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Pit Boss adds WiFi to its latest Pro Series pellet grills
Pit Boss has added handy WiFi connectivity to its Pro Series grills without increasing the price.
Instant Pot's Duo Evo Plus is only $100 on Amazon
Instant Pot's Duo Evo Plus is on sale for an all time low price of $100.
Anova's $600 convection-steam combo oven is finally available to order
It’s available for pre-order today starting at $599. It’s actually a combination convection-steam oven, otherwise known as a “combi.” The Precision Oven has a water tank for this purpose. Still, the Anova Precision Oven isn’t the first consumer-grade countertop combi oven.
Masterbuilt Gravity Series 560 review: A versatile smart charcoal grill
Masterbuilt offers the familiarity and convenience of charcoal with a WiFi-connected setup that works well as both a smoker and a high-temperature searing machine. The 560 lacks some of the more advanced features pellet grills have, but at around half the price, the company does a great job covering the basics.
Weber's connected pellet grills are $200 off for July 4th
Weber is selling its connected SmokeFire pellet grills for $200 off, making backyard barbecues more affordable.
Star Wars Instant Pots start at $60 for May the 4th
A May the 4th sale is offering big discounts on Star Wars-themed Instant Pots for your culinary adventures.
Is the Connect Smart Grilling Hub a great tool for outdoor cooking?
Weigh in on how well Weber's Connect Smart Grilling Hub works for outdoor cooking tasks!
Balmuda's $329 steam-based toaster finally arrives in the US
Balmuda has brought its legendary steam-based toaster to the US for the first time.
Weber SmokeFire review: An intriguing work-in-progress
The SmokeFire EX4 ($999) looks like what you’d expect from a Weber pellet grill. However, on the SmokeFire grill, there’s room for improvement. The SmokeFire grills run on Weber Connect, which is built on JuneOS -- the same software that powers June’s smart ovens.
Traeger's redesigned grill app offers cooking videos and customization
Traeger’s WiFi-enabled smart grills already benefit from a robust app packed with recipes for meat, seafood, side dishes and more. First, Traeger has added video-guided tips and recipes to the app. That’s in addition to the company’s team of chefs and grillmasters walking you through recipes.
Weber Connect Smart Grilling Hub review: Backyard grillmaster training
WiFi-enabled pellet grills are a backyard luxury for aspiring pitmasters. They not only allow you to remotely monitor temperature, but to adjust settings from your phone. However, they're a significant investment, and not everyone is keen on using compressed wood as cooking fuel. Plus, you might already have a grill you like. With the Weber Connect Smart Grilling Hub ($130), you can make any grill smart. It can monitor both food and ambient temperatures thanks to Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity, and guided recipes give beginners the sous chef they need to cook without fear.
Best Buy knocked $70 off the Instant Pot Viva
Instant Pots go on sale fairly often, but it's rare for them to drop below $60. Today, Best Buy is selling the Instant Pot Viva six-quart, 9-in-1 pressure cooker for just $50. This model's original list price is $120, so that's a significant, $70 discount.
Amazon cuts the price of the 7-in-1 Ninja Foodi cooker to $125
Amazon's deal of the day is the 7-in-1 Ninja Foodi, capable of pressure cooking, slow cooking, air-frying and more. This five-quart powerhouse is on sale for $125. That's $55 off the current list price, but to lock in the deal, you'll have to snag this multi-function cooker before the day is over.
Blue Apron considers selling itself as it bleeds customers
Blue Apron has been struggling in recent years, and that's leading the company to consider some extreme options. The online meal kit service has revealed that it's looking at "strategic alternatives" that include a merger, raising funds, offloading assets or selling the company outright. It warned that there was no guarantee anything would happen, but this is the kind of language companies frequently use when they're running out of options.
The Instant Pot Air Fryer Lid works as promised, but only for small batches
The Instant Pot has garnered a huge fan base in recent years, and for good reason. Yes, it replaces your slow cooker and you can make yogurt in it (in some models anyway) but its real claim to fame is as an electric pressure cooker that can significantly shorten cooking time. Imagine braised short ribs in under an hour, or homemade pho in 30 minutes. The best part is that you can just set the timer and walk away, without having to tend to it like you would a stovetop version. It's been over two years since I purchased my Instant Pot Ultra, and it remains one of my favorite kitchen appliances. That said, I found myself lusting after yet another trendy kitchen appliance: the air fryer. The idea behind it is that it can "fry" foods with just hot air and without the oily mess that deep-frying entails. However, as publications like Wirecutter and Cook's Illustrated point out, air fryers are nothing more than re-packaged convection ovens. If you do want crispy "air-fried" foods, Wirecutter recommends getting a countertop convection oven instead, which obviously has a lot more features than just air frying.
How Weber used decades of expertise to improve smart grilling
The Weber Kettle is arguably the most iconic grill of all time. There are other companies that have made a name for themselves with novel designs and features. But when you think about charcoal grills, I'll bet the kettle shape Weber pioneered comes to mind. I would argue that overall design is timeless. Invented by George Stephen in 1952, the first model was inspired by the shape of a buoy. Stephen worked at Weber Brothers Metal Works in Chicago at the time -- where the company gets its name (which technically is Weber-Stephen). Stephen discovered that a rounded bowl and a removable lid could drastically improve grill performance. So he cut the top off of a buoy, attached legs to the bottom and a handle on the top. The Weber Kettle was born.
Weber Connect will be a useful tool for grillers of all skill levels
If you haven't been keeping up with the latest in backyard-barbecue news, Weber is tackling smart and connected grilling in a big way this year. The company announced its WiFi-enabled SmokeFire pellet grills back in November, which will be available later this month. This week at CES, it debuted the Weber Connect Smart Grilling Hub: a standalone device that can equip any grill with Bluetooth and WiFi smarts. Both of those products tap into Weber Connect, a powerful mobile app that will help grillers and aspiring pitmasters of all skill levels cook without worrying they might ruin dinner.
I skipped breakfast, but Samsung had a robot make me a salad
Normally when I miss breakfast, it's by choice. Today, it was because I was in a rush to get to Samsung's booth on the CES show floor and see if I could get any face time with the company's cute new rolling robot. (That, uh, didn't go so great.) The trip was still well worth it, though, because I got to eat a tofu salad partially made by a pair of robotic arms slung from the bottom of some kitchen cabinets.
Weber's grilling hub equips any grill with WiFi smarts
It may seem unnecessary, but WiFi has become an essential barbecue tool. Companies like Traeger have been equipping pellet grills with the wireless connectivity that allows you to control and monitor your grill remotely -- even when you're not at home. The feature is very helpful for longer cooking sessions, so that you don't have to constantly check on a brisket, or stay near the grill, for the entire 12 hours it takes the smoked slab of meat to finish.
The Julia smart cooking system even washes itself up
For some, cooking is an exercise in passion, relaxation and creativity. For others, it's a tedious, time-consuming chore. Fortunately, for the less culinary-inclined folk, there's an ever-growing market of gadgets that promise to make cooking an altogether easier, quicker and more intuitive experience -- and the latest to arrive is Julia, an intelligent autonomous cooking system that pretty much does everything. (While it's not officially associated with the late master chef Julia Childs, the insinuation is pretty obvious).
