Forum Thermomix
Welcoming Center, Management and General Chat => Introduce Yourself => Topic started by: UnConundrum on December 07, 2008, 03:08:09 pm
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Hi guys, very helpful and friendly forum you have ;D I don't own a Thermomix, yet. Vorwerk seems to have avoided the US market for some reason as there is only one distributor, and so far, I've found only one rep, in "Upstate" NY. No demos to be had. So, here, you have to be in the know and search one out. I was "aware" of them, but had never seen one until a recent visit to Montreal. A gourmet shop there had one on display, but the next scheduled demo would be 5 days after we returned home (about an 8 hour drive). It's a lot of money to spend on something without ever seeing one in action, but my wife suggested I research it a bit :)
Cooking has been my hobby for some time now. I have a web site at www.recipesonrails.com (http://www.recipesonrails.com) which I use as my personal cookbook. I do a lot of breads with a no-knead method, and I love soups. Make all my own stocks and pasta. My hesitation about buying a Thermomix is that I want to make sure it adds something to my kitchen and doesn't just end up taking space. I already have a Vita-Mix so the blender functions don't mean much to me. I already have a Paco Jet, so I'm not interested in ice creams, sorbets, or gelato. I am curious about making risotto; adding all the liquid at once runs contrary to the way I've learned. Sounds great to be able to make a sauce without stirring. I'm intrigued by making soups in the one vessel, so here I am, joining your great forum.
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HI Warren,
Welcome to the forum. I hope you like your time here... and able to find out more about Thermomix.
They are brilliant. You leave it on the bench in the kitchen and you will deffinatly will use it everyday.
Alina
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welcome warren! sounds like you need another trip to montreal!
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My hesitation about buying a Thermomix is that I want to make sure it adds something to my kitchen and doesn't just end up taking space. I already have a Vita-Mix so the blender functions don't mean much to me. I already have a Paco Jet, so I'm not interested in ice creams, sorbets, or gelato. I am curious about making risotto; adding all the liquid at once runs contrary to the way I've learned. Sounds great to be able to make a sauce without stirring. I'm intrigued by making soups in the one vessel, so here I am, joining your great forum.
Hi Warren, thanks for joining us. ;D
You may have seen the talk in the thread http://www.forumthermomix.com/index.php?topic=44.0 (http://www.forumthermomix.com/index.php?topic=44.0) about the USA and some of the issues. ???
I would strongly encourage you to buy a Thermomix just for the fun value, having checked out your site. If you have a Pacojet, Vita-Mix, waterbath and combi-oven, then what are you waiting for? ??? The best chefs in the world have got one (or lots).
Seriously, it might not be for you. :-\ If you have a restaurant then YES, otherwise most of your equipment will do what the TMX does. I have always cooked risotto by Gabrielle Feron's method - check out http://italianfood.about.com/od/tipstricks1/a/aa091697.htm (http://italianfood.about.com/od/tipstricks1/a/aa091697.htm) and http://www.risovialonenanoveronese.it/en/ricette.aspx (http://www.risovialonenanoveronese.it/en/ricette.aspx). I can make risotto faster and almost less hassle in a single pan than with the Thermomix. Don't buy it just for risotto.
It is brilliant for making sauces and soups. A couple of chefs have said lately that it is like having an extra chef in the kitchen. Tetsuya, of Australia's top restaurant, is very enthusiastic about his machine. ( He may have more since I last saw him in August) He really likes the ability to produce sauces, soups and similar without the need to have a chef watch over them. It is great for that application. Philippe Mouchel, who worked with and for M. Paul Bocuse in Lyon, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Melbourne, has just recently purchased a Thermomix and agrees that it is a very cheap extra chef in the kitchen.
Tetsuya uses the TMX to chop up the konbu for his signature dish (http://tetsuyas.com/index.html). His head chef tells me that they save an hour a day by using the TMX - but that's a restaurant. Many of the chefs like Ferran Adria are using the TMX to chop up ingredients frozen with liquid nitrogen and for making croquanter. One of our top local restaurants is doing this to make "sands" and "dirt" for garnish. The Vita-Mix probably would do the same thing - not sure how powerful it is.
My opinion is that the Thermomix should be the first kitchen implement a young person gets to use as a blender, steamer, rice-cooker, sorbet maker, bread and pasta kneader, jam maker, mini-water bath for sous-vide(but limited temp variation) , soup and sauce maker. It does so many things, but once you've got a Paco-jet (for about 3 or 4 times the price of a TMX) and Vita-Mix, then it is probably not going to help you that much. :'( But we'd still love you're input even though :-* :-*
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Thanks for the reply. I've bid on one on eBay, so we'll see what happens. It's a model from Canada, so I won't have any language or warranty issues. I have some special projects in mind for it; maybe I'll be able to contribute some recipes to the forum Smiley If I win the bid, I should have it towards the end of next week.
Here's a picture of my kitchen :)(http://lh6.ggpht.com/_X4ZOECIpkGE/R5FUFKTcv5I/AAAAAAAAA5s/0FT0YHE6yTU/s800/BreadRack.jpg)
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OMG i am green with jealousy!
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My hesitation about buying a Thermomix is that I want to make sure it adds something to my kitchen and doesn't just end up taking space.
