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Housekeeping

Find cleaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Housekeeping forum.

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Original poster

I have £30 to spend at Pampered Chef - help me!

19 replies

Cheeser · 03/01/2011 17:05

Thanks to a doubled-up christmas pressie I have £30 to spend at Pampered Chef (through their website, I don't go to the parties and don't intend to).

Is anything from there any good? I'm tempted by the Food Chopper - is it actually any good? Or should I just forget returning and faffing around and just 're-gift' the present to someone who might like what I was given?

I've never had anything from there before... is it a big swizz or are some things ok?

OP posts:

OrangeMarmalade · 03/01/2011 17:07

I love their garlic crusher and their baking sheets are good quallity as well.

mrspink27 · 03/01/2011 17:10

Food chopper is good, also the ice cream scoop with the anti freeze in the handle. The all in one measuring tube things are also useful. But only if you dont have something else which works just as well!

KateF · 03/01/2011 17:14

Tin opener is very good and I use the mini muffin pan for lots of things.

Original poster

Cheeser · 03/01/2011 17:22

Ooh great, thank you all. I was considering the garlic crusher actually as I don't have one, tend to chop garlic all the time but wouldn't mind a time-saver. Also my tin opener is crap. They put antifreeze in the ice cream scoop!?

Hmm or perhaps the measuring things... I only have one measuring jug which is annoying if I need it for two things and have to wash half way through... as I am a slattern.

Thanks everyone! I will take another look through the website. Decisions, decisions...

OP posts:

DisparityCausesInstability · 03/01/2011 20:36

I hate Pampered Chef - most of the crap I have bought I have regretted. The food chopper is the biggest waste of money - I had the intention of letting the kids loose in the kitcen but they have found it uncomfortable and tricky to use - as do I.

Their stoneware is rubbish too - don't believe it makes good pizzas - I have an old tefal baking sheet which out-performs it in an instant. Stone take ages to get hot - it works for oven chips - you don't need to turn them but that's about it.

I like their plastic scraper - think they might come free with stoneware - or cost £1. I have heard good reports about the ice cream scoop...but most of the items can be bought at half the price elsewhere or are so novel that you will never use them anyway!

bessie26 · 03/01/2011 21:28

I never ever use my chopper, but LOVE my big jug, use it to make my porridge in every morning, and it's also big enough to use as a mixing bowl if needed. It's also very tough, it's been bashed around alot but is still in one piece.

fifitrixibell · 03/01/2011 23:47

Sorry Disparity I disagree about the stoneware - I don't have the pizza stone but i do have few other stone dishes and they are great - especially the medium bar pan which I use for loads of different things. Once it's seasoned food lifts off it without sticking - and you don't need to line it even for baking.

The batter bowls are great as are the silicone scrapers. The spoon shaped ones are really useful.

I don't have the chopper- thought it looks a bit of a faff.

The tiny little paring knives are amazing - I can't do without them now [saddo emoticon]

oldenoughtowearpurple · 03/01/2011 23:49

I have two Pyrex measuring jugs with lids that are brilliant. Also a set of stacking glass mini bowls that are great if you are doing something complicated for sorting out the ingredients like they do on the telly.

BadPoet · 04/01/2011 12:43

I think their stoneware is a marvel actually, although I think that most of it is more than £30. I recently helped cater a bug buffet and made about 300 vol-au-vents on my two pieces of PC stoneware, batch after batch and not a single one stuck.

I like the lemon juicer and the batter bowls. The little mini glass bowls with lids are also great.

IWillCountToThree · 04/01/2011 12:46

I love the mini muffin tin and i have a set of bamboo cooking utensils that are fab. Other stuff at the last party just seemed a little pointless/expensive!

ByTheSea · 04/01/2011 12:51

I love the food chopper. And the big pouring mixing bowl with the lid. And my utility knife is brilliant.

amerryscot · 04/01/2011 13:02

I like their miniature range.

fortyplus · 04/01/2011 13:07

I have the classic batter bowl which is 2 litres capacity and has a lid so very useful.

Also the ice cream scoop with antifreeze in handle is great

DisparityCausesInstability · 04/01/2011 16:27

It's always controversial to say you don't like stoneware - it's almost like a religion . I can see why it works for a lot of things because it delays cooking from the bottom while it heats up but it does not work for pizza - unless you like your base pale and slightly undercooked and the cheese well toasted.
Think I'm going to chuck my chopper on ebay. My advice is to buy a Cook's knife - a big one - the best you can afford and learn to sharpen it & use it properly - it will give you years of pleasure and is a dream to clean and all the choppers and garlic crushers will become a thing of the past.

MayorNaze · 04/01/2011 16:31

if they stll doo the little glass bowls wth white lids they are fab and i heart them. everything else is a bit meh.

soppypreggyloon · 04/01/2011 20:37

The bamboo spoons are good and cheap ish. They are happy in the dishwasher- unlike my wooden ones and don't stain even if you make a curry from scratch!

Alwaysworthchecking · 05/01/2011 00:43

Disclaimer: I sell the stuff. But I'm not trying to sell any right now so that's OK.

I love the stoneware and use it pretty much every day. The food chopper is OK but not my favourite. The bamboo spoons are great and I love that they are dishwasher safe. All the knives are great. The pizza wheel is a marvel. I love the big lidded jug and use that a lot. The garlic press is really easy to use and gets the job done. I use the mini muffin pan and stackable cooling rack a lot and any of the whisks all work well for me. The chopping board (the one with the non-slip edges) gets used a lot. I am totally unimpressed with the egg separator. The snowmen side dishes are, frankly, a bit crap. (And I kept wondering why I couldn't sell any!) I use the baker's roller far more than I ever thought I would.

Get stoneware. That's what I'd do. Or probably should stop doing, before it takes over.

Odd present if you hadn't asked for it!

ben5 · 05/01/2011 00:48

love the stone pizza thing and the food chopper. also have the ice cream scoup which worked very well untill dh put it in the dishwasher. its now like any other ice cream scoup!!

Original poster

Cheeser · 05/01/2011 08:10

Ooh lovely some more advice, thanks everyone. Ok think I'll steer clear of the chopper, and maybe get a good knife instead. I quite like the look of the stoneware casserole dishes but they do seem really expensive, and was hoping not to have to add a lot more onto the price.

Always thanks for your insider info and yes I also thought it was an odd present, DP is notoriously fussy about crockery etc (bit of a snob about it as he is in the business) and no receipt, despite the fact it's quite an expensive present and very much a gamble with regards to taste. We think BIL's new girlfriend bought them to try and ingratiate herself into the family

OP posts:

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