Mumsnet users review the Tefal Cook4Me Connect

[JustineBMumsnet]

This is the feedback thread for the 30 Mumsnetters who have been testing the Tefal one-pot digital cooker Cook4Me Connect (RRP £319.99).

Here’s what Tefal have to say about the product: “You don’t need to be a masterchef to achieve delicious meals in no time! Tefal have innovated again, and now give you Cook4Me.

Cook4Me is a one-pot digital cooker, ideal for parents looking to make fast and fresh meals:
- It is easy to use and intuitive: Cook4Me comes with 50 built-in recipes, and features a digital screen with guided cooking steps.
- Cook4Me cooks under pressure, which means you will save a lot of time. For example, after browning and pre-heating, it cooks a Chicken Tikka Masala in 3 minutes, a Thai Green Chicken curry in 4 minutes and a Risotto in 9 minutes (and no need to stir!)…
- It is the ideal all-in-one cooker, with up to 6 cooking manual modes: not only does it pressure cook, but it also steams, browns, simmers, gentle-cooks and automatically keeps your food warm. Its dishwasher-safe bowl can feed 6 people, perfect for the whole family or for batch-cooking.

Cook4Me comes in a standard version, with 50 built-in recipes (RRP is £269.99), and in a Connected version, that works with My Cook4Me app, giving access to over 100 recipes (RRP is £319.99).”

Testers, please ensure that you’ve tested the digital cooker using both the recipes and the manual/ingredients modes and then give your feedback by answering the following questions as well as completing the survey we will email to you.

1. How easy or difficult did you find Cook4Me Connect to use?
2. Which recipes did you try? What did you think of them?
3. What were your thoughts on the cooking results of the Cook4Me Connect?
4. Would you recommend the Cook4Me Connect?

All who give their required feedback will be entered into a prize draw where one tester will win a £100 voucher for the store of their choice (from a list).

Non-testers, please answer the below question. All non-testers who answer the below question will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £200 voucher for the store of their choice (from a list).

• Is there a recipe you’ve never dared to cook and would really like to be able to make in the Cook4Me?

Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

Talk me through freezing risotto... is it safe? I always thought you had to cool rice quickly or chuck it?

Not sure if this is a cheeky question or not... do we need to keep the packaging to send it back at the end of the test? Or should we expect to be able to keep it?

Mine came today too! Dying to try something but out tomorrow... nearly failed to manage to connect to my app, but it worked in the end!

Fancy trying mustard beef...

Oooohh. Even better. Thanks snowballs (& tefal!)

Tester here.

I won't get to try it until Monday as unfortunately we have dinner plans all weekend, but I have saved a few recipes on the app and can't wait to get stuck in next week.

Just had a delicious bowl of Lentil and Smoked bacon soup, which has gone down really well with the whole family even muddy DD6. I couldn't get the app to download the recipe properly though and got an error message. This meant it wouldn't sync with the cooker but I just followed the instructions in the cooker itself. DH hasn't had yet but the cooker is keeping it warm anyway. Really appleciate how little washing up is involved.

I'm going to make the leek and bacon risotto later on so will update then.

DD6 is fussy, though sometimes muddy too

This is the error message

We made the pork sweet & sour tonight. I found it a bit irritating as it wasn't really a 'recipe', just 'add a jar', but it was absolutely delicious, VERY easy and both dc and dh ate it.

Tefal - if you could come up with a simple 'from scratch' sweet and sour I'd be more impressed.

Was raving about the butternut squash risotto to DH so made the bacon and leek one. Unfortunately it wasn't so good and rather dry. I did leave it a bit before adding the Parmesan so maybe that's affected it. Again, the app wouldn't let me download the recipe. I'm away on holiday to France for 2 weeks and it's not coming with us, but I'll be sure to try the Mussels in white wine on my return .

We made the Thai Spicy Chicken last night and it was lovely. Very economical as the Thai red curry paste jar keeps for a month in the fridge and I'll probably get 4 portions out of it.

Less success with the chocolate molten pudding. Was still raw mix after 12mins, someone on the forum cooked for a further 3mins (will have to look how to do that). Looked nothing like the image but maybe dark chocolate rather than the milk chocolate I used, would help visually!? I could only fit 3x GU glass ramekins in the basket (just to help anyone else making it for 4).

As childcare will cripple us from the week after next, I'm off to find some cheap pressure cooker recipes. Can't wait to go back to work after nearly 3 years, but not looking forward to childcare headaches again.

Hoping the Tefal can help cut our shopping bill a bit, as well as saving on time. I also love the lack of washing up (thanks to a dishwasher that's been broken for 4 weeks!)

Non tester I'd love to make jerk chicken or risotto in it :-)

Non tester
I would like to try a risotto in one. Especially the pesto chicken one, it sounds delicious but risotto is such a faff to make manually!

Molten chocolate pudding i made last night, worked really well and as described, was nice but think perhaps a different kind of chocolate next time, it was soft pudding on the inside and liquid inside so definately worked. ds wasnt keen on it said it was too rich but me and dp atd s a treat. Looking to do the tikka masala tonight so will report back :)

Finding it easy to use so far and really like the instructions being on screen and on my app.

Molten chocolate pudding i made last night, worked really well and as described, was nice but think perhaps a different kind of chocolate next time, it was soft pudding on the ioutside and liquid inside so definately worked. ds wasnt keen on it said it was too rich but me and dp atd s a treat. Looking to do the tikka masala tonight so will report back :)

Finding it easy to use so far and really like the instructions being on screen and on my app.

Still waiting for mine but I can't remember whether it was being delivered to work or home & I wasn't at work Friday afternoon. Hopefully it will be waiting for me at work tomorrow :)

Very of you all with your risottos!!

Non tester

Oh no I was still hoping I'd be picked for this! Never mind, perhaps this'll persuade me to splash out on one.

I'd love to try slow cooking lamb or goat in this, the Greek lamb recipe sounds amazing.

Risotto is on!

I was surprised by how hot it got for the browning - I'd added garlic too, which next time I wouldn't put in at the same time as the onion etc.

Can't wait to see what it's like when it comes out!

Tikka masala was really good,and less than half the time id normally spend doing it, even fussy dp who usually finds a reason not to like new variations of things he actually likes. Added some cornflour on keep warm as wasnt quite thick enough for me. But so simple and easy

Risotto was lovely! I think the peas went in too early, as I found them quite soft and squishy, but I'm very impressed especially for something which requires such little effort.

I missed delivery on Friday - I am hoping it comes again tomorrow!

I am jealous off all your lovely sounding good!

As a PP said, I am disappointed that a lot of the recipes are "add jar of sauce". I almost never used jarred sauces as they are high in sugar and salt, so I will have to do some playing around.

I had hoped for proper "cooking from scratch" recipes, its a bit of a let down that so many rely on pre prepared ingedients.

For health reasons I now can't used jarred sauces and tbh, if I'm going to use this thing then what's the point if you're not cooking from scratch? I looked at the bolognese recipe and it's quicker for me to brown some mince and chuck in some ragu sauce than to use the C4M and add a couple of bay leaves.