Multivarka - smart pan or "not brought to mind" gadget

This post will be useful to anyone who at least sometimes prepares something himself, and also helps or prevents others from doing so.
From it you can find out what kind of gadget it is - a slow cooker , what technical capabilities and impossibilities it has, the interior, exterior, advantages (many) and disadvantages (also many). I'll tell you something about small multi-cook tricks, and also allow myself a general lyrical digression about programming in the kitchen.
The purpose of the post is to tell about the multicookers as a class of objects, without highlighting its representatives, but in order not to talk about the spherical multicooker in a vacuum, I will make a basic example of the analysis of my model - the Panasonic SR-TMJ181.
Those who do not have a multicooker will find out if they need it, but also those who have it, I hope, will not remain without new knowledge.

As wikipedia teaches us, " Multicooker is a multifunctional household kitchen appliance with program control designed to prepare a wide range of dishes in automatic mode ."
Let's narrow this definition and call it a multicooker (MV) device consisting of:

1. Cases with one or several electric heating elements
2. Hermetically closing lid with steam valve
3. Cooking tanks (pans) with non-stick coating
4. Built-in microcontroller to control cooking
5. User interface for managing the previous item.

That is, cooking in a slow cooker takes place at atmospheric pressure - the excess is vented through the valve, so the slow cooker is generally not a “pressure cooker” (rather, a slow cooker). And the only difference between a multicooker and an ordinary electric cooker, which, apparently, due to an oversight of marketers, is not yet called “multiplit”, is the program management for cooking “without supervision”. But before talking about the programs, let's deal with the iron.
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Multicooker ordinary looks like this:

The explanations here are worth only the components: 4 - a collection of condensate flowing from the cover of the MV and 14 - insert for steaming.

Pan

The most trivial component - the pan, it is - the bowl. But here, not everything is trivial. Its volume, indicated by manufacturers, varies from 1.6 to 6 liters, but there is an important nuance - according to the instructions for the Panasonic SR-TMJ181 with 4.5 liter bowl, the maximum volume of soup / compote cooked in it is only 3.1 liters. And rice / porridge will turn out even less - only 1.8 liters.

Find out the latter is possible only with the help of a scale deposited on the wall of the bowl. The scale, by the way, is the only case I know, when the phrase “you can't figure it out without half a liter ” should be taken literally. The manual says nothing about it, but practice shows that to determine the volume poured into the bowl in liters, you must double the reading of the “L” scale (that is, their “half liter” is our liter).
Why is that? It turns out that the multicooker is just a little bit of an improved electric rice cooker , it is under this name that it is sold in the USA, Asia and Europe. For the CIS market it was localized by changing the program and interface, but the bowl was left unchanged, that is, the scale shows how many cups of rice “CUP” (the value of the label on the right) and water (the label on the left) should be used to get the required amount of ready rice in liters (the value of the label on the left).
There are many versions of the scale values ​​in the network, including quite exotic and incorrect ones, and the correct one, and even the linking multivariate rice measure with the size of the samurai's salary and “go”, is located here .

The inner coating of the pan is reduced to one of two and a half types:

The first is simply non-stick. It is made of a mixture of PTFE with polyethylene / polypropylene. Fluoroplast is responsible for non-sticking (anti-adhesive), and polyethylene is needed for technical purposes - for the production of elastic fluoroplastic film. Coatings from different manufacturers are slightly different (the exact composition is a trade secret), but all of them are theoretically harmless to health and fragile. Although, at first glance, the cover of the Panasonic SR-TMJ181 bowl looked so strong that I ignored the advice of experienced multicooker owners to abandon the “native” plastic spoon from the kit and buy a silicone spatula. As a result, after a couple of months of use, my bowl was scratched like a skating rink after a hockey match. Although the burning is not affected.

The second type of coating - ceramics. It is more expensive and much stronger, although experts say that it is not eternal either - it does not scratch, but it will crack with time.
Another possibility is a bowl without any coating at all. It turns out from a bowl with any coating after its full wear. Multicooker manufacturers do not make such bowls, they can be ordered only from third-party companies, and, possibly, “companies” - since I met the only manufacturer of multi-chash - Tomsk “NEK”.

