This kitchen tragedy sparked (pun not intended) Twitter debates, a drop in stock prices for Newell (the parent company behind Crock-Pot) and dueling t-shirts.
Then Instant Pots started melting. Their Facebook group is filled with images of melted lids and scorched wiring from the Gem 65 model. So what’s a busy family to do?
Introducing HotLogic
The past few weeks I have been testing two products from HotLogic, a company supplying low heat warmers/slow cookers for home, office and commercial use. Using conduction heating (science blah blah…), the HotLogic evenly heats and holds food at 165 degrees, without cold spots, scorched edges or drying out. It can be used with any lidded container made of glass, metal, microwave safe plastic and even cardboard food containers. The company sent me the family size 9×13″ HotLogic and the HotLogic Mini, which is about the size of a lunch box.
In Home Testing
I started slow, first trying the HotLogic for reheating refrigerated and frozen foods. The people at HotLogic say it evenly reheats pizza without leaving cold spots or turning the crust rock hard like a microwave.
As you can see, I took a frozen piece of pizza and added a few frozen boneless wings just for kicks. One hour later I had perfectly heated chicken and pizza. No cold spots, no rock hard or rubbery crust. As previously mentioned, this is a low heat cooker, so you need to plan ahead. Refrigerated leftovers took about 30-45 minutes to warm up, depending on the thickness of the food.
I progressed to cooking full meals like the one below, starting with raw chicken breasts, rice and veggies. I maxed out the capacity of my 9×13″ Pyrex dish cooking for my family of 4 and it was ready in about 3 hours. However, I left it in the HotLogic for 5 hours until we were ready to eat. Our dinner was evenly cooked, no drying, no scorching.
Next I cooked a meal I generally make in my Crock-Pot. This meal has been known to get a little crusty around the edge even with the Crock-Pot on low. I left my Taco Chicken Bake in the HotLogic for 7 hours. At dinner time it was perfect with no overcooked edges.
Office Testing
My husband was excited to test out the HotLogic Mini at work. Bored with the usual sandwich, apple, trail mix lunch he usually packs, he was eager to be my guinea pig. He started with leftovers from our Valentine’s Day date. Using the microwave safe container from the restaurant, he took the Mini to work and plugged it in at his desk. Because the HotLogic zips shut, he did not stink up the office as his food warmed and he had a great lunch waiting for him when he was ready. He has now enjoyed Italian, Chinese and other random leftovers from home. He loves it, co-workers ask about it and he even sends me pics.
The Rebel Chef
I was feeling pretty confident after two weeks of experimenting and decided to go off book and cook something outside the manufacturer recommendations (they say fish and chicken cook the best). I chose and applewood smoked bacon pork loin. Weighing in at almost 24 oz., it was a sizable piece of meat. I considered slicing it down the center to make it cook faster but decided against it in order to really see what the HotLogic could do. I left my pork loin to cook for 7 hours and though a little pink in the middle it was cooked to the USDA recommended temperature for consumption.
HotLogic A+
The HotLogic passes with flying colors. With no dials or settings, low power consumption, easy clean up and perfectly heated food, this one is a no brainer. As someone who works from home it’s not a total game changer for me, but for other families it could be. The full product line for residential and commercial use can be found here. In addition to the family and lunch box size products I tested, HotLogic has some really cool looking warmers for break rooms, hotels, food markets and other commercial settings.
The HotLogic is available online at Myhotlogic.com, Walmart.com and Amazon. The family size costs about $80.00 and the mini is around $40.00.
*That’s Normal was sent the HotLogic in exchange for an honest review.
