Great product! I have to admit, I'm addicted to kitchen appliances. I love 'em! What separates the Ronco Rotisserie from the others is that I actually use it and use it often.
I purchased mine after seeing the infomercial. To my delight and surprise, it was presented accurately. This makes roasting a breeze, clean up a snap and the results are mouth watering.
For a while, I used it to only roast chicken. As a single, working mother, I'd roast two at a time, intending to use the cooked chicken for chicken salads, Cordon Bleu, curries, sandwiches, etc. throughout the week. Since then, I've cooked just about everything, my favorite now being roast beef. (Marinate the roast in beer overnight, then make a rub with seasoned salt and rosemary, apply liberally. Delicious!)
My included flavor injector doesn't work well, so I don't use it. I've tried injecting lime juice under my chicken's skins and the juice pours out of the injector before I have inserted it into the meat. This may be a defective injector, but I thought it worth mentioning to other consumers.
Also, I have attempted to use the "steamer" located on top of the Rotisserie. The "steamer", in actuality is just a pan which is warmed solely from the heat that the unit emits. Thus, I cannot control its heat and my vegetables have come out too soft for my preference.
Having mentioned heat, I must state that this unit gets HOT. PLEASE use with caution! Unlike the slogan repeated on the informercial, you really cannot "set it and forget it". You MUST monitor your Showtime Rotisserie. There is even a warning upon the window to this effect.
As pleased as I was with my Rotisserie, I recommended it to my sister. We'd both used ours to cook Thanksgiving turkeys. Apparently, she had not trimmed down or tied her wings tightly (you do not have to buy extra meat ties [over priced] from Ronco or inexpensively from your meat market. I use unwaxed, unflavored dental floss with wonderful results). This, combined with the fact that the fat really does copiously drip into the pan at the base of the unit, resulted in a grease fire. The unit and the turkey were salvaged however.
Finally, I share that one of our local news stations (Washington, D.C.) did an in depth investigation on infomercials. Its purpose was to report if products that the infomercials introduced were as easy, practical and effective as they claimed. Its findings were that the ONLY product that was tested and worked as introduced was the Ronco Showtime Rotisserie.
If you follow directions, monitor your unit and do not become careless because of the ease of its use, you will have excellent results.
After reading all the reviews, I decided to take the plunge. I have used my machine for chops, chicken, ham, roast, and vegetables. To make this an easy to clean appliance, you simply line the drip tray with foil, and spray the grate with non stick spray. I also add water to the drip tray and this eliminates all smoke and adds moisture to the meat. After I finish cooking, I just empty the water out, wipe off the foil lined tray and clean the grate which is very easy to do.The foil lasts through several cookings and cleans up in a snap. I have found this machine to be as easy to clean as a roaster from the conventional oven.As for the inside of the machine, I just wipe it down each time. I can completely clean the Showtime in about 5 minutes. If you like the taste of rotisserie cooked foods, this is certainly a good investment.
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I bought my Showtime a year ago on the recommendation of my sister, who loved hers. I had one of the little vertical Sunbeam rotisseries (about (dollar amount ...)) that I'd used for dozens of chickens. Being vertical, though, makes doing other meats (e.g. hamburgers, fish steaks) impossible.
I must say initially that the packaging and unit are a new hallmark for Ron Popeil and his line of flimsy products. In quality of construction it appears to match most small appliances.
I discovered that rounded or cylindrical meats indeed cook well in the oven, browning beautifully. However, these didn't seem to be superior in any way to the ones I've baked in a conventional oven. Just messier to clean up in this unit.
Using the flat rack was more problematic. If you imagine the rack rotating in the oven, and follow the rack through its motions, you'll see that the meat closer to the rotational axis isn't exposed to the same level of heat as cuts on the outside of the axis. I've had this happen with hamburgers repeatedly, along with salmon steaks. Plus, again I saw no improvement over my broiled experiences.
My biggest problem with the machine is the difficulty cleaning. Grease will tend to spatter and accumulate on the big cogged wheels that go in the machine. The metal interior is not removable in any way, and there really is no way to completely clean. Situated only an inch or so from many meats, the door needs cleaning virtually every time the machine is used; the part of the door where the writing is, is a real mess.
I'm not Howard Hughes, but I can't abide a machine that you can't really clean. My little Sunbeam rotisserie has a metal liner all around the inside that slides out. I live near Houston, the roach capital of the world, and I try to keep all appliances and utensils clean.
I ended up giving this appliance away to an out-of-town friend about a month ago, and haven't missed it at all. . .
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The first weeks after I got the showtime rotisserie, I cooked everything in it that I could think of. Turkey, ham, chickens, fish, pork chops, vegetables, burgers, steaks, hot dogs, etc. I kept thinking that it couldn't be as good as they say it is. But everytime, it exceeded my expectations. It makes the moistest, most flavorful meats, vegetables, fish and poulty that I have ever seen. I even took it to my office for our holiday potluck and cooked the ham right in the office. Everyone loved it. If you like great food that is super easy to cook, get this item. The only thing I had to adjust is on larger meats, I check it with a meat thermometer and have had to cook it a little longer but it still turns out great.
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My Mother ordered a Ronco Rotisserie for my wife and I for last Christmas. We had seen the infomercials but never had an intention of purchasing the ShowTime rotisserie.
To our amazement, every word Ron says is true. It's all true, from how easy it is to prepare a delicious meal in a very short period of time to how easy it is to clean and keep. We have used our ShowTime rotisserie many times to cook roast, prime rid, ribs, chicken pork tenderloin and hamburgers. Each and every meal was wonderfully delicious. The machine is very easy to clean and take care of, and it certainly is not one of the gifts we have received over the years which just sits in a closet waiting for a garage sale.
I have recommended the machine to several of our friends, however, they like we were are very skeptical until they taste the dishes we have prepared on the ShowTime Rotisserie.
It truely sells itself.
I have 2 of these little fans for in our 2 bedrooms in winter. The heat settles at the ceiling because of radiator heat, not forced air. I point the fans up, to the ceiling to move the air across the ceiling and down the walls. These fans are enough to circulate that air so the whole room is equally warm without cooling the air. Thats what we needed.
