I make no secret of the fact that I don’t enjoy cooking, in fact that’s pretty generous of me really. I hate cooking! I just never feel inspired when I walk into the kitchen and having children who really aren’t that keen on food doesn’t make it any more pleasurable either. When I attended a cookery course with them nearly three years ago, I actually enjoyed it, it was nice to do the cooking with them but the minute it was plated up the same arguments began and the food went to waste.
These days I tend to bluff my way through meals with the Beans, they eat the same things, on the same night week after week, after week. I have tried to cook them different meals, tried tempting them with something new but it always ends the same way – in the bin and them with empty tummies.
Meals for Hubby and I are a different kettle of fish, particularly in the winter as I quite enjoy preparing meals in the slow cooker although I do hate the cooking smell which tends to linger when it’s been cooking all day. A few weeks ago, a personal French Chef was delivered to me in a cardboard box. His name is Tefal Cook4Me, he is stocky, black, effortlessly handsome, cool to the touch, safety conscious and extremely easy to get along with. All I have to do in order to cook meals for a family of up to 6 people (or Hubby, Curly and myself until the mini-Beans decide to eat normal food) is assist Tefal by putting in the ingredients for the meal as and when he directs me.
To help Tefal know what meal we want and how many people we are cooking for, we have to help navigate him through his menus and choices via a twist and push button below his menu screen. Tefal will then tell me the ingredients to prepare and how long preparation and cooking time will take.
Once all the ingredients are ready it’s time to follow his expert advice and add them as per Tefal’s orders, then when he tells me I shut and lock the lid leaving Tefal to work his culinary magic.
Last night we had Pesto Chicken Risotto which was cooked to perfection in just 23 minutes! You really can’t ask for better than that can you? Well, how about the fact that washing up after Tefal is much better than letting Hubby loose on the kitchen too? When Hubby cooks he uses every pot and utensil we have ever owned but Tefal is so much more efficient. Last night we only had to use the one large cooking pot which washed really easily by hand. No horrible burnt-on bits. It was perfect!
Tefal Cook4me has 50 pre-programmed sweet and savoury recipes ready and waiting to put to the test and he will keep meals warm for up to 90 minutes after he has finished cooking – great if you don’t know what time someone will be home from work or one of those moments where the Beans create a disaster just as you’re about to serve up! Tefal browns, pressure cooks, steams, simmers and re-heats meals, as his name tells you – he’s an intelligent multi-cooker.
When Tefal first arrived, I excitedly removed him from his packaging and I admit, as impressed as I was by his size and looks, when I looked at his instruction books I felt flummoxed. He seemed so complicated that I decided to put him back in his box until I felt as intelligent as he was purported to be. Eventually the stubborn mule in me decided I was not going to be defeated so I took him out of his box once more and this time left the instruction books in the box, choosing to only follow Tefal’s instructions and all was well with the world.
I can see a great future for Tefal in our kitchen; I’m planning on having a day a month to do some bulk cooking with him so that I can freeze meals for Hubby and I so that we can have the odd night off. We haven’t had a chance to try desserts yet but the time will be coming . . . soon!!
DISCLAIMER: I was sent the Tefal Cook4me in exchange for my honest opinion. All words, images and opinions are my own and may not be copied without my permission.