Tefal RK302E15 Multicook 8-in-1 Multicooker, (4 Portions), 600 W, 5 Litre Silver

Product Information

The ultimate in versatile cooking appliances, the 8-in-1 Multi Cooker from Tower is the ideal tool for the busy cook. Allowing you to whip up all manner of meals in no time at all, you can boil, roast, braise, fry, saute, grill and much more with a 5 litre capacity making it easy to cook delicious meals on a large scale. With an adjustable temperature control you can cook everything from stews and casseroles to slow roasted meats, steamed vegetables and even fish dishes, easily and using only one appliance. It’s basically a large metal pan with an electric element in the base, a lid on top to keep in the heat, and simple controls that let you set the temperature and cooking time. So it’s essentially a saucepan with built-in heater. And the results are superb. Overnight chilli was cooked perfectly, even though the Tefal’s instructions don’t tell you whether to follow a recipe’s cooking times for a “low” or “high” slow cooking. Rice was timed beautifully and washing up the cooking pot was no bother at all.

We looked through the JML’s booklet of 30 recipes and decided to test it by making triple-cooked chips as this uses the boil and fry functions. Do not use your appliance. To avoid any danger, have it replaced by an approved repair centre. The rice cooker is on but the start light is not flashing, why? The larger 8 quart / 7.5-liter size will be a better fit for bigger families, or anyone cooking on a large scale, such as creating chilies, stews, or curries for a party. Meanwhile, for one or two-person households the smaller 3-quart / 3 liter, Instant Pot will ensure you're not using additional energy by cooking a small quantity in an Instant Pot that's just too large for your needs. Yes you can, but remember not to overload the steaming basket as it is fairly shallow (ie not as deep as a steaming basket) and there needs to be some space for steam to circulate around the food. Also remember that you might not want raw meat/fish juices going into the rice as it is cooked although this will add some flavour - you may want to cook meat or fish on greaseproof paper in the steamer. Vegetables will be fine. Can I add salt/seasoning with the rice before cooking?The controls are intuitive, though, and the delayed start option is superb – why don’t more cookers have these? You can very easily set it so that your rice, porridge, veggies etc. are ready at the right time. There are two minor criticisms though: you can’t delay the start of a slow cooking programme (for example, to prepare a dish the day before you want to eat it, but only cook it for 10 hours) and delayed start only lets you set food to be ready from 2 to 15 hours, in 1 hour increments. What if you want your rice in 1 hour’s time? Or in 3.5 hours? Still, very few cookers offer a delayed start, so the Tefal is a vast improvement in this respect. As you might expect, the larger and more feature-heavy appliances from Instant Pot and Ninja Foodi are more expensive, but generally speaking, Ninja models are normally more expensive. The best Instant Pot multi-cookers can also function as pressure cookers, slow cookers, rice cookers, steamers, soup makers, and even more. In some cases, they can also double as sous vide cookers or air fryers. That way, you don’t have to dedicate extra space that you might not have to one of the best air fryers. The options we’ve included here that can air fry do a pretty good job at it. The JML is huge – it takes up a large (33x37cm) square of worktop space. And it’s bright red, so it’s not exactly subtle. The Instant Pot Pro is the best Instant Pot you can buy right now. It sets out to replace ten kitchen appliances including a pressure cooker, slow cooker, saute pan, rice cooker, steamer, yogurt maker, and warmer, and has 28 cooking modes for preparing different dishes. There's also a version that can air fry too, known as the Instant Pot Pro Crisp.

While it might be on the large side, the Ninja Foodi 11-in-1 is aesthetically pleasing and well designed, with a clear and readable digital display and easy to use controls. You can switch between three modes – pressure cooking, air frying and steaming – as well as 11 different cooking functions. These include classic functions such as slow cooking, air frying, and roasting, as well as two new “combi-steam” functions, which combine steaming with baking or air frying for fluffier bakes and juicier, more tender meats.Our one gripe with the Duo Crisp is that, unlike Ninja, Instant Pot doesn’t provide in-depth instructions or detailed recipe booklets with its products, meaning you’ll have to figure things out as you go. Aside from a little trial and error though, the relative economy, range of features and top-drawer performance of the Duo Crisp with Ultimate Lid all make it our overall favourite product from the brand – and one of our favourite multi cookers currently available. Ensure you do not exceed the 10 cup mark shown in "cups" on the inside of the bowl, exceeding this level may cause overflows during use. Why is steam leaking during use? There is not enough water/rice in the bowl. Wash the rice thoroughly and leave it to soak for approximately 20 minutes. What should I do if my appliance is not working?