INDEPENDENT REVIEWS
from reputable health and well-being bloggers.
from reputable health and well-being bloggers.
Spoonie Sophia
“The easy to read display gives you full control of the cooking process: It has a handy timer that you can set from 1 second to 12 hours, you can adjust the temperature from 37-120C and change the speed of the beater/whisker/kneader (it has 10 speed levels in total). Or, if you prefer, you can let the Thermocook do the thinking, using the built-in auto programmes including: Smoothie, Quick Soup, Chop, Saute, Stir, Steam, Stew, etc. I think its a really great piece of kit to have, especially if you lead a busy life and have little time to cook or if have a chronic illness which leaves you too tired ”
Sophia is a food, health and lifestyle blogger, currently battling chronic illness. She shares her story and thoughts on coping with and managing illness as well as her passion for creating delicious healthy recipes.
Jane Sarchet from ‘The Hedgecombers’
“By pressing the book symbol (menu) and turning the wheel 3 clicks to the right, I highlighted the chop function and in just 10 seconds each batch of veggie was well and truly chopped! Even that sweet potato (which was the largest I’d ever seen) was rendered to sweet potato dust in 10 seconds flat. Crazy! … Imagine you’re making a soup. First of all you’ll use the jug & blade to chop your onions. Next you’ll add a little oil & saute them. Then add in your other soupy ingredients and it’ll cook and blend the soup for you, all in the one jug. Or rewind and let’s make a beef stew instead: Chop & saute your veggies, chop or mince the meat as you see fit, add in the other ingredients and leave the machine to slow cook it to perfection. And at the end of all that you’ll only have one jug to wash up.”
Jane blogs from Cornwall about her attempts to live a self-sufficient life, raising animals and growing fruit and veg. Janie has worked with ad developed recipes for some big brands including Twinings Tea, Baking Mad, Jordans Cereal, Lakeland, Whittard of Chelsea, Dotcomgiftshop, Heggies, The Great British Florist, Ronnie Sunshines and Gousto.
Choclette Cacao from ‘Tin and Thyme’
“ Sourdough is hardy stuff and can cope with the often rather low temperature in our house. But when it comes to baking with yeast, my doughs often struggle to rise. The Optimum ThermoCook not only has a knead function, but a proving one too. I tested this out with my mincemeat buns and the dough rose beautifully in the nice warm jug…I’ve had no need to use my food processor, stand mixer or even stick blender since I’ve had it. It would also be ideal for small apartments and bedsits where there is no stove top.”
Food loving vegetarian blogger with a sweet tooth but eating a lot of healthy stuff too. Experimenting with unusual foodstuffs and creating recipes are two of my food passions. I specialise in recipes that have some sort of chocolate element, be they savoury, raw, vegan, vegetarian, healthy or just plain indulgent. I'm also passionate about my home county of Cornwall and try to use as much local produce as possible. Chocolate Log Blog was one of the top five food blogs in Cornwall Today (Jan 2014) and currently ranks as #9 in the UK according to e-buzzing Gastronomy.
Poppy Velosa from ‘Bunny Kitchen’
“ It makes cooking multiple dishes simple, due to the fast heating and compartmentalisation, you can boil potatoes, cook rice and steam veggies (or anything else!) at the same time! You can boil in the jug, adding another ingredient into the insert to cook two ingredients at the same time and place the steamer basket on top. The extra bonus is that you save on washing up, time, water, energy and all the goodness in the cooking water is steamed into the upper ingredients… The inclusion of a mixing tool attachment means you can sauté directly in the jug, before adding more ingredients to stew or make into soup. It took some experimenting to ensure things like onions don’t stick and burn to the base, there is now a sturdier mixing tool to really stir your ingredients and adding salt to your onions and other moisture rich veggies like celery and carrot combat this issue.”