In general, multicooker pans are a consumable item, so a bowl compatibility table from different multicookers can be very useful.

The crock-pot, although, in fact, is a pan, but it is also used as a frying pan - for frying or as a baking dish. In the latter case, the problem arises of extracting the contents without damage and coups. Resourceful CF users place two strips of heat-resistant paper there before filling out the form, and then draw out the finished product for them:

Around the pan.

The multi-cooker case is of two types and resembles either a “thick thermos bottle” or “a dry closet hybrid with a starship control panel”. See for yourself:


Although Redmond advertisers seem to have other associations:



There is always a heater in the bottom of the multicooking cabinet. The Panasonic SR-TMJ18 (1) has another heating element - a silver ribbon located around the bottom of the case. His fragments can be seen in the photo taken with multivarka.ru:



Another heater in the Panasonic SR-TMJ181 is on top - in the lid. But this is not a heater, but rather a “heater”. Its heating temperature does not exceed 50 degrees, so it’s impossible to get a crispy crust on top on cooked dishes. This applies to all models of multicookers without exception - in their covers there is either a very weak heater or just a metal insert to reflect and evenly distribute heat. According to marketers, this is called "3D heating."

Heaters do not work constantly, and periods. They switch to Panasonic with the help of a relay, so that when cooking the multicooker loudly clicks.

And this whole simple system is controlled by a microcontroller based on only the readings of a thermal sensor (thermal sensor) determining the temperature of the bottom of the multicooker bowl. For a more intimate contact between the bottom of the pan and the sensor, a spring-loaded pad is used:



Such a trivial design provides the multicooker with all its automation and causes admiration not only for housewives, but also for householders .

Multicooker electronic filling

Namely, in the multicooker there are automatic, so-called “sensory” programs, in which there is no need to set the cooking time, the device will detect it automatically and complete the program when everything is ready. In the Panasonic SR-TMJ181 this is the program “Pilaf”, “Porridge” and “Buckwheat”, in other models other / additional options are possible, for example, “Omelette” or “Crust” (the lower crust, of course).

The principle of operation in all cases is one - as long as there is enough moisture in the prepared dish, the temperature of the bottom of the bowl does not heat up above 100 degrees Celsius according to the laws of physics. And as soon as the thermal sensor shows a temperature greater than 100, this means complete evaporation of moisture, that is, in fact, the readiness of the dish. Although, in some programs, for example, in “Pilov”, after complete evaporation of moisture, there is still additional browning - in order to get a tasty lower crust.
In addition, the same principle of operation allows the multicooker to handle exceptions, that is, to turn off automatically if, in normal, “non-touch” water-related programs - “Steaming”, “Extinguishing” and so on, all water will boil away.

Do you think this is the well-known Captain O.? But no. For several years now, an article has been going around the network with an alternative explanation of the principle of the multicooker. The author of the article, “a person with an engineering education,” states that

The cylinder at the bottom of the multicooker is a strain gauge, that is, a scale ... After the temperature reaches 100 degrees and water starts boiling, pressure increases between the pan and the lid (which is fixed on the body) and the pan begins to push off from the lid and put more pressure on the scales. Excess pressure is released through a valve on the lid of the pot. The computer (microcontroller) of the device detects this weight and begins to monitor its changes when the croup boils down and free water boils away and goes out through the valve or goes into the croup, steam generation and pressure between the pan and the lid drops, the microcontroller cuts through the scales and the program

Although, in order to refute this theory, it is enough just to put an empty pan in the multicooker - in my model, even an empty pan pushes the spring of the cylinder completely. What are the scales here!

If the engineer is so mistaken, then what can we say about simple programmers users! In responses of owners of multicookers, there are often complaints like " For some reason, almost to the very end, the display does not show the countdown of time in the Buckwheat mode." Now you know why this is happening.

Food programming.

And now let's digress from the gadget in question and look at automatic cooking at home. Although someone believes that cooking is an art, but even if this is so, then it manifests itself only in the creation of new dishes, but in the presence of a well-known recipe, for example,

“Put more tea leaves”

cooking is trivially algorithmized. No wonder the very concept of the algorithm is usually explained to the children in the recipe.

