Home Decor Reviews

I agree with the reviewer about the handle and discoloration. I handle of the steamer is too close to the steamer to grab with a hot pad and too hot to grab with your fingers. I also noticed that when I followed the directions for washing and steaming for the first time, the ink from the blue threads ran a bit.

This is steamer is very nice looking and it does get the job done. I also like how you can add herbs and spices to the water so the flavor and aroma will permiate your food as it's cooking.

My review is for Ming Tsai's "Blue Ginger" branded steamer, but it looks identical except that the rattan lid handle and binding laces are blue.

I'd give it five stars, but for a few things:

The very first time I fired it up for seasoning (on top of a new Blue Ginger wok at that, whose bright blue finish scorched and also discolored its nonstick finish) all the blue rattan lacing bled into the bamboo it was in contact with. Someone's idea of a spash of color apparently didn't think about what steam does to inks and dyes -- hopefully, it's food safe. Luckily, it looks like Target figured this out and now leaves the rattan "natural".

The second problem can only be attributed to quality control: after letting the steamer cool down a bit from its seasoning, I separated the lid and middle section from the bottom. The lid felt a little snug pulling away, but trying to put it back revealed that the inner band of bamboo had warped and bubbled away from the outer band. To remedy the problem, I had to make a cut in the bamboo strip to allow it to nest back onto rest of the steamer.

Another design note: the small loop of rattan on the lid that is supposed to function as a handle gets too hot for bare fingers when steaming and it's too snug to the top for an easy grab using gloves or a hotpad.

This steamer does a great job, and is a good value for the price. About the problem with the handle being too small/too close to the lid: simply slip the handle of a wood spoon through the little loop and use that as your handle. I've seen several chefs do this on TV programs.