Lekue 0200702N07M017 Pasta Cooker, Orange

I have found this to be revolutionary. It is time saving in that there's no waiting for a big pot of water to boil. It's perfect for serving one or two people (but not more than that). It was a bit tricky in the beginning ... wondering how much pasta and how much water to use ... and how long to cook it. But it didn't take too many tries to get it right (and it was definitely worth the initial angst).Here's what worked for me (1500 watt microwave): place any kind of pasta in the bottom, add water to cover by about 3/4 - 1 inch. Attach the lid. Heat on FULL POWER until the water boils. Then reduce power to 80% ... and boil according to timing on pasta box/bag. For us (two people), it takes 8 minutes to boil ... and then about 8 minutes to cook most pastas.Note: When the pasta is boiling at 80%, the boil stops and starts, stops and starts. You think it's going to boil over! But it doesn't.Note: The directions that accompany this wondrous item are ALL for an 800 watt microwave. It will take some minimal math skills (ha ha) to convert/manipulate the timing.

In my effort to make all human tasks easier, I thought "Kevin my boy, we need to streamline pasta cooking!"Obviously my first thought was to buy some sort of pasta making robot. But apparently the Pentagon and NASA are wasting our tax dollars making all kinds of stuff that isn't a pasta making robot. Lame. I'm betting the Japanese have already perfected that technology, but are keeping it all to themselves. Damn them.Well, it isn't a robot. But it is the next best thing. I like my pasta al dente. If you do too, then this thing is for you. Throw some water in. Throw some pasta in. Throw it in the microwave. Go watch 1/3 of an episode of Archer on Netflix. Come back to perfect al dente pasta. The pasta is super hot, but the container insulates sufficiently that you can pick it up with your bare hands. Sweet!Drain well. Remove the lid. If you're feeling lazy, just dump some sauce, or some olive oil and parmessan, right into the container after straining, grab a fork, and dig in. No need to even dirty a plate.Great, but I still want my damn robot. Get to work you lazy Pentagon slackers.

I really wanted to like this. My son loves pasta which I cook in the microwave. To keep it from boiling over I have to stop it frequently and stir it. I thought this product would make the process a bit more hands off.With the Lekue's top dam/reservoir, it's a wonderful idea to allow boil over, contain it and allow it to seep back into the container. The problem is, the shape of the container that the lid goes around, it's not a tight fit and allows for some of the the boil over to seep through the gap between the lid and the container. If they could remedy that, this would be a really excellent product.Also of interest, for dishwasher cleaning there are cavities from the product molding which allows for water build up. When you take it out of the dishwasher, water spills out of those cavities.

I picked this up to cook small meals with when I don't need that large pot of boiling water. Cooked pasta for the first time using the Lekue Pasta Cooker tonight and have to admit I am impressed.I liked the lengthy design to let the spaghetti lay flat. Cook about half a pound in about nine minutes. My daughter was curious what microwave pasta tasted like and I think both of us was surprised that it tasted just like the pasta I would cook in the big pot.My only issue with the Pasta Cooker is the lid. It is very difficult to strain the pasta with this lid design. I would have preferred to have had a lid that latched on. The raised sides of the lid help any froth from spilling over but it's a pain to hold into place to drain any excess water. I'll probably pick up a small strainer because the noodles were a little more on the damp side because it was touch to drain the water off them.All in all, I'm very pleased with the Lekue Pasta Cooker and it will work out just great when I'm cooking for just myself or for me and my daughter.

the good: does an OK job of cooking pasta; if you are in a hurry it is an OK alternative. I Have had this 3 months now and have had to tweak the cooking time and amounts. Basically for a 12 oz package to be cooked decent it takes 20 minutes, with no additives (oil or salt) to the water, it leaks so I put an oval platter underneath it. I fill it 75% full with water and not 2/3 as advised.the bad: it takes multiple tries to get the cooking time and ounces of pasta you are cooking to get it cooked thoroughly.the ugly: Starchy goo left over, you have to rinse pasta thoroughly to get the ectoplasm from the spaghetti monster off.

It has it's own colander built in which becomes too pliable to use to drain your pasta. If you do so you get burned with boiling water and end up dropping the pasta. In other words, container is often hot and requires hot pads to remove it from microwave; silicone cover/colander is slippery so holding the hot container and keeping the cover on while draining the boiling water is an experience you must be careful with from start to finish. Washes well in dish washer, however there is a lip on the bottom of the cooker that ends up with water in it so be sure to drain it before taking it out of dishwasher or you'll have water on the floor. I am returning to pans on the stove for making my pastas. I have other things from this company like the rice cooker which is smaller and easier to manage and I don't have the problems with that one I do with this.