Poppy Velosa is the writer of Bunny Kitchen, a vegan blog ranked in the top 50 UK blogs by the Foodies100 index and has been featured in vegan cookbooks. Poppy is a passionate animal activist and student veterinary nurse with a special interest in natural remedies and works as a part time wildlife care supervisor in a wildlife rehabilitation hospital. Poppy has been vegetarian since she was six years old and believes that vegan food should be simple and delicious and always nourishing and this way it becomes more accessible to everyone. Poppy enjoys developing new recipes, practicing food photography and baking.
Qualified leading nutritional consultant, chef, journalist & author of several health books.
The Thermocook is a hard working multi-tasker, Not only does it act as a high quality blender, it's so versatile – it can puree and heat at the same time making it perfect for soups, sauces and stews and it can grind up spices, nuts and seeds finely so it's ideal for a whole range of raw treats and desserts.
I have just used the Optimum Thermo Cook during a cookery Demo in London Veg Fest for soup, pesto, making fudge etc which everyone loved. So much potential this machine – love it!!
I have just used the Optimum Thermo Cook during a cookery Demo in London Veg Fest for soup, pesto, making fudge etc which everyone loved. So much potential this machine – love it!!
Christine is a qualified leading Nutritional Consultant, Chef, Journalist and Media Expert. During her extensive training she gained a First Class Honours degree in Nutritional Therapy at the renowned Nutrition Centre CNELM. She is also qualified to MSc level and holds at PGCE for adult training and lecturing. An experienced Food and Health Writer Christine regularly contributes to national and local Magazines and Newspapers on Food, Health, Nutrition and Fitness. She has appeared extensively in the media including radio and television. She is author of several health and recipe books.
Nayna Kanabar
To test out my ThermoCook I started off by using the steaming facility. Easy does it as I am not that great when it comes to operating electrical gadgets, but to my surprise even I managed to set up and use this gadget at a click.!!!………My second attempt in the ThermoCook was a spiced butternut squash soup. I added chopped onions and chunks of butternut squash in the jug with green chilli, pinch of cumin, salt and water and hit the "Quick soup" function and I had delicious hot piping soup in less than 20 minutes. Things were getting better and better so impressive!!! My third attempt was to make Jam…..The Jam turned out perfect
Nayna is one of the UK's most popular vegetarian bloggers. She blogs easy veggie recipes and is ranked in the top 50 food blogs in the UK by Foodies 100. Nayna's recipes have appeared in The Metro, The Evening Standard and Eat In magazine.
Neil Martin – Natural Juice Junkie - Recognised as One of The UK Leading Juice Experts, Qualified Juice Therapist & Registered Complimentary Medical Assoc.
“I love the simplicity and versatility of the new Optimum ThermoCook. The user interface is easy to understand and even gives me the ability to create my own DIY programmes. No longer do I need to find room for a blender, bread maker, soup maker, rice cooker, food processor… this single machine replaces all these kitchen gadgets giving me maximum functionality, whilst taking up the minimum amount of space”
Having achieved a miraculous transformation in his own health, Neil is now recognised as one of the UK's leading juicing experts. Neil is a qualified) Natural Juice Therapist, registered with the Complimentary Medical Association. Through his website (naturaljuicejunkie.com) and his juice detox programs he has been able to deliver significant health benefits to thousands of people throughout the world. Neil's recipes are often described as tasting “too good to be healthy”. Neil can regularly be found hosting sold out events throughout the UK as he continues his mission to share the benefits of a juicy lifestyle.
Jan Bennett-Gulg of Oil- Receipe developer, reviewer and kitchen appliance expert
“Thanks to ThermoCook it's beginning to look like I'm redundant in my own kitchen! Let me tell you about this truly amazing piece of kit…..Oh yes, the ThermoCook is a cooking lovers dream come true. Of course it's not that I or anyone else can't cook, but the ThermoCook makes everything so much easier. Even mashed potato is taken care of in under 18 minutes from start to finish….The recipe book that comes with the machine contains over 90 recipes but once you've had a play with it you can of course make your own recipes up as I did with this simple Curried Vegetable Soup..... ”
Jan Bennett is author of aglugofoil.com, consistently cited as one of the top 100 food blogs in the UK. With a combined social media following in the thousands, Jan is a recognised authority on home cooking and uses the best kitchen tools for the job.
