Drop the potatoes into the bag, sprinkle on the seasoning and microwave for five minutes. No seasonings to measure, no pots to clean! Photography by Claire Freierman.
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KAREN HOCHMAN is Editorial Director of THE NIBBLE.
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January 2008
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Steaming Splendor:
Easy, Convenient, Tasty Steamed Vegetables
Part II: McCormick Veggie Steamers & Seafood Steamers
CAPSULE REPORT: Part I of this article focused on Birds Eye Steamfresh Fresh Frozen Vegetables—bags of frozen vegetables that steam in the microwave. Part II presents McCormick Steamers—a plastic bag and seasoning combination in 10 different flavors. You provide the vegetables (your choice of fresh or frozen) and/or seafood. You can steam potatoes, another vegetable and fish or shrimp at the same time, and an entire, delicious steamed meal is ready in five minutes.
McCormick Veggie & Seafood Steamers
McCormick is the largest spice company in the world. The team has put all that spice savvy to good use, coming up with the quickest and easiest way to cook seasoned food—microwave steaming. That’s the focus of this segment of Steaming Splendor. To cook plain steamed food, see Part III, Ziploc Zip ‘n Steam Bags. For plain frozen vegetables, see Part I, Birds Eye Steamfresh Vegetables.
While the McCormick Steamers line doesn’t produce gourmet recipes, you’ll get family-pleasing dishes, and the Seafood Steamers are actually one of the better ways we know of to prepare moist, succulent fish.
Vegetable Steamers
If you’re looking for a seasoned dish, you can steam fresh or frozen vegetables easily with the McCormick system.
- Cheddar Cheese
This seasoning creates a cheese sauce for broccoli, cauliflower or a mixture of both.* We really liked this sauce on cauliflower—it creates a dish that you can convince kids is the “brother” of macaroni and cheese. If you steam to the full eight minutes indicated, at least in our microwave, the cauliflower becomes soft and pasta-like (not mushy—but if you prefer a more al dente vegetable, cut down the steaming time).
- Garlic & Basil
Intended for fresh green beans and broccoli, this is a very light seasoning. You may find yourself adding more garlic, and if you have fresh basil, a touch would help.
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Make steamed vegetables more alluring with a mix of seasonings. |
*The package states that the florets of the broccoli and cauliflower should be used, but we always eat the stalks, so cut and added them as well.
Make Roasted Garlic & Rosemary Potatoes in eight minutes, with no pots or pans. |
Potato Steamers
Simply cube four medium potatoes, put them in the steamer bag with a tablespoon of oil and add the seasoning packet. It’s true that microwaving potatoes doesn’t create the crisp, roasted texture of oven-baked, but heck—this is eight minutes of cooking!
You can have your potatoes flavored with:
- Italian Herb
The seasoning is on the light side; most people will like it. We found it perfectly satisfactory, but preferred the other flavor much more.
- Roasted Garlic & Rosemary
Our favorite. A real comfort-food dish.
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Seafood Steamers
Fish, shrimp and scallops get the steam treatment, too. You just may find that McCormick Seafood Steamers are your preferred way of cooking fish. It’s always moist, and there’s no smell of cooking fish. You can season your seafood in three ways:
- Garlic Butter
This flavor cooks up nicely and may sound tempting, but move on to the next flavor—it’s livelier.
- Lemon Garlic
This was our favorite for the salmon fillets we cook regularly, and for halibut as well.
- Old Bay
Unless you are a big fan of Old Bay or like spicy foods in general, we’d suggest using half the amount of seasoning in the package. The huge flavors of cayenne pepper, celery salt and paprika overwhelmed our pricey fresh shrimp, turning them into a texture taken over by the seasoning. If you like spicy dishes, however, this one is ready in just three minutes.
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Fish is always moist and delicious with McCormick
Seafood Steamers. |
The seasonings are from 15 calories on the low end (Old Bay, Garlic & Basil) per serving to 40 calories on the high end (Garlic Butter). The convenience—quick cooking, no pots and pans to clean up—is a big plus. And the seasonings will convince almost everyone to eat more vegetables.
MCCORMICK STEAMERS
Potato Steamers, Seafood Steamers & Veggie Steamers
- .88-Ounce Package
Suggested Retail Price
$1.89
Available at supermarkets
nationwide. Also can be purchased online* at McCormick.com
*Prices and product availability are
verified at publication but are
subject to change. Shipping is
additional. THE NIBBLE does not
sell products; these items are
offered by a third party with whom
we have no financial or other
relationship. This link to purchase
is provided as a reader
convenience. |
You can keep yourself steam-happy for some time with this selection of McCormick Veggie Steamers, Potato Steamers and Seafood Steamers. |
Lifestyle Direct, Inc. All rights reserved. Images are the copyright of their respective owners.
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