Think back to the days of middle school lunches. Juice boxes, industrial pizza, ketchup on everything, laughter, social awkwardness. Do you know what you don’t remember? Boiled vegetables. Why? Because they are disgusting. No one likes them. They are the last thing to be eaten in natural disasters and times of famine.
What about steamed vegetables though! Bright and crunchy bits of sunshine and love that have tons of flavor, all the vitamins, and none of the mush. Fish and lentils too! There are a few things you should know before you buy a food steamer to ensure your needs are met, you have a great dinner, and you save that precious time. This post will tell you what you need to know to select a food steamer that will get the most out of your veggies, fish, grains and legumes/lentils.
If you’re looking for a food steamer like we were, here is what we found to be the most important:
- Make sure your food steamer has multiple stackable trays/compartments to cook several options at once. Sometimes you want steamed carrots with your grilled salmon. Sometimes you want steamed tilapia with steamed asparagus.
- Ensure your food steamer is the appropriate size for cooking and storage when you achieved perfection. No one wants to remodel just to buy a new gadget!
- Any good food steamer should have a built-in timer so you can be with your family or play in the garden until the timer goes off. The timer will prevent you from overcooking your meal. The timer should be just one of the redundant safety switches on the appliance.
Other tips for choosing the best food steamer are to make sure the materials are non-toxic, it’s top rack dishwasher safe, and has sterilizer option. Some brands have a better history than others; we always like to read the 3/5 reviews online before looking for the best price. A few such as the Euro Cuisine food steamer have Stainless Steel Steam baskets for cooking.
Steaming locks in flavor and preserves nutrients better than boiling or microwaving and is one of the healthiest methods of cooking food. Now you are ready to enjoy dreamy steamed dishes!
-Janine
How has steaming your food saved you time? What are your favorite steamed dinner combinations?