The Veg Space
“My main reason for cooking this today was to do yet another road-test of my newest swoon-worthy kitchen gadget that has very quickly become my first port of call for pretty much every kitchen task……Sorry that’s a very long list isn’t it, (with hindsight it would have been simpler to list what it doesn’t do… wash up, set the table, change nappies)…. but can you see why I love it?!? This gadget is like having your very own sous-chef in the kitchen with you. No, in fact it is like having your very own head chef! Just tell it what you want, pop the raw ingredients in the jug, go and put your feet up, (or a load of washing on, more likely!), and come back when dinner’s ready..... "
Kate holds a Cordon Vert professional diploma in Vegetarian Cookery and runs her own website TheVegSpace.co.uk, which has been listed in the ‘Top 10 UK Vegetarian blogs’ by The Guardian, Red Magazine, and Vegetarian Living magazine. her recipes have appeared in Cook Vegetarian Magazine, the Observer Food Monthly and others. She won the ‘Vegetarian Chef of the Future Competition’ run by the Vegetarian Society, and in 2011 was the creator of the ‘UK’s Tastiest Meat-Free Dish’ and winning a competition from Linda McCartney Foods.
Janice Pattie
The ThermoCook is made by the people behind the Froothie Power Blenders and Smoothie Makers. This multi-function cooking appliance has loads of functions, I would describe it as a big 2 litre stainless steel power blender jug that plugs in a bit like a kettle, which means you can cook and heat as well as blend. That’s a pretty simplistic explanation as the Optimum Thermocook has over 20 functions all of which are designed to help you to create a range of impressive, nutritious and preservative free meals for your family…..
Janice is a well established food blogger from Scotland. Her blog Farmersgirl Kitchen is all about simple home cooked family food with plenty of inspirational recipes. Janice has won several recipe competitions and has also had her recipes published in the Guardian and on Wayfair. During a food tour of Novia Scotia, she received 88,782 Twitter impressions in 7 days.
Fiona Maclean
“Thermocook – Love at First Sight: It replaces a food processor and blender. It will chop and blend beautifully. The Thermocook replaces a bread maker – it will kneed dough and set it at the right temperature to rise, though you do need to bake in the oven. It replaces a stand mixer – it will beat cake mix, egg whites and cream and can be used to make pastry. It works as a slow cooker for stews and casseroles. The Thermocook will stir when I am trying to work, so I don’t have to remember to do so. And, it looks pretty smart too! Since I really like cooking from scratch, the Thermocook Multicooker is a godsend, because it takes the place of several other gadgets that I simply don’t have space for in my London kitchen. So it does seem likely that this will become my must have kitchen gadget for 2016..... ”
Fiona writes London Unattached a London based lifestyle blog with restaurant reviews, travel and recipes focusing on the 5:2 diet and low calorie dishes. Fiona has a good following across social media and is one of the top UK bloggers winning several awards including Foodies 100 and Avis UK Travel Blogger of the Year award for 2013-2014.
Kevin Chambers-Paston
"Looking like a cross between a kettle and a food processor, I guess it's a bit of both but oh so much more than that. It chops, purees, liquidises, heats, stirs, mashes, steams, boils and everything in between. Already it's become my 'right-hand man' in the kitchen as it gets on with kitchen jobs I don't want to do and it doesn't even moan about it; rather, it purrs gently on the countertop. It is a joy to use, relatively simple to clean and has proved to be a really useful addition to the kitchen arsenal already....."