Moreover, if we are talking about the heat treatment of already prepared (washed, chopped and put into the pan) food, the process is not only perfectly programmed, but equally well automatically performed without the participation of human-like robots.

Here is an algorithm covering all the possibilities of automatic cooking:

1. Timer. Turn on at the specified time
2. Take turns cooking from the recipe, sequentially performing each of them:
   - Set one of the following temperature regimes: “Frying” (high t` without a lid, constant mixing of the contents or a single turn in the middle of the process), “Baking” (high t `with a lid and volumetric heating)“ Boiling intense boiling ”,“ Cooking weak boiling ”or“ Quenching ”(t '~ 100' and presumably water), or“ Slowing ”(t ~ 80 'with lid), and so on. in accordance with the full list of food heat treatment methods .
   - Determine the time of completion of the mode automatically - using temperature sensors, weight, resistance, accelerometer (say, determining the degree of egg coolness :)), video camera with product recognition, and so; or manually, if specified by the program.
3. Switch to heating mode or switch off according to user settings.

As you can see, everything is quite realistic and feasible, perhaps, with the exception of the accelerometer and the video camera (and this is not so fantastic), and, as experience with the use of a multicooker shows, in most cases the existing temperature sensor is sufficient.

But, at the same time, so far there is not a single model of universal kitchen appliances, which could be called really “programmable” and “automatic”. Of course, some things are realized. For example, advanced microwave ovens not only have “embedded programs” from several steps using sensors, but also are able to memorize new recipes. Only recipes are exclusively one-step, that is, this is, in fact, not a program, but simply memorizing a set of parameters cooking
Oddly enough, bread machines came closest to the programmable technology. Some of them can not only knead the dough on their own, switch on the timer and execute pre-installed programs, but also allow you to create your own from a dozen steps (!), Setting the time for several consecutive batches and pauses between them, baking stages and heating the finished bread. But the bread maker is a very specific device, and we are talking about the universal, so that - by.

But on the basis of the multicooker, it would be possible to create a truly universal kitchen gadget that is in demand not only from geeks and programmers, but from all of humanity eating. This requires minimal changes in the periphery — say, adding sensors, an agitator, or a real heater on top .... but the main changes must be in the program part.

Multivarka - what is good and what is bad.

The interface of most MW models is very similar and gives a good example of how you never need to make interfaces.



The “Menu” button goes through the multicooker modes “in a circle” in one direction, so that if you missed the right one, you will have to go to the second run, that is, the Panasonic SR-TMJ181 has 9 more (!) Clicks of the “Menu”. And it's very easy to miss, because the only designation of the selected mode is a miniature black triangle on the display, which, moreover, is offset from the mode marker.
In manual modes, you will find the “Cooking time” button, which also runs around the times available for this mode. Moreover, the order of these times is set by the manufacturer, starting with the most popular in his opinion. For example, in the "Baking" mode, the sequence of times looks like "40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 20, 25, 30, 35". Slip? It does not matter, only 9 clicks and you are at the goal.
But this is nothing compared to the fact that other times are not available at all. Those. neither a half hour nor 15 minutes bake impossible.

The device, like - "automatic", and in many cases it is impossible to move away from it - either it does not prevent or burn.

The latter, by the way, is very important for MW Panasonic, since they do not have the “Frying” mode, and instead for a frequent operation - a short pre-fry, the components of the soup or pilaf use “Baking”, but the inability to set an arbitrary cooking time in various modes suffers and owners of other models.



Another MW problem is the inability to set the delayed start timer for some modes. That is, the producers of Panasonic SR-TMJ181 decided for the users that you can cook porridge, rice and buckwheat at a convenient time for you, but you can’t soup or potato stew. It is interesting, by the way, that different manufacturers have a different opinion on this matter. For example, the producers of MV Redmond do not allow postponing the preparation of porridge "for later".

