Breville VTP105 Black 4.5 L Slow Cooker

Excellent slow cooker. This is the first slow cooker I have ever used/owned and I would definitely recommend it. It's very easy to use and store - the ceramic inner pot lifts out easily and the body of the cooker is very light and fits on a cupboard shelf. The three settings are useful - I generally use the low or auto setting when I'm leaving something all day but have used the high setting when making soup to get it to a high enough temp to start with. The lid doesn't steam up too badly either so it's easy to see inside and check how the food is doing. The power lead isn't very long though - normally this wouldn't be a problem but it says in the instructions that you mustn't leave it under wall-mounted cupboards; this leaves out most of my worktops unless I leave it near the sink (and I have a big kitchen) but the lead is only just long enough for this. A minor problem but worth noting, particularly if you have a small kitchen.I have been told that for slow cookers to be most effective, they have to be two thirds full. This one is 4.5 litres which is quite large, so consider what you will use it for. It will easily hold eight portions of food so you could make double for a family of four and freeze the rest. If there are less of you, you end up with lots of leftovers to freeze! It also means that most recipes in books for four need to be doubled, otherwise the cooker is not even half full. I also wanted to cook joints of meat in it though so needed one this size to fit them in.All in all, I would recommend this and I'm glad I've joined the slow cooker club!

This was purchased to replace my 5L round slow cooker where the pot had cracked. Even before the pot had cracked on my old one moisture would still somehow get into the base of the cooker and then the screws started rusting and you could hear water spitting as it hit the hot metal.None of these problems with this cooker! Cooked a bacon joint and when taking out the pot to clean it found the base clean and dry. Also no lid rattling during cooking and no clicking on and off! It is placed on a worktop underneath wall units which holds sugar, tea coffee and biscuits that used to get damp because of the steam from the old cooker. This one does not seem to allow so much steam out so another plus.It recommends using less liquid but does not say how little you can use, only not to overfill. I haven't tried cooking bolognese sauce or rice pudding yet but I am sure it will be fine.I love the oval shape as it is easier to cook a lamb joint in and I don't miss the extra .5L size because of this. In fact it is better because I don't have to use so much liquid.It is also lighter to lift which is a bonus when full of liquid you need to drain off to clean.It also looks smart and not out of place on the worktop in my all white kitchen next to black tea/coffee/sugar pots and kettle.All in all I would highly recommend this cooker to anyone. It is excellent value for money and suitable for cooking joints to feed a family of at least 4 greedy adults.

I purchased this slow cooker to replace another make that had developed a fault. Well, this one has it's own problems too. I think in total I tried three and each one wouldn't/couldn't auto cook. Poor Amazon, they must be dizzy with the amount of cookers I had coming and going; they were fantastic throughout the whole affair so thanks Amazon.I tested the cooker out by cooking a large piece of gammon; I set it to auto and waited 3-4 hours when it should have switched from high to low. It didn't switch so at 5 hours cooking time I tested the gammon and it was ready to eat; that's too fast for a slow cooker .... 8-10 hours is usually recommended.Would I recommend this slow cooker ? yes if you're prepared to forego the auto part and keep careful watch; the food was succulent and delicious so it got that part right.I only bought the gammon as a supermarket had a really good offer and I couldn't resist; I ate some, gave a friend some, and had plenty left to freeze. The cooker could probably manage a meal to satisfy four people with good appetites.If Breville sorted out the non-working auto function this cooker would be fantastic.

Recieved my new slow-cooker just after lunchtime and had soup ready for dinner in the evening! After managing to crack the crock in my old cooker while steaming my Christmas puddings I decided to buy a new one. I didn't even think of replacing the crock as I hated my Morphy Richards slow-cooker which was a replacement for my original cooker which still worked but was so old and tatty I was embarrased. I sepnt loads of time looking for the features I needed and decided on the 4.5 litre Breville as it was nearest to my original 'friend'. Preparing the pulses and veg was no problem as I sauted everything, added stock and brought to the boil before transfering to the warmed crock where I cooked on high. (I always heat the crock with warm water while I prepare the ingredients) I was so pleased that it didn't cook as fast as my MR slow-cooker. I then turned it to low to keep it hot till it was time to serve. I'm looking forward to having lovely meals ready when we get in from work - the Auto facility is important to me to achieve perfection. My family love roasts slow cooked. Arrived on the day promised in a secure package - I'm very happy. Finally, the price I paid was very reasonable.