Crayfish in the Thermomix Varoma

Yes, you can and yes you SHOULD try cooking your crayfish in the varoma of your Thermomix. We will never cook our crayfish any other way again, perhaps apart from on the BBQ, but never again in a pot on the stove.

I posted about this on my Facebook page around 2 years ago and every time I repost it I get lots of interest so I thought I better blog it to refer people to easily.


CRAYFISH STEAMED IN THE THERMOMIX VAROMA

2 crayfish tails, size doesn't matter, just as long as they fit
pre-made garlic butter, salt and pepper

Steam for approximately 20 minutes, varoma temp, speed 1 until meat is no longer translucent. Steaming time will depend on the size/weight/thickness of the tails so will need to be adjusted. Just watch for the colour change through the lid.

A few people have queried if you need to remove the meat from the shell before steaming. We don't, we find it comes out quite easily once cooked.

You can make some wonderful sauces to go with your crayfish, the possibilites are endless. We prefer the garlic butter to appreciate the taste of the meat.

Hope you try it!! Wouldn't it be a perfect Aussie Christmas dish?

Nat's Easy Varoma Shepherd's Pie

My Easy Varoma Shepherd's Pie

I'm always looking for ways to cut the cooking time and use my varoma at the same time, so I prefer to cook our Shepherd's Pie with the potatoes steaming ready for mashing at the same time that the meat mixture is cooking.

This is our version that we cook. Its enough for 5 of us and we usually have second serves! It is very adaptable to what ingredients you have and flavours you like. Think of it more as a technique than a recipe as such. Potato quantity is based on TM31, you can fit more in with Thermomix 5.

It is not a 20 minute meal, but all good things come to those who wait! This will take around 1 hr 15 mins. Can be prepared during the day and reheated/cooked at dinner time. Freezes well.

INGREDIENTS 1 onion 1 garlic clove 2 carrots a few sprigs of fresh herbs such as parsley, rosemary, oregano, or 1 ts dried 30g olive oil 1 tin (400g) tomatoes 100g water 8-10 medium-large potatoes (around 1.3kg) 2 Tb TM veggie stock paste concentrate 30g worcestershire or oyster sauce 1 Tb tomato paste 150g cheese, cut in 2cm pieces 40g butter (optional) 500g steak (partially frozen and 2cm cubes) or pre-minced. You can use more, just see TIPS below optional: 1 tin of drained and rinsed lentils (this bulks out your meal)

PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS Grate cheese 5 sec speed 6. Set aside, wash and dry bowl If using steak, mince for 10 sec, speed 6 (best to partially freeze for 20 mins) and set aside Chop onion, herbs, carrot and garlic for 5 sec, speed 5. Scrape down Add oil and tomatoes and cook 18 mins, Varoma, speed 2, without MC (Set varoma dish on top and start dicing potatoes, adding to varoma dish as you go and as the sauce is heating up) Remove varoma lid and slide under dish and set aside Put lid on mixing bowl, reset timer for 38 minutes, reverse, speed soft While blades are turning (without MC and varoma in place) slowly add mince mixture through the opening in the lid, then add all other ingredients (stock, paste, water, sauce) Put a large sized casserole dish in the oven to heat up At end of cooking time, transfer meat mixture to casserole dish If using lentils, mix them into the meat mixture in the casserole dish with a fork Transfer potatoes from varoma to TM bowl and mash (with optional butter) for 20-30 seconds, speed 6, using spatula through the lid to mix. (no butterfly used) Pour mashed potato on top of meat mixture and spread evenly Add grated cheese and cook on 200c for 15-20 mins or until cheese is golden  Tips Keep in mind if you add more meat/veggies to the meat mixture you may need to increase the water/liquid volume so that it doesn't stick to the bottom due to the longer cooking time and liquid required for steaming the potatoes.

DISCLAIMER
This recipe was provided to you by a Thermomix ® customer and has not been tested by Vorwerk Thermomix ® or Thermomix ® in Australia and New Zealand.
Vorwerk Thermomix ® and Thermomix ® in Australia and New Zealand assume no liability, particularly in terms of ingredient quantities used and success of the recipes.
Please observe the safety instructions in the Thermomix ® instruction manual at all times.

Thermomix Tikka Paste

Ohhh the smell of this tikka paste is incredible! I think I should have asked a friend to make a batch of another paste and done a jar swap. Do you ever do that?

Who knows what to do with Tikka Paste?  

One of our favourites is Tikka Salmon and Veggies done in the Varoma. We also love making a cheat's version of the Chicken in Yoghurt recipe from the Indian cookbook, by stirring 3-4 tablespoons of the tikka paste into the yoghurt and cooking as per rest of recipe. Such a quick tasty meal!

