Russell Hobbs3 Tier Electric Food Steamer, 7L, Stackable baskets for easy storage, Dishwasher safe BPA free baskets, Rice bowl inc, 60 min timer, Healthy eating, Energy saving, 400W, 14453

Love this steamer, small and compact, perfect if you don't have much space,. Easy to clean

Cannot fault this steamer at all.Had read comments about it being flimsy and thin....But honestly I think it's fab. Lots of room for plenty of veg, I managed to cook enough veg for 4 large meals and the variety of items all cooked evenly and pretty fast.It's very easy to use and clean, I've used it everyday since I've had it.There is a cooking time guide in the instructions, but, if like me, you pack in a wide range of vegetables it's trial an error on cooking times, and obviously you cook the harder veg like carrots and sprouts at the bottom.I can't find fault with this steamer, yes it's plastic,.... But to those of who you complained about it not being hugely robust.... You should have purchased one twice the price! Can't understand people who buy cheaper items then complain!!!!Money well spent in my opinion..... And so what if it doesn't last 10 years...... It's £21 for heavens sake!!Definitely worth a purchase. I'm totally happy with the steamer. It does exactly what it's meant to do and in good time, and you'll be surprised just how much you can fit in it.Many thanks from Susan

I had a Tefal Mini Compact VC130115 steamer before buying this. You are supposed to be able to put the tiers for the Mini Compact in the diswasher but the plastic degrades and develops cracks and eventually they fall apart. I only want to use one tier most of the time so we got this Russell Hobbs steamer because it is one of the few I could find where all the tier are the same size so I can dispose of a tier and use a different one instead to make it last longer. The Tefal Mini Compact is tapered so once the bottom tier breaks you've had it. The Russell Hobbs (and most other steamers) plastic tiers are however not supposed to be put in the dishwasher.This steamer differs from the Mini Compact in that it boils all the water in the base to create steam and does not have a tray under the tiers to catch the juices so these boil in the base too making cleaning a bit more difficult. The Mini Compact has a plastic ring round the element and so boils just a small quantity of water inside the ring rather than all the water you fill it with. This means the Mini Compact is steaming within a minute or so when filled with cold water, whereas the Russell Hobbs takes six minutes to create any steam and eight minutes to properly get boiling. You can fill the steamer with boiling water from your kettle to get it going quicker.Cooking times are similar to the mini compact once it has heated up. Things like vegetables taste great (flavour is lost if you boil them) and can be cooked in 30 minutes, or 20 if you like it slightly firm. Root vegetables like potatoes take 40 minutes or so so put them in first and let then cook whilst you chop cabbage or broccoli for example which you can add for the last 20-30 mins. If you are in a hurry, slice potatoes thin like dauphinois and it will cook in 25-30mins. Beware putting frozen peas in part way through as this will slow the cooking of anything in the same or lower tiers.The Mini Compact tiers have more evenly distributed steam holes which gives more even cooking than the Russell Hobbs where there is just a ring of holes near the middle only. Water boils into the bottom of the bottom tier of the Russell Hobbs as well, which is not ideal. The mechanical timer is OK. The Mini Compact had certain fill levels to set a certain time cooking and then it buzzes when the water has run out. The Mini Compact tiers are thicker and feel more robust and rigid than the thin and flimsy polycarbonate Russell Hobbs tiers.For cooking meat and fish with either steamer, use a little olive oil wiped in the tier before putting it in and this will help to stop it sticking. The elements for either steamer will grow scale in hard water areas unless you use filtered water. The wire ball descalers are quite a good and simple solution though, so you can put one in the bottom to reduce scale and it also seems to help existing scale go brittle and flake off.Overall this is a good steamer and I am happy with it. The Tefal Mini Compact was a bit easier to clean and cooked more evenly - it just didn't live up to the claim that it could be dishwashed.

Bought for a gift. Steams very well.Can be very hard to lift lids mid cooking to check

The reason I gave this 3 stars is, the instructions were poor. The main reason is the steaming baskets are made from a clear HARD plastic. The plastic that’s will break easily when dropped

I decided to buy this because I noticed I wasn't eating enough veggies I always used to boil them and had heard steaming them tasted alot better. I also was intrigued by the low price of this product but have now owned it for almost a year and Im very happy with the purchase.It's so simple to use simply add boiling water into the compartment put your desired amount of compartments ontop for me its always one which is enough and switch it on for the desired time.The compartments are big and wide so easy to clean and Im now enjoying much tastier veggies, I would never go back to boiling them they taste so much better steamed. If your looking to make veggies taste better and improve your diet this product really helped me do that and for such a small price I feel like its a win win.

Would give it 0 out of 5 but it doesn’t allow it. So disappointed, we wanted a compact steamer and chose RH as decent company - well the quality of the plastic is dreadful, so flimsy and after 1st use I washed the tubs and they jammed together when drying - won’t un jam so completely unusable. Do not buy! @russellhobbs - sort your materials to make the products usable.

I bought this product because I really do not like to boil vegetables as they sometimes get to soft. Steam vegetables are not only healthier but tastier that any other cooking process and it requieres less time as well. I usually leave a bunch of carrots and broccoli for max 7 min and the result is fantastic. Crunchy and tasty. I am eating more vegetables since then and I am feeling much better.The steamer is very easy to use, you just need to put some water in it, place the plastic containers and set the time depending of the food. You can also use the different levels (higher time on the bottom, lower time on the top). The size of the steamer is perfect if you are cooking for 2-4 adults depending on the portions. I usually use this product to cook for myself but every now and then cook dinner for another 2 friends and I have not problem with the size.Higly recommended!