First of all wow! What a response to my post about the above appliances. I did not know that there were so many people out there interested in them, like me! I thought I was the only one who cared to research the appliances to compare them and see what they are all about and which one is truly better than the others.
Personally, I have not come to a firm conclusion. I was at Bing Lee today with my mum and I took a sneek peek at the Kenwood mixers.The cooking chef was there in all its glory and costing $1999, but as they advertise, if I paid cash, I could bargain that price down!! Anyway, I did see that it was larger than a Thermomix and yes, heavier. I do also have to agree that it doesn't blend on its own, you do have to attach the blender. But it did look good!!! I checked out the other Kenwoods and found a cute one that is similar to the Cooking Chef, but does not cook. What I liked about it was all the settings were digital, and it had builtin scales, like the Thermomix. The price tag of $550 was attractive, but again, it doesn't blend by itself, you have to add that attachment. However, you can churn your own ice cream with this mixer as well as do all the other things a stand alone mixer can do and the bowl is stainless steel and large. I still like the look of it, and my sister in law told me that her mum, just got her Kenwood serviced and its still working well after 30 good years of use. So Kenwoods, are basically built to last, not saying that the Thermomixer is not, don't misquote me on that! With the more realistic price tags of the Kenwoods, at this stage I am leaning more closely to purchasing one. I'm starting to think that if I got myself a good quality blender(not necessarily a Vitamix), a Kenwood, and a larger slow cooker, I would have ticked all the boxes, but not come close to spending the same amount I would need to spend for a Thermomixer. So what I am saying is that the Thermomixer turns me off in the price tag, the warranty, and also the fact that that the bowl is a limited size for my family. However, I do like a lot of what you can achieve with the Thermomixer, but so far I have survived without one;)
The funniest thing about all of this is I have been thinking about it for almost a year now and I have not been close to taking the leap and purchasing something. If I had the spare cash 6 months ago I would have had a Thermomixer by now, and been on here writing up its praises on what I can make and achieve with it. I do wander though, if I would have figured out fairly quickly the limitations of the machine for my family and been a little cheesed off by that? Who knows!!
So, I am leaning more towards a Kenwood at this stage, and purchasing the other appliances. Yes, I am aware that I am purchasing 3 appliances and the Thermomixer is one appliance that can do all 3 and is light weight etc etc. But the price tag for me is what is important. I wonder if anyone out there who owns a Thermomixer did you get rid/sell your stand alone mixer (whatever the brand) or did you hold onto it, because you still use it?? Or if you are planning a purchase of a Thermomixer, will you sell/get rid of your stand alone mixer?? Would love to hear from you:) Until part 3 , take care and keep cooking in whatever you have, after all, its not what you use to cook, its about the good food you make:)
3 comments:
OHHH! I have had such a bad experience with my new Kenwood, I couldnt recommend any of their products. I had a old Kenwood for about 18 years and it was great, but I was bored of the dependable white mixer and lusted after a cute red one to sit on my bench. So I bought one and a matching blender. Yeah, they looked cute, but the markings on the knobs on both wore off in months. Then the mixer attachment got stuck in the machine. It was all scored and needed to be looked at, I was i think a few weeks out of warranty and the Kenwood people said no. So then I had a $600 machine that was taken to service. $145 and a month later it did it again the second time I used it. I was so irritated I wanted to throw it through the service peoples shop window then go pick it and take it down to the Kenwood peoples and repeat. OK, I was over reacting, but it was over Christmas and I really needed that machine... The dodgy service guy tells me, the Kenwoods of old were made in the UK, now they are made in China. (He also had some UK ones conveniently in the shop for sale...)I couldnt spend 2k on a brand that I have lost all respect for. I did buy a thermomix, as my kitchen reno seems to becoming a permanent situation. And with no oven etc, I needed a hand to cook something decent to eat. Its been good. But the beginners recipe book is often hard to understand. Cant understand why they cant put serving quantities on the recipes. And that meatballs in sweet n sour we made today from the beginners cookbook was truly foul.Oh yeah one more thing the rubber seal like to keep flavors, not so fun when wondering why your hotchoc has a hint of butter chicken aroma. Overall, the thermomix is good, I see myself using it alot over the years. But its still just a tool, albeit a handy one.
I have recently purchased a Thermomix. Admittedly it is not cheap however you only need one appliance. I have moved house and now have a small kitchen, I was able to empty a lot of appliances from my cupboards and therefore free up space. The ken wood that I have had for 40+ years still works although they have always been noisy..very heavy and you need a separate cupboard for all the attachments. It also took up a lot of bench top if you left it out therefore not having to lift it out of the cupboard.
I have a Thermomix and would not give it back for anything. We have even considered buying a second one. I lead a very busy life and appreciate being able to feed my family healthy food, knowing exactly what is in it, without a fuss and no mess. I have a slow cooker, bread maker and KitchenAid all of which have been semiretired. I will not get rid of them, as sometimes the Thermomix is being used, so I need them; they have just been put away and no longer clutter the kitchen bench. The Thermomix has changed the way we cook and whilst I don't use it everyday, I use something made with it everyday (Quinoa breakfast; yoghurt; home made stock paste). I am an adventurous cook and like to use recipes as a springboard for ideas.
I particulary like the Varoma (steamer). I never had consistent reliable results when steaming, having previously used a variety of methods. We regularly use our Thermomix to make the entire meal, meaning less dishes. I can easily make a satisfying meal for 4 adults with leftovers and would not want the bowl to be any bigger.
If I was starting out (and had the money) I would get a Thermomix and not bother with the others. I wish I'd had it while we were renovating and kitchenless.
I am not a rep, just a very happy user.
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