I also asked the question on my Facebook Page and this is what we came up with

• Bombay potatoes - par boil potatoes, in a bowl,mix couple tbsp each of tikka paste, mango chutney, olive oil - coat potatoes, place on baking tray, sprinkle with sea salt, finish off in oven until cooked. (Thanks Ali!)
• Chicken Tikka Masala
• use small pieces of chicken and cook up the Tikka Masala, then once cooled use in sandwiches
• Butter Chicken
• marinate chicken, fish or meat to bbq 
• add to fish cakes
• flavour meat for curry puffs
• add to meat for spicy sausage rolls
• marinate a lamb shoulder then cook in slow cooker
• add to pumpkin soup

Would love to see you making some of this up and posting your creations on my page!

Using your Varoma Pt 4 | Tikka Salmon and Veggies

You've got to get your varoma out, people!!! Cooking in the varoma on a hot day doesn't heat up the house, and you can get a "one pot meal" on the table with less washing up. 

I've just cooked us some salmon with tikka paste, steamed baby potatoes, asparagus and carrot. So easy!

Start with some baby potatoes in your varoma basket, with 500g of water underneath. I had 1/2 kg of potatoes, I could have fit twice that in there.

Put your potatoes on Varoma temp, 15 minutes, speed 2. Put your MC on top for now.

While your potatoes are cooking, smear 2 teaspoons of home-made Tikka Paste on top of your salmon fillets. Tikka Paste recipe is also found in the Fast & Easy Indian Cooking recipe book. It goes a long way!

Leave a gap in between them for your veggies later if you are only cooking for 1-2 people. 

If you are cooking for more, fill your top tray with salmon fillets, and you can use underneath the tray of the varoma for your veggies later.

Then prep your veggies. Use any veggies you like! I had asparagus and tagliatelle carrots (shaved with a peeler) as they took the same amount of cooking time (5 minutes)

When potatoes have finished after 15 minutes, set your Varoma in place with just the salmon in. 

Set on Varoma temp, 12 minutes, speed 2. (No veggies in at this stage)

When timer goes off, add your veggies for 5 minutes (set timer again...Varoma temp, 5 minutes, speed 2)

Then enjoy your perfectly cooked salmon and tell yourself once again "how amazing is this Thermomix?"!!

TIPS:

• Use any kind of paste or marinade on your salmon instead
• Alternatively, make a sauce first, keep it warm while you make the rest of the recipe. No need to wash your bowl...just go straight onto the steaming part.
• You could tip your potatoes back into the TM bowl and mash them instead, with a little butter and seasoning, after cooking and draining.
• Swap potatoes for quinoa or rice (just alter cooking time

Let me know if you try it, on my Facebook page

Want more Varoma tips? Try here

What do you do with lots of eggs and a Thermomix?

image via Pinterest

One of my friends has 4 little chooks who are supplying her with PLENTY of eggs! Lucky lady huh? She asked on my Facebook page: 

"So..... Say you had HEAPS of fresh eggs, besides quiche, what would you make?"

We came up with this list, what would you add?

• my favourite whole egg mayonnaise recipe by the Thermosisters - No fail, No fuss, No butterfly mayonnaise 
• good old boiled eggs recipe from the EDC
• Creme brûlée
• Bachelor Baked Beans with steamed eggs
• zuchini slice
• lemon butter
• mini quiches cooked in muffin tray and freeze for kids lunches
• use yolks for egg liqueur
• use whites for pavlova
• whites for macaroons - the coconut ones, not macarons
• use whites in fruity dream
• poached eggs with hollandaise
• The best rice pudding recipe
• whites in meringues
• yolks only in custards, use extra yolks for a richer and thicker custard
• Scrambled eggs and omelettes
• curried egg
• devilled eggs
• egg added to your pizza toppings (try it!!)
• lemon meringue pie
• egg rolls (thin crepey omelettes, rolls up like sandwich wraps)
• icecream
• sous vide eggs - sometimes called '60 minute eggs' for the ultra-patient people and if you feel like being 'cheffy'
• I could go on and on...

Tips

• whites freeze really well
• some egg white only tips and recipes on my previous post here
• keep your eggshells and use them in the garden - see here

Can you add to the list?

Scrambled Eggs & Omelettes in your Thermomix

This post got a lot of interest on my Facebook page!
Have you tried scrambled eggs this way? 

• Line your top varoma tray with wet baking paper.
• Crack eggs directly onto the paper and whisk lightly with a fork
• Cook on Varoma temp, speed 2 for 10 minutes (from boiling) or until eggs are cooked. Every 2-3 minutes carefully remove the lid and give a stir.

The best part is, no washing up!!! Just peel he paper off carefully and throw away.


You can also use this technique to make omelettes.

Omelette cooking in the varoma...fold the baking paper in half to 'flip' the omelette.

