Crock-Pot GO Portable Food Warmer, Electric Lunch Box with Detachable Cord

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] This is such an awesome lunch box! It looks nice, is a great size, and is fairly lightweight. The cord storage on the bottom is neat and secure. It warms food up and keeps it warm even 1-2 hours after being unplugged. Or, it can be used to keep food cool for up to 3 hours. I've found it to be easy to clean since the stainless steel container and inner lid can be washed in the dishwasher. The outer lid and warming base need to be handwashed, but that's been easy too because I haven't had them get messy. The only thing that could make it better for me would be another insert or a divider to give it more flexibility to have different foods that don't mix well. It would have been nice if some basic warming times were included, but the manual just says heat times will vary. It has a 3.5 cup capacity, and filled to the max line, I was able to warm up a 4 serving container of tomato soup in about 1 1/2 hours. A smaller size serving of shrimp pasta took only 30-40 minutes. I think these are reasonable times for a small slow cooker. I recommend this lunch box if you work in an office and want to avoid putting plastic containers into the messy microwave, or are a person who wants to keep food hot or cold on the go. I think it would make a great gift too.

I was apprehensive at first because I had read reviews online saying this thing could be hit or miss depending on the type of food you use. I can only speak for liquid-based foods. I've used it for soups, stews, and things of that nature. I have not tried wraps or other non-liquid foods, so I can't attest to how well it works with those. I haven't tried making noodles in it yet either. But as something for carrying and heating pre-made soups? It's a champ. Tomato basil, baked potato, broccoli and cheddar, lasagna soup, minestrone, you name it. It can do it. What really impressed me is what it can accomplish with such a low power draw. Yes, it can take an hour or two to get everything fully heated, but once it does, the food gets piping hot. When you first check it, the surface temperature can seem merely passable. Then you dig your spoon down into it and discover this heavy-duty molten core underneath. Stir everything together, and suddenly you've got piping-hot soup. For me, it has opened up an entire avenue of food preparation that I simply did not have before. My situation is admittedly unusual. I live in an older house, and during the summer almost all of the available electrical capacity is going toward keeping the place cool. I really don't want to shut anything down or risk overloading things just to run a hot plate and make a simple meal, because losing that cooling capacity means dealing with the heat afterward. This solves that problem. I can plug this little warmer into a Jackery 240 and heat several meals without touching the household electrical load at all. That is an enormous win for me. My situation may be extreme, but it finally has a surprisingly simple solution. I don't have to choose between staying comfortable and having a hot meal anymore. For what I need, this is essentially a portable soup heater that I can run from almost any reasonable power source I can find, and it is excellent at that job. Even in a more normal situation, I could see this being fantastic for someone who wants a hot lunch at the office. Load it up, plug it in, give it a few hours, and you don't even have to leave your lunch sitting in the communal refrigerator where somebody might decide it belongs to them. For me, this thing is an absolute win.