I can see why that might be a consideration ;)
Good luck with the eBay bidding - hope you win - is it the TM21 or TM31 ??
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LOL, I'm bidding on one of each ;D The 31 is new and the 21 is used. I didn't look close enough. I thought the 31 was a "buy it now" but I was wrong. 4 days to wait. I bid on the 21 to see if I can get it for a good price. I've read that there are some features of the 21 that were changed for the 31, and I might prefer the old features for certain things. There's about 3 or 4 times a year where two units might come in handy :)
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There's about 3 or 4 times a year where two units might come in handy :)
LOL - there are times of the year when 3 or 4 would come in VERY handy - is that right brazen ?
As I said to somebody else who asked whether they should get a TM21 - everybody who had them loved them and they are great. But for some things the TM31 has benefits. If you can get a TM21 cheaply then it doesn't matter if it sits in the cupboard like many other tools.
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oh gosh yes, having 2 or three would be wonderful! lol
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Warren, your kitchen looks amazing. Excuse my ignorance but I am wondering what the piece of equipment is that looks like it has a cover over it (with a window in) at the back, very tall, with wheels. It looks interesting.
Is that an animal head I see centre right? Is it for cooking or decoration?
Welcome to the forum, I find it very helpful.
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Thanks :) Cooking has been my hobby for many years and I've accumulated a lot of fine tools. The tall thing you're referring to is a baker's rack. It's simply an aluminum rack with runners for sheet pans every 10cm or so. I put break on wooden trays in there to rise. The plastic thing is just a cover that has a zipper on each side so it can open up. If it's cold, I can put a heated pot of water in the bottom to help the bread rise. In fact, looks like there's some bread in there in the picture... The animal is actually a wooden cow's head on a table my wife and son bought for me some time ago. It's like a back splash, perpendicular to the table top, with the cow's head sticking out.
Here's another picture from a different angle. First off, please excuse the mess. Once a year members of another forum get together at my place to socialize (Kitchen Knife forum (http://www.knifeforums.com/forums/showforum.php?fid/26/ (http://www.knifeforums.com/forums/showforum.php?fid/26/)) The pictures were taken then. We had about 50 people coming over :)
(http://lh3.ggpht.com/_X4ZOECIpkGE/R5FUFaTcv6I/AAAAAAAAA50/n-3IcsuUL_E/s800/copper.jpg)
Now, on this picture, if you look center top, you'll find a tribute to my mother-in-law wearing the hat :)
I'm active in the Big Green Egg forum too. I know there are some members from down under, but not many. This past year, I was invited to compete at BBQ competitions with a team. You can find a lot of pictures if you're interested, of the ECG (that stands for East Coast Gathering for the Kitchen Knife group), some food I've cooked, my house, and even my dogs and me (and the rest of the family if you can pick them out) here: http://picasaweb.google.com/unconundrum (http://picasaweb.google.com/unconundrum)
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Wow Warren you kitchen is really something...
Alot of people here in Perth (western australia) are upgrading thier TM21, so lots more on ebay soon.
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Thanks Warren. Wow, imagine having a special place to rise your bread. Your kitchen is really something. I love the tribute to your mother in law. You sound as though you really love your cooking.
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Well, I won the auction, so I'll be officially joining the club in a week or so :)
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welcome to the club ;) we'll teach you the secret handshake then .... :D
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GEEZ, Isn't it awfully early over there? Go back to bed!
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LOL even worse i hadn't even GOT to bed til nearly 4am!
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Well, I won the auction, so I'll be officially joining the club in a week or so :)
Great News - ;D Wish we had some of the outrageous emoticons on the Spanish and Italian sites to celebrate
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Which model did you win? I love your kitchen, looks like a professional one and you have so much equipment. I thought I had a lot.............
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Hi Fanny. Welcome to the group :)
I got the new model, and love it
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Hi Warren
Yes I've had the machine since just before Christmas and I love it. I find that I am using it all the time and doing things that previously I would think I hadn't got time to do. I am yet to do a whole meal in the machine, just extras like soup and dessert. Oh actually I did steam some sea bass with ginger garlic, soy, a touch of sesame oil and a little dry sherry with noodles and pak choi, which was delicious. Any ideas you have got please pass on as I can see you are some cook.
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Wow! That sounds delicious. I've yet to use my strainer basket, and only tried the varoma once with less than stellar results with broccoli. I saw a recipe for a red beet soup with horseradish dumplings in one of the books. I'm planning on trying that this weekend :) (the dumplings are cooked in the varoma).
I'm not sure I'll rely on the TM for "one pot" meals.... First off, I eat like a horse, and not sure I can steam enough protein at once in it ;) But it has clearly proven it is one heck of an addition. Probably more risotto in our future too.
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Do you have a partly metal or fully plastic Varoma? The newer one is all plastic and has marginally larger carrying capacity.
I have put in a tray fashioned from my previous Varoma tray to get more in - should post how I did that as it means I can prepare 10 dariole moulds in the machine.
Good luck with the dumplings.
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:( Never got to the dumplings. That was my Saturday project and family called and suggested we all go out to dinner. Maybe one day this week. I did get to the Swedish Meatballs I wanted to try out. They were great.
My varoma is all plastic