I am passionate about getting people using the Varoma. Pull it out of the cupboard and start experimenting. Perhaps start with some eggs...then drop me a line on my page and let me know how you went

Oranges and Thermomix Pt 2

I love being able to whip up a marinade in the Thermomix, not wash the bowl and use some of that flavour to steam my meat or fish.

This one is another recipe just like that.

Orange & Poppyseed Glazed Varoma Chicken

Ingredients

Glaze

60 g orange juice
100 g honey
25 g balsamic vinegar
25 g Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp citrus salt and pepper rub, (see my recipe, or use regular salt)
1/2 tsp poppyseeds

Chicken

400 g chicken tenderloins

1000 g boiling water

basmati rice, 200-400g

Preparation

1.

Add all ingredients (except poppyseeds) to TM bowl and cook for 10 minutes, Varoma, speed 2. 

2.

Scrape contents into a glass or metal bowl, add poppyseeds and allow to cool in the fridge or freezer for 15-20 minutes

3.

Put chicken tenderloins in a shallow dish and top with glaze and allow to marinade, covered in fridge, for as long as possible. You can skip the marinade waiting time if you don't have enough time, but it will taste better if you can.

4.

Fill TM bowl with 1L of boiling water
(no need to wash after the sauce)

Add rinsed rice to basket and put in TM bowl
Set chicken pieces on top varoma tray and place into position. Cook for 22 minutes, varoma temp, speed 2.

Alternatively serve with steamed quinoa, or some cous cous

Tip

You could try serving this with my Orange & Apple Cous Cous recipe and some steamed vegetabes too. Steam vegetables of choice with the chicken, in the bottom half of your varoma at the same time. Carrots go great with this as they get some of the sticky glaze on them during the steaming.

You can use this glaze as a marinade for chicken drumsticks, cooked in the oven, or on salmon steamed in the varoma

Orange & Apple Cous Cous: http://www.recipecommunity.com.au/recipes/orange-apple-cous-cous/110554

Citrus salt & pepper rub: http://www.recipecommunity.com.au/recipes/orange-salt-pepper-rub/110489

Cooking Mince in your Thermomix

One of the common questions I get is 'how do I cook mince in the Thermomix?'. My answer is usually 'don't use store-made mince anymore', try and make your own and see the difference. But there will be times when you need to just cook a quick meal with what you have...store mince!

For those of you who like the "lumpy bits" to stay in your mince when you make spag bol, have you tried it this way? 

Mince in the varoma, sauce and pasta cooking underneath at the same time. Just stir the cooked mince through at the end.

Means you can cook HEAPS more too, great for bigger families.

"I Love Your Cauliflower Cheese Bake" recipe | Thermomix Varoma Recipe

I know this seems quite a simple dish that probably doesn't require a recipe....but when I post pictures of things like this on my Facebook page everyone starts to ask me for the recipe, so I am guessing some of you would like to know how?


Ingredients
1 whole cauliflower, cut into pieces
3 slices of bread or breadcrumbs pre-made in your TM
500g milk
50g flour
50g butter, diced
1/2 ts salt (optional)
100g cheddar cheese cut into small chunks
500g water for steaming

Method

Preheat oven to 220c. You can put a large rectangular casserole dish in to warm up with the oven at the same time

Place bread and 40g of cheese into TM bowl and grate for 5-10 seconds, speed 6. Set aside. No need to wash TM bowl
Add 500g of water, put cauliflower pieces in Varoma, set in place and cook on Varoma temp, 20 minutes, speed 2
When cooked, set varoma aside with the cauliflower still inside and lid still on to keep warm (you can sit the varoma on top of your round Thermoserver if you like) and empty water out of TM bowl (no need to wash)
Add milk, flour, butter and salt if using to TM bowl, cook on 90c for 7 minutes, speed 4
For the last minute of cooking time, stop Thermomix, add in the remaining cheese chunks and mix at speed 7 for 10 seconds, then drop down to speed 3 until timer finishes
Put cooked cauliflower in casserole dish
Pour cheese sauce over the top
Top with cheese and breadcrumb mixture
Bake on 220c for 15-20 minutes or until golden. Alternatively you can just brown the cheese and breadcrumbs under the grill until golden

You could also do this with half cauliflower, half brocoli, or with any other veggies you like

Using your Varoma pt 2 | Mexican Style Chicken 'Baked' Potatoes

{ Chilli Chicken and Beans 'Baked Potatoes' }

LOVE MY VAROMA and THERMOSERVERS!!

I steamed baby potatoes and 3 chicken breasts at the same time while prepping my chilli ingredients, grated cheese then shredded the chicken and set it aside in the Thermoserver to keep warm with the potatoes while my chilli sauce cooked for 13 minutes, add chicken back in, stir through and another meal is done. 

Served with baby potatoes, sour cream, grated cheese and sliced avocado

The finished result was amazing!!

