does anyone know the time for a soft egg, I have a metal single tier pan one that I use a lot but have started growing my own veg so cook 3/4 different ones per meal, needed more tiers hence the leccy steamer
aimless

Ben84

I would only recommend a steamer for use on the cooker. They are much easier to clean, the whole thing can go in the sink to be cleaned without worrying about electrics. The temperature can also be adjusted, which you can't do with any electric steamer I've seen, and because cookers have higher output burners/elements you can bring it to the boil faster too. They're also made from better materials, metal and glass rather than plastics that tend to be easier to break, scratch and age badly in my experience. I expect a good steamer for the cooker to last a long time as it has no moving parts, it's just a type of pan.

csarina

Thanks to the removers I have to buy a new steamer,:mad::mad: the one they duffed up was an electric one, but I am swayed towards a hob steamer, it would give me an extra 'saucepan' but would take up more space then the electric one if the baskets went into one another.

Which would you go for???????

SailorSam

I have both, since i've got the one for the hob the electric steamer has lived at the back of the cupboard.

savingforoz

I found the plastic baskets for the electric one that I had didn't do well in the dishwasher, even though they were supposed to be dishwasher safe. The hob steamer that I replaced it with from Boots is really strong and because it's metal all over, has now survived many years. So my vote would be for a hob one.

cardiogirl

Since I got my hob one from M&S for about £9.99, the electric one hasn't been out of the cupboard, the hob one is in use almost every day.

discountmummy

I love my electric one. Its on a timer so you can leave it and if you need to cook a few things on the hob its one less out of the way or leaves space for something else. each to there own tho!

Slinky_Malinky

I got rid of my electric steamer a few weeks ago - the handful of times I had used it the food seemed to take a long time to cook and there was always a bit of water leaking out underneath that annoyed me. My stainless steel hob steamer on the other hand has always been great.

Bit of a trend toward the hob type! If storage space is an issue, you can get silicone steamer inserts that fold up flat if that helps.

purpleivy

I have to disagree! I've been really very happy with my electric steamer. I don't like watching stuff on the stove, so the fact that it has a timer is great! One or two things I might possibly prefer cooked on the hob in water rather than the steamer, particularly cauliflower.

I don't put the baskets in the dishwasher, but I rinse as I dish up. Nothing gets stuck on that way.

meanmarie

Have had both and could never get the hang of the electric one, nothing cooked as it was meant to. Have a graduated steamer which sits on top of various sized saucepans, and one I bought in Argos several years ago....it has two baskets....I find these invaluable when catering for my whole family.

Marie