A Terrific Little Rotisserie - bought at local store
Written: Aug 16 '04
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Healthy way of cooking. Delicious foods. Easy to use.
Cons: One part difficult to clean. Gloves the come with unit are useless.
The Bottom Line: If you are looking for a rotisserie and or alternative method to cook your food (keep heat out of kitchen, like me) - Buy it, you'll love it.
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| mmmarvel's Full Review: Ronco Compact Showtime Rotisserie Oven ST3000 |
The other reviewers seem to have obtained the appliance from the infomercial (which I've also seen, who hasn't). However, I found them for sale at our local Target store.
I was looking for an appliance that I could cook outdoors with. We prefer to do that during the summer to keep the heat down in the kitchen. I had been thinking about a BBQ, but the cost, size, amount of work had just been keeping me from making a purchase. We went to Target (some nameless shopping trip for my daughter), I, again, looked at the BBQ's (same old worries) and all of a sudden, while wandering around - there was the Ronco Compact Showtime Rotisserie. I'd seen the infomercials, I knew what it was all about. I even liked the price - I bought it (it was my "father's day" present - hint, hint, wink, wink).
There are a few things that the model bought in Target DIDN'T have that the infomercial does have. There was no food warmer/steamer. It's not necessary, I'm not sure if I'd actually use it, but it worth noting that it doesn't come with the model you buy at Target. It does NOT come with the "food injector"; can't say I really miss it, but maybe I just don't know what I'm missing. Everything else that is shown on the infomercial comes in the model I bought from Target.
This IS the compact model. My understanding is that there are about 5 different models that Ronco produces. There is one model smaller than this, it's called the "Jr." and to be honest I couldn't think about trying to do much of anything in anything smaller (maybe if you were single and never had company). Honestly, this would be the smallest model that I could recommend. I feed 3 to 4 people on a regular basis and this little unit works great.
I've cooked whole chickens, I've cooked cut up chicken. I've cooked hot dogs. I've done roasts (beef and pork), I've done ribs (beef). I've cooked both beef and pork steaks and I have yet to have anything NOT work out. The "basket" unit (that sits on the spit rods) is grand, it allows you to cook so many foods that a normal rotisserie (like those found in BBQ's) wouldn't be able to handle. A couple of things to remember is that although you are doing a "type" of BBQing, you don't want to use a sauce until the very end of the cooking process (last 10 - 15 minutes), or else the sauce will char. The best bet, especially on steaks, is to use a "dry seasoning" on the meat prior to putting it in the rotisserie. My favorite is Masterpiece BBQ seasoning, great stuff.
I love the timer, it helps to ensure that the food isn't going to burn if you forget about it or get busy doing something else. I love the "food ties" which is really just small elastic bands that you use to keep the chicken wings and legs from flopping around while the bird turns in the rotisserie.
To be honest, there is only bad feature to this appliance. The way it works, to turn the food, there are two rather large "gears" on each end, with two rods between these gears. One of the gears detaches, which is how you slide the food on and off the rods. On the other end, the rods are attached (permanently?) to that gear and this is where the problem exists. While the "gears" are made out of stainless steel and the rods appear to be teflon coated, the bugaboo is where the rods permanently attach to that gear. It is just too hard to clean around those rods, I've scrubbed, I've used just about everything that I could think of (including soaking in bleach) and it just hard to get that area clean. It doesn't affect the food much, as your food will rarely get close to that area, but I'm just talking about looks.
My only other complaint is the gloves they give you with the unit. I'm really not sure why they are included. They are rubber coated, which means if you touch any of the hot metal parts when you take food out of the rotisserie, the rubber melts. I don't use the gloves for anything (maybe they are suppose to be used to handle the hot meat after you get it off the spits - I don't know). I place a small plate under the food when I take it out of the oven and use hot-pot gloves to handle any of the metal parts.
Overall, I believe that this is a healthier way to cook the food. It certainly keeps the heat out of the kitchen in the summer (we plug it in and cook on the back patio). The food is flavorful and delicious and I have yet to have anyone complain. One of the best father's day gifts that I've ever received. I love it and will buy another one when and if this one ever dies.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
mmmarvel
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Reviews written: 6
Trusted by: 2 members
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