Non-stick pot: Microstoven
by Maxwell & Williams
category: gadget, author:Agamedes
bought in 2010, lasted till 2011Agamedes' opinion: 3 out of 10: So bad it's embarrassing
About eighteen months ago we were given a present, a Maxwell & Williams non-stick cook-pot.A beautiful pot with a clever name: Microstoven... Microstoven... get it? MICROwave + STOVE + OVEN... Clever, eh?
Here's the label from the bottom of the pot:
The pot feels great. Light and smooth. A pleasure to work with. And non-stick, the label says so.
There is more information on that label. A series of icons:
Hmmm... Not as clear as I had hoped. Anyway...
The label says, "Non-stick". The pot is non-stick. Very good!
The label says, "Suitable for Microwave Stove Oven". Excellent -- if you believe it. The icons are specific though -- like many icons -- open to interpretation. Here is my interpretation, from left to right:
- Safe in a microwave
- Safe on an electric stove
- Safe to use in an oven
- Save to use on a gas stove
- Waterproof or, perhaps, safe to use for storing bulbs.
Eighteen months ago we were given a present of a Maxwell & Williams non-stick Microstoven cook-pot. After the second or third use -- as the pot was being put back in the cupboard -- the lid broke.
Have a look at the photo below, of the replacement pot in all its current glory. See the lid, to the right of photo? See the knob on the lid? Imagine that knob just falling off... That's what happened.
Barely out of its wrapper. Hardly been used. The lid broke.
We returned the pot. We were given a replacement pot. The pot in the photo is just over twelve months old. New. Shiny. Broken.
Did you notice the base of the pot? Yeeesssss... You can see right through the base of the pot. The base of the pot is between the lid and the rest of the pot. It has fallen off.
How did we manage to break this magnificent example of the product marketer's art? We used it...
Yes, we dared to actually use this piece of rubbish. We used this cook-pot for cooking.
I almost wrote, "this very expensive piece of rubbish." But I'd only be guessing. I know who gave us the present, I know their tastes. But it was a present. So I don't know the price.
So. We actually dared to use this piece of rubbish for cooking. Imagine, cooking with a cook-pot! Silly us.
The cook-pot survived the cooking experience! Which was lucky, really. Can you imagine how we would feel if the bottom had fallen out of the pot while it was full of dinner!
So how did it break?!
After cooking, after dinner, I washed the pot. By hand.
And the base fell off as I lifted the pot out of the washing-up water.
What a crock of... useless rubbish.
Now you're wondering, What did I say to the shop owner when I returned this rubbish?!
Nothing.
What would I demand if I returned this broken pot? A replacement pot? No way!
Two in a row, quickly failed.
There is no way that I would take a replacement Maxwell & Williams pot. So why bother.
In Coles we spent $5 on a small cook-pot. It comes with all sorts of warnings, how not to use it. So what...
The $5 pot from Coles has, so far, successfully cooked more hot meals than the first "Microstoven" rubbish pot. Another few meals and it will have out-cooked the replacement.
Bring on the five dollar pot from Coles!
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18 comments:
Couldn't agree more. My pot has started cracking and it's only been used twice! The Microstoven pots are a load of crap.
That's interesting... Ours showed no signs of cracking, they just broke suddenly, at points of weakness: where the knob connects to the lid and around the base where it bends up.
M&W have responded to my comments with a replacement set -- more than just a pot -- in the "White Basics" style. I'll be able to update this post in a few months, with a review of White Basics.
(Bear in mind that I'm a typical consumer. If there is no new review -- read that as a good review!)
I, along with 499 others, have just won one of the pots plus a baking dish from the Heart and Stroke lottery. I appreciate the heads up so I won't be surprised when the pot falls apart. I will make sure I am not using it for something with oil as I have a gas stove/oven...don't need to burn down my house using this product!
Agreed. Our Microstoven was sitting on the stovetop (electric) for under 5 minutes on high heat and exploded in my partner's face. Not only poor quality, but on this occasion volatile and dangerous. Wrote a complaint to Maxwell & Williams and they did not believe us.
