****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
This is rated 4 star ONLY so that I will read it. If I am unable to return this unit the rating will go down. "Waterless" cooking was born in the 1950s, an era when the typical American housewife would cook their vegetables by boiling them in a pot of water and then pour the water down the drain together with most of the soluble nutrition. Waterless does not mean waterless in the absolute sense (as in frying bacon, or in not using water or oil as you would in any stainless skillet) but in conserving the nutrition. So traditionally to use waterless cookware you place a small amount of water (less than 1/4 inch) together with your vegetables and heat on a Medium flame until steam is escaping around the rim of the lid and the lid begins to rattle. At this point you turn flame to Low and continue to cook your food. As the temperature of the vapor in the pot cools it will contract forming a partial vacuum that will pull the lid down sealing in the nutrition and flavor. So waterless cooking is the opposite of pressure cooking and is similar in a way to that of a crock-pot. Moisture condenses on the lid and runs down into the rim of the pot. To function properly a significant part of it must remain there for the vacuum seal to be formed and maintained. Finding the precise heat to continue cooking while maintaining the vapor lock is a bit of an art. The shape of lid with the flat area near the rim is the signature of a waterless set that will maintain a vacuum seal as described above. It is DECEPTIVE in its APPEARANCE and NOT FUNCTIONAL on this product. The flat area near the edge of the lid should be met with a similar area on the skillet itself, it does not. There is relatively flat ring which is only about four millimeters wide upon which the lid sits, however, that SLOPES OFF and down to the vertical inside of the skillet. This slope with the action of gravity and the surface tension of the water draws off the water in the rim. It is expensive to form steel to the near right angle necessary between the flat of the rim and the vertical side of the pot or skillet to minimize this. So marketeers have taken the opposite approach by adopting the idea of 'splatter-less rim waterless cookware' in their dreams. Also, the lid valve on my unit did leak slightly when in the closed position, it did however whistle in the open position. If one is willing to forgo the idea of cooking at low pressure one could still obtain great benefit from cooking at lower but still safe temperatures (180 to 210 degrees F). I did not test this idea extensively. However, with nothing in the skillet I did set the temperature control to 300 degrees and using IR thermometer noted that the mechanical controller would regulate clicking off at 320 and clicking on at 280. Precise: A 40-degree range, really? Other reviewers complained of oil leaks and splatters from the core. The purpose of the oil core is to provide an even heat [not precise heat) (this is usually done with aluminum plate between layers of steel). My unit may have been improved as there was a drip pan for the oil that may come from an over pressure release. The pan would not however stay attached and would continue to fall off. There is no provision for replacing oil in the core and requires a warranty return. Lifetime it is NOT. On the PRO side. If you just want a conventional oil-core stainless steel skillet: I like that it is made in Korea (rather than China), it looks BEAUTIFUL and professional.EDIT 2020-09-22 My unit was 1450 Watts as opposed to the 1300 Watts mentioned in the description.UnbeatableSale, Inc fails to communicate, however Amazon has granted my A to Z claim.I purchased this skillet in August of 2009. I wanted to be fair in my review and use it for awhile before relating my experience. This skillet was purchased because the teflon coated $20-40 range skillets are pathetic in regards to heat management and coating coming off as well as endurance. All of my other cook ware are stainless steel, so I was tentatively prepared to attempt this type of electric skillet. I had reservations in the beginning with the temperature control, which was not digital and which is the major weakness of this skillet, as well as the teflon coated ones. I really didn't expect to be able to "bake a cake" as the manufacturer advertises that one can do with this skillet. My kitchen is not complete and most major meals, dinner and weekend breakfasts are cooked in the skillet. After a year, the husband has got pancakes and eggs down to a tee. Myself, I can saute` and cook "egg pies" pretty well, but there is always very dark browned or burned undersides. The heat is difficult to control and I have never gone above 300 degrees. I would never deep fry any food in this skillet - as it just gets too hot too quickly. Our preferred oil is coconut, which seems to do best. If you are a novice cook, little experience with steam cooking and have no patience, this skillet is not for you. If you don't care to eat teflon and by a replacement cheap teflon coated skillet every six months, then give this one a try - it will definitely outlast the others and you will get your investment back in 2-3 years assuming one buys a new skillet every six months like we have. I suggest that the only way to determine if this is really as great as manufacturer suggests and not difficult to use do to user skill, then one would have to learn to cook with this in a controlled setting such as a cooking class where 3 or more of these skillets would be demonstrated by professional cheffs. Even better would be to watch a professional cheff use skillet for the first time. June 28, 2012: Still going strong with skillet; label on lid came off as husband forgot to turn lid right side up when he plugged it in. Beware that you can seriously burn yourself from steam escaping through the lid handle, as it is designed for one to be able to do this. Use a mitten or towel when adjusting steam vent.I love the even heating & the wonderful sturdy quality! I ESPECIALLY love that I can completely immerse the base unit while cleaning it! (As ALWAYS, it's unplugged COMPLETELY before cleaning and/or immersing it into a sink full lf water! I wish that it was larger, round and had a high "domed" lid! I l've owned both square & round electric skillets, one had a "non-stick" surface. I prefer stainless steel, but I sure loved that square skillet with the non-stick cooking surface! I used it until it wasn't usable any more. My next skillet was round, stainless steel that had a large cooking surface and a high domed lid. It had "hot spots", which can be challenging while cooking (especially using very high heat l!) but I REALLY LOVED it! It had a very large cooking surface, it cleaned up easily and always looked brand new! It was stolen from me, which was upsetting because I'd never seen it's equal! I took my time to research finding a replacement with the qualities I was looking for because I use my electric skillets frequently and quality mattered to me! The biggest complaint I have about this one is the size because I cook in volume. For example, when sautéing onions, (which I use in MANY dishes!) I like to make a bunch & freeze a lot for future use. So size DOES matter in some cases, but this skillet has SO MANY AMAZING features I can't help but LOVE it!!! I HIGHLY recommend this electric skillet to all of my friends and everyone reading my review. I hope that my feedback is useful! ?
