Hold your hats as Lidl has announced its most exciting middle aisle drop to date – an affordable alternative to the chef-favourite Thermomix. The Monsieur Cuisine Smart lands in stores on the 4th September, but will be available to reserve on the app from the 21st August.
If you've never heard of a Thermomix, it's the cult multi-cooker that has taken the culinary world by storm. You'll have spotted them in the kitchens of celebrities and chefs alike. It's in a different league from something like the Ninja Foodi 9-in-1 multi-cooker as it can essentially cook a full meal from scratch, including chopping, slicing, grating, slow cooking, kneading, steaming and more.
However, with prices starting at over £1,300 for the TM7 Thermomix and it only available to shop via 'advisors', these cooking powerhouses are out of reach for most of us. That was until Lidl announced it was going to be selling the Monsieur Cuisine Smart for an exclusive Lidl Plus price of just £299 (or £399 for non-Lidl Plus shoppers).
This smart kitchen device has 15 different cooking functions in one machine. Like the Thermomix, it comes with a range of attachments that effectively replace your food processor, slow cooker, rice cooker, stand mixer, scales and more. It's also pre-loaded with 600 recipes that you can follow with the machine's 8-inch touchscreen display. If all that doesn't sound jazzy enough, it even has voice control.
The Monsieur Cusine Smart is an established budget alternative to the Thermomix. It's been sold in many Lidl's across Europe as part of a partnership, but this is the first time it's coming to the UK.
A quick search online will throw up reviews for the Monsieur Cuisine Smart, with buyers impressed by its cooking skills. However, many of them point out that it isn't quite as good as the Thermomix, requiring more prep work and hovering over the appliance to move it through the cooking stages.
Still, at £1000 less it's a worthy alternative, and a great testing point if you've been considering taking the plunge and investing in a Thermomix.
As you can imagine, this kitchen device won't be easy to get your hands on, so Lidl has decided to make it available for click and collect. It will be available via Click, Reserve, Collect on the Lidl Plus app, which also means you'll get it at the lower price point. This will be available nationwide from Thursday, 21 August, with collection on 29th August.
Or if you don't want to sign up for the app, you can wait and chance finding it in store when it lands in the middle aisle on the 4th September.
Alternatives
If it's the cooking versatility you're after, you can't go wrong with an Instant Pot. It has a number of functions, including pressure cook, slow cook, steam, sauté, bake, sous vide, yoghurt,and rice/ grain.
This smart device is often called 'The French Thermomix' but as you can see that also means it comes with the pricetag. It does come with a 30 year warranty, and can cook for 2 to 12 people.
If it's the baking functions that excite you about the Thermomix, then this might be a worthy alternative. It is essentially a next level stand mixer with scales and heating function all built in.
Will you be trying to snap one of these innovative multi-cookers up?