Kevin combines his passion of food and crafts to create a Foodies top 100 blog - “The Crafty Larder”. After years of tempting everyone with his delicious recipes on twitter, Kevin was finally persuaded to start a blog of his own combining his passion of food and crafts - His blog is now listed in the top 100 Foodies in the UK.
Elizabeth Atia from ‘Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary’
“So what can the Thermocook do? Everything! No seriously, besides babysitting, cleaning the windows and washing the dishes this machine can do almost everything! …So far in my Thermocook I’ve made cauliflower soup, a breakfast smoothie, bread dough, broad bean and Parmesan dip, lemon curd, icing sugar (true story! This machine is powerful enough to blitz granulated sugar into icing sugar! No more being caught out without enough icing sugar again!), melting moments cookies, anzac biscuits, peanut butter cookies (three different cookies for our family Christmas tree decorating party, pictured below), a pavlova (both the whipped egg whites and the whipped cream topping), ginger beer, mulled wine, porridge, hot chocolate, creamy polenta and a fish pie – including steaming and whipping the creamy potatoes for the pie, hard cooking the eggs and making a most delicious sauce... ”
Elizabeth is a Canadian living in Shetland with her family here she blogs family recipe using local seasonal produce. Elizabeth was a finalist in this year’s BIB Awards and is ranked third in the UK by eBuzzing Gastronomy. Elizabeth writes for A Taste of Shetland and 60 North Magazine. Her work can also be found on i’i Shetland and 750g le mag.
Shaheen Sutton From 'Allotment2kitchen'
"So far I have been impressed with it and I think if you had a family to cook for, then the ThermoCook would definitely be helpful in the kitchen… I can see myself using it a lot more......"
Shaheen started her veggie and vegan blog to feature the recipes she made using vegetables from her allotment. Since then she has run her own cafe, been named one of the Top Veggie Bloggers in the UK by Vegetarian Living Magazine and was a runner up in this year’s Great Vegan Bake Off.
Kate Hackworthy from ‘Veggie Desserts’
“This gadget has the footprint of a 4-slice toaster, but it can perform loads of functions. It’s essentially a food processor with a heating element, and you just have to change the accessories to make it do even more – from boiling and sautéing to kneading and chopping. Yes, really. This beautiful beast can do it all. I’m pretty sure I’ll be using the ThermoCook more than my kettle. It will make breakfast: porridge, smoothies, yogurt; lunch: soup, pesto, bread; dinner: stew, rice, sauces, pizza dough… right through to dessert: meringue, crumble, cake.
The machine could replace a whole kitchen worth of gadgets and it cooks everything beautifully. It is a solid piece of kit and doesn’t take up much space for something that does so much. It is a major multi-tasker and can go from crushing ice to kneading dough. You can whiz up flour from oats or grains, turn granulated sugar into powdered icing sugar, or cook a stew. ”
The machine could replace a whole kitchen worth of gadgets and it cooks everything beautifully. It is a solid piece of kit and doesn’t take up much space for something that does so much. It is a major multi-tasker and can go from crushing ice to kneading dough. You can whiz up flour from oats or grains, turn granulated sugar into powdered icing sugar, or cook a stew. ”
Kate has a rather unusual blog. Kate makes healthy desserts from vegetables. This year Kate won Best Food Blog in the UK National Blog Awards, was listed as one of the Top Bloggers of the Year by Top Sante Magazine and was named Jamie Oliver's blog of the month in February.
Kate Hackworthy
So, what’s a ThermoCook? Well, more like what isn’t it? This gadget has the footprint of a 4-slice toaster, but it can perform loads of functions. It’s essentially a food processor with a heating element, and you just have to change the accessories to make it do even more – from boiling and sautéing to kneading and chopping. Yes, really. This beautiful beast can do it all.
Kate Hackworthy, a freelance food writer, magazine columnist and blogger. She’s unashamedly obsessed with vegetables, whether they're in her breakfast, dinner or desserts!