And, finally, in Panasonic, as in all multicookers of other manufacturers, with the exception of a pair of models (one at Redmond and one at Brand), it is impossible to turn off the forced switch to heating mode after the end of cooking. “Heating” is a convenient function, but in many cases unnecessary — for example, when brawn or compote is cooked, you want to cool them quickly. And the taste of many dishes after many hours of heating does not change for the better.
To combat useless heating and waste of electricity, advanced MW users use mechanical or electronic external timers, which are inserted into the socket and simply disconnect the multicooker from the network after a specified period of time. Such timers worth 200-300r are produced by IKEA and Chinese craftsmen:


Panasonic does not have the ability to set its own cooking mode. Such an opportunity exists, for example, in the top Redmond or Polaris models, but it is limited to one step, that is, by setting the temperature and cooking time. In reality, no model is capable of programming in several successive steps with different parameters.

In general, worse than the MB interface — only software limiting its capabilities. And worse restrictions - only documentation for multicookers.

All data on the parameters of the modes are secret and are protected by manufacturers in much the same way as the source code of Windows. Not only exact parameters are not given, but even approximate ones.
A typical example of the description of the official instructions to the CF -

"Mode" buckwheat "is intended for cooking buckwheat"

and not a word more.

Perhaps this is done so that these parameters can be changed with impunity, and maybe to hide the fact that the variety of cooking modes in modern CF models is just a marketing ploy, but in fact they are almost the same.
Although, sometimes Stirlitz happen punctures. Thus, in the instruction manual for the Panasonic SR-TMJ181, a summary table of technical characteristics gives out “The maximum temperature of the multicooker is 180 degrees”, which clearly indicates the temperature of the “Baking” mode in this device - it is the hottest. But, basically, information about the temperature regimes of the MW must be obtained independently - with the help of a culinary thermometer.
UPD. After writing the article, I learned that a programmable multicooker exists - MB “Brand 502” not only does not hide the data on the built-in cooking modes, but also allows you to program up to five consecutive steps manually! But this is the only exception in the world that does not change the overall situation.


The recipes attached to the MB (as part of the manual or in a separate booklet) can be compared with the demo or usage examples provided with some SDK. And they have the same problems as the demos / samples. Namely, sometimes the SDK code is updated, but examples are not. Well, bugs happen, where do without them. In the case of the Panasonic SR-TMJ181 multicooker, the recipes are clearly taken from the previous version of the product - they are encouraged to cook the soup in any mode except for the “Soup” mode debuted on this model. And following the regular rice porridge recipe gives the output is not viscous porridge, and dry burnt rice.

Therefore, recipes for CF are best searched online in specialized forums for a specific CF model - there they were accurately tested in public :) And if you want a cookbook, then multivarka.ru makes a periodic selection of the best recipes in the form of a pdf file. Here, for example version 2011 .

Summary.

When should I buy a slow cooker?

• In the absence of (good) stove with an oven, for example, in the country or a rented apartment.
• If you need a morning "porridge in bed" (just make sure that a particular multicooker supports this mode)
• If you have the experience of burning forgotten pans on the included stove. Multivarka will not allow this.
• If you want to buy a new pan, and in the kitchen there is too much space for a slow cooker

When can you think about buying a multicooker?

• If you have a curious baby in the house who has access to the kitchen. Multivarka much safer stove with pots
• If you have a child younger schoolboy. Teaching him to cook in CF is easy and safe, and the result can be interesting.

When will not the multicooker help you?

• If you want to cook everything quickly. Competition in speed, of course, wins the microwave, in the second place stove, MV lags behind.
• If you have a studio apartment and you hope to save it from the unpleasant smell when cooking, say, dishes with onions. Will not work
• If you are not given cooking on a conventional kitchen appliance, then you should not expect culinary miracles from the multicooker. Something in MV will turn out better, something worse than on the stove \ in the oven, but, in general, the result will be similar.

And if you want exactly fully automatic cooking without supervision, then you should not hope for a slow cooker. You should wait a little longer and wait for the new advanced version of these devices to appear - with the possibility of programming, additional sensors and a good processor. I wonder if it will ever be possible to write in the blog of our company the news about the exit of kitchen appliances from Intel inside?