Shocking really.....I thought they were a great idea as a lot of recipes I have been reading call for an ovenproof frypan... I gave one to my nephew for a engagement present, then purchased one for myself. Alas, within 5 min on medium heat on the stove, it cracked and broke apart across the centre of the base. First time I used it, too! Now I will have to warn my nephew before his one cracks up :/
OMG, so glad I found this before paying $60USD for their lasagne pan.
Hi. Did anyone else have a problem with a chemical smell coming from the pot? After a few uses I notice a bad chemical like smell. As if the nonstick coating is coming away with each wash. I still have one microstoven in the box unused but no receipt.
I have 2 of the rounds pots with lids and the lasagne dish and have used them for over a year in the oven and microwave many times. I have not used on the cook top. I think they are great and love how easy they are to clean. I will, however, be hesitant in using on the stove top following reading this review.
Our replacement "White Basics" set is still going strong, after nearly two years, no problems. Though we only use the tableware not the ovenware. And microwave heating but not stove nor oven.
And the $5 cookpot from Coles is also going strong -- through many oven bakes -- but never on a stove top.
Thank you for all your comments :-)
I have the lasagne dish, a small pot as well as a humongous one.
The one handle broke off my big pot when one of the kids unpacked the dishwasher (made me rethink child labour), I just stuck it back with superglue and hoped for the best.
Is is holding.
I have used the pot to make stews, venison pies, oven roasts, and a 5 hour corned beef on the stove.
The only problem that I had was that the pot seems to absorb smells, especially the long cooking meals like the venison. Other than that, really no complaints.
You said it.
It exploded.
And I was using it at 180*C.
We have had a square and rectangular baking dishes for 6 or 7 years and they get used 2 or 3 times every week with no problems at all. Plus I have 8 ramekins which have been used extensively for making small pies, again no problems.
Nine years later... The free set of crockery provided by m&w is still working. No breakages, no problems. Perhaps our first two pots were from a bad batch. Or crockery does not have the same weak points as a pot. Maybe the base and lid-knob of a round pot is inherently a weak point.
No problems with the replacement set. The set with no round pots and no knobs on lids.
The $5 rectangular pot (dish) from Coles is also still unbroken. And still in regular use.
Thanks for all your comments :-)
I’m not sure which pot I have been gifted. The old one or the newer version. I’m thinking the older one would be the problem?
. Also I cannot find anywhere if it’s dishwasher safe.
If you ever read instructions
For targine, or a recipe for Moroccan chicken, beef or whatever you want to cook,you would use it correctly. It is for slow cooking, e.g. simmering on low heat.I have used one for 4 years ,2to 3 times a week and it is fantastic. It is not a fry pan or barbecue plate.
That's great, I'm glad your pot works for you.
As I wrote: our pot -- the one where the base fell off -- broke in the washing up. Washing up by hand. I don't remember the instructions but I doubt that they included, "Do not wash."
Perhaps we had a bad run of pots, two in a row that failed.
Still, I'm glad that yours is good.
I have had the Maxwell Williams Microstoven line since 2011. I use them for baking casseroles in the lidded dutch oven, cooked puddings in the ramekins, fritattas in the 4 sided "brownie pans", souffles in the souffle dish, and pies in the pie dish. I have put them in the dishwasher successfully although the instructions say to hand wash. I think the mistake is not that the cookware is defective. However, the mistake is in the instructions. I do not use these dishes to fry in or use on the stove top with oil or boiling liquids. I do not microwave these dishes. They are not metal nor glass but white clay as seen by the footing on their undersides. I think that if MW had sold these as baking dishes the line would have been a hit... but to say that the dishes can do all the things on the bottom label was say, wishful and misleading in their instructions. Nonetheless, I love my Microstoven for the easy cleanup and my oven cooking results. In fact I was looking for more when I came across this post. I am sorry that this was a bad experience for so many...But now I understand why Microstoven was discontinued. Regards everyone.
Thanks for your comment.
It does show a problem with internet reviews: I had trouble with a product in 2011 -- and the problem is still visible ten years later.
My one bad experience is there forever. Did the problem apply to earlier pots? to pots from a different production run? Was it caused by our use -- following the instructions -- of the pot?
Ten years on... I still avoid the brand. I am glad that other people have had much better experiences.
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