TELEBRANDS: THE BETTER PASTA POT - the Best in my Book!
Written: May 04 '03 (Updated May 23 '06)
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Pros: Practical, useful idea for lots of things you cook!
Cons: None that I can think of!
The Bottom Line: Does everything the TV ads say. I'm very satisfied with this product! I'm ready to get rid of my old pots!
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| gaelkm's Full Review: The Better Pasta Pot 1858-6 |
5/22/06 Update: I have thrown away the pots and now just use the lids. The pots were too rusted to continue to use.
UPDATE: My Pasta Pot is beginning to rust on the bottom of the pot, although I have not used metal utensils on it. Not sure why it is happening, but I am unhappy with this after less than two years of use.
I admit it; once again I have caved in to temptation and clever marketing!
I’ve been bombarded (as you may have been lately also!) by ads on TV to buy the TELEBRANDS: THE BETTER PASTA POT. The pasta pot is not your average pot, oh no, it is so much more. I thought about this long and hard and I finally decided it would be a good investment. My other pots and pans were small, old and mismatched and my plastic colander was in a sorry state as well.
The lid is the key with the pasta pot. There is a choice of hole sizes on either side of the lid (to be used according to what you are cooking and need strained). The bigger holes are used for large items such as ziti, veggies, potatoes, etc. and the smaller holes are used for straining water from small items such as rice or angel hair pasta. The idea behind the pasta pot is that it has a built in colander, so you don't have to mess with pasta spilling all over the place when you try to drain it.
The only thing about this pot that had me slightly disappointed was the fact that you cannot "close" the holes in the lid, so you will always have steam escaping. I don't know if other pasta pots have this option. I don’t know why I thought it would have that option of closing and opening, but it doesn’t. It's not a big enough deal for me to return it. I did notice though that if I reach over it, I have to be cautious not to burn my arm on the rising steam.
Before you begin to strain hot water using the large 8 quart pot, you first need to make certain the lid is firmly secured. The side handles are to be in the lid-locking position and stay in that position until the liquid is completely poured out. This is not hard to do at all. Just use oven mitts and keep a firm grip on the easy-to-grip handles. It is also recommended that you do not tilt the pot more than 45 degrees horizontally, in the event that the lid could just fall off.
Drain out the hot liquid into the sink taking care to avoid splashing. To strain, hold the pot in such a way that the straining holes face away from you so that the hot liquid falls away from you. Also be cautious of rising steam as steam can cause severe burns.
So far, I have used the pasta pot for hard boiling eggs and for pasta. I have it in mind to boil some potatoes and veggies in the near future. It really does have a multitude of uses.
The PASTA POT is a large non stick 8 quart pot, which is larger than most of my other old pots. Apparently some competing pasta pots are 6 quarts. I prefer a larger pot, so have the option of cooking a wider range of things.
They have a warning against using the pasta pot for deep frying. That seems obvious to me, but to others it might not be.
Another warning is to NOT lift the pot by the knob on top of the lid. This would definitely be a recipe for disaster, no pun intended.
The box said that it is a solid steel pot and a thicker gauge than some “competing pots”.
This Pasta Pot is a good color too; mine is a rather elegant off-white enamel design. It's very pretty.
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Along with the large pasta pot, is a small 2.3 quart pot. Although it is the same color, this is slightly different from the larger pot, because the lid actually locks by sliding the lid into the locked position as indicated on the pot. (Even though this pot is smaller and lighter, once again you are warned not to lift this pot by the knob on the lid either.)
But wait! There’s more! Included also is a cheese grater, which I’m sure will come in very handy when I use it.
I bought my PASTA POT at Linens and Things for $20, but had a $5 off coupon, so ended up paying $15 before tax.
This particular pasta pot comes with a bonus mail in offer: it includes a food chopper, pasta spoon/measure and flexible cutting board. There is a shipping and handling charge for these items of $5.99, but I’ll probably skip that since I don't really need those things.
Clean-up is quite easy too, especially if you rinse the Pasta Pot out shortly after use. You can also place it into the dishwasher for cleaning. (Do not use cold water on the hot pot because this can cause warping.) Steel wool or other harsh cleaners are not recommended for use in cleaning the non-stick surface.
Do not use in the micro-wave oven. Do not use Pam or other non-stick cooking sprays. Also, do not use metal spatulas or metal utensils because of the risk of scratching the Teflon-type surface in pots.
Also included is a 30 day warranty from the date of purchase.
Thanks for reading!
Special thanks to POGOMOM for adding this product to this category (and to KMINER also for her help)!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 20.00
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