On Wed, 25 Apr 2007 21:31:27 -0700, LurfysMa >
magnanimously proffered:

>I want to buy a food steamer. On Amazon and elsewhere I see products
>by Oster, Black & Decker, Richard Simmons, Salton, Toastmaster, Deni
>(stainless steel), Rival, and others.
>
>Are they all more or less the same or are there certain features that
>I should include or avoid?
>
>The Oster 5712 (http://tinyurl.com/yo38pf) seems like a good choice
>and gets good reviews on Amazon.

I've had my stainless steel steamer for almost 40 years and it's still
going strong. No brand that I can tell. Just a simple, round,
stainless-steel contraption with small holes (to let the steam
through). The unit sits on four S/S legs and the leaf-like sides fold
up or down so you can use it with a small saucepan right up to a large
one. It used to have a S/S handle in the middle, but it was always too
hot to handle and got turfed years ago. If I have to remove it from
the saucepan to get to the contents, I use a dish towel.

It's incredibly versatile and since my wife and I sometimes like to
steam different things for a meal, we bought a newer version that
seems to be made of a much thinner gauge of steel. Works though.

>My purpose (at least to start with) is to cook veggies for two, so I
>was inclined to get a smaller unit. But I guess the larger ones can
>easily cook smaller amounts with about the same energy.
>
>I keep reading that steaming is better than some other methods. I
>thought about buying a steam cooking cookbook and maybe I would get
>into more than veggies. Is steaming a good way to cook fish (salmon)?

I don't know. But, frankly, I don't like steaming fish - salmon
included.

>Any suggestions for cookbooks?

Try a health food or natural foods store. Best to test and err on the
side of under-steaming at first. There are few things worse than limp,
wet, over-steamed veges.

>Can these steamers cook rice as well as the rice cookers that are
>designed just for that purpose?

Never attempted to steam rice in a steamer, but they are great for
re-warming leftover rice, baked beans and just about anything that
won't fall through the holes and into the water.