You can wear your nicest clothes, because nothing will spill while you carry the Stay Or Go (shown above, the 6-quart model in copper). Photo courtesy Hamilton Beach.
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ERIKA MELLER is a member of THE NIBBLE editorial staff.
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March 2010
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Slow Cooking
Page 2: Slow Cooking & Spill-Proof Transport
This is Page 2 of a two-page review of slow cooking with the Hamilton Beach Stay Or Go Slow Cooker. Click on the black links below to visit other pages.
Benefits Of Our New Slow Cooker
We didn’t know what we were missing; now we know that all slow cookers are not created equal. To say that we appreciate our Hamilton Beach slow cooker—a device originally known as a crock pot—is putting it mildly. We simply love nearly everything about it.
Temperature Settings
The temperature settings on the Stay Or Go Slow Cooker makes it easy for us to select whether we want the food inside to cook at a higher temperature for 4 to 6 hours or at a lower temperature for 8 to 10 hours. Once the food is cooked, turn the knob to the warm setting to ensure the food stays that way.
Our only complaint is that while all of the Stay Or Go models can cook at high, low and warm settings, there is no internal timer, so we needed to manually switch from one setting to another so the food stayed warm until we were ready to dig in. Slow cookers with internal timers simply require that you set the clock and forget about it; the machine reverts to the “warm” setting when the food is done. You don’t have to separately keep track of how long the food has been cooking, then turn it to warm. We hope that Hamilton Beach will add this valuable feature to its Stay Or Go models.
Lock & Seal: The Piece De Resistance
It was the lock & seal lid feature that held our attention.
By clipping two metal lid locks over hooks atop the lid and pushing down near each handle, you can lock the lid in place so no food spills out if you want to transport the food—to a dinner party, to work, to new parents or a sick friend. The lid is equipped with a gasket that creates a tight seal once the lid is locked into place.
Though our prior slow cooker transport experience made us skeptical that more liquid foods, such as soups and chili, would stay inside where they belonged, we were delightfully surprised that not a drop splashed out as we transported chili.
We hand-carried the Stay Or Go Slow Cooker up and down stairs and across town on public transportation. While the food sloshed around inside the appliance, the only thing that escaped from the gasket seal was some steam from two tiny holes atop the lid.
The full-grip handles also made carrying the appliance much easier: Those who have carried a slow cooker know that it’s often awkward to hold them at arm’s length while moving it from one surface to another—much less transporting them somewhere—to ensure nothing that spills out of them gets onto us.
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On the floor of the car or on your lap, nothing spills from the Stay Or Go Slow Cooker. Photo courtesy Hamilton Beach.
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No Burning
We were also pleasantly surprised that the food we cooked in the Stay Or Go Slow Cooker didn’t burn slightly on the sides near the top of the pot, as recipes in our other slow cookers have regularly done in the past.
Deluxe Options
More deluxe versions of this Hamilton Beach slow cooker include a lid rest and a detachable spoon that snaps inside a form-fitting groove on the top of the lid and/or travel cases (see photo at top of page).
Regardless of the model you choose, you’ll be satisfied knowing you have an easy way to make home-cooked meals—and to bring them outside of the home without a mess.
Hamilton Beach Ensemble “Stay Or Go” Slow Cooker
- Black, Copper, Gray, Red, White
4-, 5- or 6-Quart Sizes
$29.99-$44.99
Purchase online* at HamiltonBeach.com
*Prices and product availability are verified at publication but are subject to change. Shipping is additional. These items are offered by a third party and THE NIBBLE has no relationship with them. Purchase information is provided as a reader convenience. |
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It’s easy to lock the lid in place and keep the food hot—and spillproof. Photo courtesy Hamilton Beach. |
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