- Use a steamer primarily for vegetables – most take 10 – 15 mins but meat or fish when steamed have a more delicate flavour and are tender and moist
- Whilst steaming vegetables you can boil new potatoes, but cut them quite small so they are ready in 10 – 15 mins. Or you can boil chunks of sweet potato and carrot underneath for mashing, again make sure they are finely chopped to ensure they are soft enough.
- You can cook rice under vegetables in stock, and the beauty is that any vitamins and flavour from the vegetables will seep into the rice.
- You can also cook pasta under easy cook vegetables such as courgette as this takes around 10 mins if dried.
- Another idea is mini corn on the cob which take around 10 mins in the bottom of the steamer.
- Use the top layer of the steamer can be used for vegetables that don’t take as long e.g. asparagus which only needs around 5 mins, and you could cook noodles underneath which only need the same time. Or you could boil eggs which need 5-7 mins.
- Fish or prawns are best cooked in the lower tier of the steamer and will need at least 10 mins. Chicken can also be steamed if you want it tender and not dry, again cut into small pieces and put some herbs with it. I would always cook fish or chicken under the vegetables in the lower tier so that you don’t have raw juices dropping on the veg. Any juices that drop into the water will instantly cooked at high temperature.