Recipe was adapted from the White Chilli Chicken recipe in Meat on the Menu

Using your Varoma pt 1 | Thermomix recipes and uses

Varoma! There...I said it. It's not scary!!

So why do I hear of so many owners not using their Varoma? Get it OUT of the cupboard (God forbid, the box!) and plan to use it at least twice a week. 

I am hoping some of these suggestions below might make you think outside the square a little when it comes to using your Varoma. Its not just for chicken, fish and vegies.

For the newbies... a general rule of thumb is 1/2L of liquid steams for 1/2 hr. 

If you need more info do contact your consultant, they are always happy to help!

Steaming in foil parcels
This had 2 salmon steaks in, underneath were my veggies and rice steaming steaming in the basket with coconut cream, garlic and spring onions.

Chicken thigh fillets stuffed with spring onion and sundried tomato and seasoned

These steam above my potatoes in the basket, some broccoli in the bottom of the varoma. I mash the potato after steaming them with some of the liquid. Steam with veggie stock. 

Cheat's 'Fried Eggs'

I love cooking my eggs like this now. No fat and no cleaning up! Just wet some baking paper and line the top of the varoma. Easy to do omelettes and scrambled eggs this way too. You can even put your egg rings on top if you want nice round ones.

Layered Cooking

The below three photos show you how to layer in your Varoma and TM bowl and cook 

more than one thing at a time.

Water with Chicken Stock

Greens steaming in the top tray

Seasoned Chicken Thigh pieces in the bottom half of the Varoma

Potatoes in the basket

Easy Peasy Garlic & Soy Chicken and Rice

find my recipe here

Make marinade for steamed chicken and rice in the TM bowl, then put in diced chicken on reverse speed 1 for 5 seconds to coat in the marinade. Then entire TM bowl goes in the fridge until dinner time to let the chicken marinate. When ready to cook, drop the chicken into the Varoma, leave the bowl UNWASHED and fill up to 500g of water and use this flavoured water to cook rice and chicken at the same time. 

Extra flavour and NO WASHING UP!

 All done! Super easy and tastiest rice ever!!

Reheating leftovers

Reheating the above meal the next day...don't use your microwave, they dry things out and toughen up your meat. Use your Varoma steam to reheat

Or reheat inside the Varoma in a glass dish

Chicken & Chorizo Sausages

Make the mince, shape into sausages and steam them in the Varoma. Have some veggies or potatoes cooking in the basket at the same time for a quick all in one meal.

Mini Quiches without the Oven

These were mixed in the TM bowl, then spooned into this Tuppware silicon mould that perfectly fits the Varoma, and steamed. So quick and easy, and no hot oven on...great for hot weather

Steamed Brie Cheese with Basil Pesto Dressing

recipe here

Words fail me. You simply must try this one

Cooking a whole chicken - the 'Healthy Roast Chicken'

You absolutely MUST try this, the chicken is so moist and tender, and keep the liquid at the end to use as a stock. I squeeze a 1.8-2kg chicken in there, sometimes bigger. If it doesn't fit I just weight the lid down with my dinner plates....instant plate warmer!

recipe here

I will be posting more Varoma tips and recipes over the coming weeks. Stay tuned!! 
If you want to ask a question, find me on my Facebook page

"Bachelor Baked Beans" & Eggs in your Thermomix | Using the Varoma

Baked beans, steamed eggs and spinach. SOOO good! All cooked together in 15 minutes, no stirring of course!

Another great recipe to get your varoma working for you. Recipe below...

"Bachelor Baked Beans", steamed eggs and spinach

Ingredients: 

1 clove garlic

2 spring onions or 1 small brown onion

20g olive oil

1 tin of tomatoes (or equivalent fresh tomatoes)

1 tin of beans of choice (butter, canneloni, kidney, borlotti beans etc)

1 MC of water to rinse tomato juice out of tin and incorporate into recipe

5g balsamic vinegar

eggs

baby spinach leaves

*optional: a few rashers of bacon

Method:

Chop onion and garlic (and bacon if using) speed 6 for 3 seconds

Scrape down, add oil and cook on Varoma for 3 minutes, speed 1

Prepare varoma:

Crack eggs into silicon cupcake moulds and put them in the bottom and top tray of varoma

Add tomatoes and beans to TM bowl, cook on Varoma temp, 7 minutes, reverse speed soft

When timer finishes, set varoma in place and cook eggs on Varoma temp, 7-10 minutes, reverse speed soft

(adjust cooking time here to suit how you like your eggs)

Add a few handfuls of baby spinach leaves around the eggs for the final 5 minutes

When cooking time finishes add the 5g of balsamic vinegar and mix 3 seconds, reverse speed 1

Recipe could easily be doubled with increased cooking time at the beginning to reduce down the sauce for the beans.