Nutritionist Belinda Rennie looks at a new wave of cooking that is steaming along in Dubai.

With the growth of meal delivery services providing three meals a day to your work or home and take away food the norm for many households, it is heartening to see that home cooking can be accomplished in the time it takes to order and wait for a pizza to be delivered.

Anthie Petrou, distributor for Thermomix in the UAE invited me to come to a cooking class to see how the smallest, smartest kitchen in the world could whip up soup, bread dough, main meals, juices and desserts all using an 11kg machine with a footprint no bigger than a lap top.  Though we followed recipes for each dish, the beauty of the Thermomix says Anthie, “is that it makes everything from scratch with whatever ingredients you have in your cupboard”.

The Thermomix has been available in Dubai for 2 years and judging by the popularity of the cooking class it is making big inroads into Dubai kitchens. Amongst the participants were a contingent from Bahrain and both Oman and Iran have people using the precision, German built Thermomix. Thermomix is hugely popular in Europe and Australia.

I have to confess that I own a Thermomix as I was sold on the nutritional benefit of cooking everything in one pot where the nutrients are retained in the food. It’s so simple to use and easy to clean but I was only using a fraction of the Thermomix’s capabilities. Daily, I blend my juice or smoothie using all the pith, seeds and skin of the fruit maximizing the bioflavonoids, antioxidant and fibre content. Nothing thrown away! And due to its surgical steel blades everything is blended to an ultrafine silky texture. My other favourite is an almond banana smoothie with banana blended with almond milk, nuts and seeds, amaranth and quinoa for a high protein wholefood start to the day.

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My repertoire hasn’t extended much passed mashed potatoes, soups and risottos which can be left while you check your emails with the Thermomix controlling time, heat and speed with little chance of burning as the blades are constantly in motion. What I really needed to find out more about was how to cook a whole meal. Not only does the Thermomix, blend, cook, sauté and knead it also has a unique steaming function called Varoma.

Before I even have time to taste the pesto rolls, kneaded in the Thermomix and baked in the oven, the main course of salmon stuffed with salmon mousse and served with a mango sauce and vegetables is steaming away. The Varoma is a two tier steamer that captures vapour from water simmering in the pot below and cooking fish or chicken at the same time as vegetables, potatoes or rice. The vegetables retain their fresh taste and colour and all nutrients are captured in the liquid below to make the sauce. A whole meal prepared in the one pot, voila’.

As we watched drooling, Anthie and her team threw in helpful tips about using the Thermomix, like throwing some lemongrass in the water whilst steaming to infuse the rice. In less than two hours they conjured up a dinner party menu with pesto bread, spinach and potato soup, two juices, two main courses and dessert with no pots and pans to scour. The fish was delicate and full of flavor and the mango sauce was sublime. Chicken stuffed with mozzarella and vegetables was tender and tasty also steamed to perfection by Varoma.
The cooking classes are designed to exchange new ideas amongst Thermomix owners and motivate us into trying new dishes, especially using the Varoma steam function which combines the healthiest aspects of Asian and European steam cooking traditions. Owners are encouraged to share recipes and keep in touch via a newsletter.  So if you are contemplating buying a steamer high speed blender, juicer, weighing scales, wok or new set of pots and pans don’t clutter your kitchen…think Thermomix.

For more information or a home demonstration contact the Middle East distributor Anthie Petrou on 050-8772795.

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