Steamers

It took me some time to find the perfect steamer.
The main advantage of the electrical steamer in the front is that you can put in anywhere in the kitchen where there’s a plug. Saving space on your stove. The main disadvantage for me is its size. Somehow it always seems too small. Yes, for steaming some dimsum or the occasional lemper it’s fine. But for that, the little stainless steel steam basket you see in the front is just as good. As is the bamboo steamer. But when you want to steam a trout or seabass you’d first have to slaughter it to make it fit. So I was thrilled to “discover” these big aluminium steamer pots. (Diamand Brand, Thailand) You can steam the fish already on the plate you want to serve it on, so there’s no chance of it falling apart while transferring it to your plate. The plate gets steaming hot too, so the food stays warm longer. The main disadvantage of course is that it takes a lot of space on your stove. Which isn’t a problem if you just decide to steam your vegetables too and make rice in a ricecooker. Or when I prepare a big dinner and really need my stove, I use this little “Butane Camp Stove” so I can steam anywhere in the house.

So why are there two steamers in the picture? The first steamer pan I bought had a diameter of 37cm. I was so happy with it and still am, but somehow it often was just 1 cm too small for the plates I wanted to use. Irritating, annoying, but buying yet another steamer would be too ridiculous, even for me. But when a friend of mine said she was jealous of my steamer and wanted to go and buy one herself it was the perfect opportunity for me to upgrade! So now I have the 40cm one and the 37cm one will move next week. Everybody happy. :)