Maximizing My PC Dollars: Deciding What to Buy for My Pampered Chef Collection

[NewtoMom]

I should start this off by saying that I met my 30 day new consultant goal of $1250 in 30 days!!!! So now, I have 200 PC dollars with my name on them. :love:

I've started a list of things I want to buy:
Ice cream scoop
French Fry Cutter
Cutting Board
Dijon Rub
Manual Processor bundle
Silicone basting brush
the small covered baker
brownie pan
Itty Bitty Bevs (2)

But, I already have the food chopper. Do I need the manual processor? I keep thinking it's at a higher price point so it would be good to have at my shows. But I'm also trying to buy things I would use so that I could really talk about them. I thought about buying a pizza stone, the ridged baker or the mini baker.
I also have DCB, pizza cutter, can opener, 8" skillet, bar pans and other items.
Is there anything you would suggest? Maybe something that you use or bring to every show?

 

[NewtoMom]

I should also add that I will be getting the grill pan and press for hitting my goal! I'm super excited about that.
Do you have a certain cookbook that you use to do cooking shows with?

 

[anoelle]

I have the manual processor and I bought it when my daughter was starting to eat baby food. It was an amazing item. I used to carry a big tote with me with PC catalogs and stuff and I took it with me when we would eat out. I would take some mashed potatoes, corn, peas, or whatever I or my husband had and would make the meal for her there. SO nice and SO worth it cost wise.

I have also used it to make dips and stuff and I love it. I would say that it would be good if you can think of things you'd use it for.

 

[sushimommy]

You should also be able to order the product samples with your pc$ - at 50% off, thats a great way to get the round covered baker (its on there open stock)

 

[morgieloo88]

Manual food processor is great to make salsas with in along with fajitas in the DCB. I would get the rice cooker to make lava cakes with at shows because people just love it. Also, the digital pocket thermometer is handy too.

 

[BethCooks4U]

The rice cooker makes the best rice but personally I rarely make the lava cake in it. I don't think it looks all that good. I make that cake in the stoneware fluted pan. It comes out much prettier, that stone can be used for many things- chicken (like the beer can chicken), stuffed peppers, meatloaf, baked potatoes... Last time she chose chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting. The shape was nice but the surface was yucky looking with the color that frosting was after melting into the cake, kind of gray. I melted the rest of the frosting (I only put about half of it on the cake before baking) and drizzled it on top then grated some chocolate over that and added some sprinkles (it was February before they were dc'd). They were amazed how pretty it looked. I always sell 2-4 of them when I make that recipe. ...and it costs more than the rice cooker.

 

[chanddl]

These are my favs and I sell a lot of them too:

Salad Choppers
Dripless Wine Pourer/stopper
Mix and chop
Kernel cutter
Pineapple wedger
Green coated knives

Cool n serve tray

 

[terimayo]

The rice cooker makes the best rice but personally I rarely make the lava cake in it. I don't think it looks all that good. I make that cake in the stoneware fluted pan. It comes out much prettier, that stone can be used for many things- chicken (like the beer can chicken), stuffed peppers, meatloaf, baked potatoes... Last time she chose chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting. The shape was nice but the surface was yucky looking with the color that frosting was after melting into the cake, kind of gray. I melted the rest of the frosting (I only put about half of it on the cake before baking) and drizzled it on top then grated some chocolate over that and added some sprinkles (it was February before they were dc'd). They were amazed how pretty it looked. I always sell 2-4 of them when I make that recipe. ...and it costs more than the rice cooker.

What are the cooking times and i assume no lid at all? How long do you wait before you flip out onto a plate? Newbie here can you tell? I, too am trying to spend my free product from my first show! T

 

[BethCooks4U]

Top sellers for me are:
DCB
Salad Choppers
MFP
Kitchen Shears
Fluted Stone
Citrus Press
Food Chopper
Stainless BowlsI use all of these a lot too. They say you sell what you show and love.

 

[kam]

Not sure if you got the mini kit or the full size kit, but you may want to think about getting the following:

The Stainless Steel Bowl Set. The Batter Bowl gets heavy to lug to shows after awhile and the Stainless Bowls are much lighter, plus they are very nice, you would have 3 sizes and it is a high price point. I have gotten bookings from people just so they could get these at a discount as a host.

A full set of the Easy Read Measuring cups. For some reason at shows, one is never enough.

A full set of the Prep Bowls. Same thing, I end up using a bunch of these at shows if even just for items I pre-prep.

An extra Scraper or two.

Getting the full set of ERMC, prep bowls or scrapers won't help you sell more (since you already have one of each to show) but it will make your demos easier on you.

But, overall, get some items YOU would use in your kitchen. It is so much easier to demo and sell products you use and love.

Also, are there some recipes you would really like to demo? Maybe look to those to get ideas of some products.

Good Luck!

 

[BethCooks4U]

What are the cooking times and i assume no lid at all? How long do you wait before you flip out onto a plate? Newbie here can you tell? I, too am trying to spend my free product from my first show! T

I have done the cake with the ingredients as on the box but I usually do 16 oz sour cream and 3 eggs. Mix together and pour into fluted stone (I always oil the pan lightly even though I've been using it for 10 years now). Scoop 1/2 tub of frosting over batter - not whipped frosting btw.

Microwave on high 13-15 minutes until the cake pulls away from the sides of the stone. Loosen the cake from the post (citrus peeler works great for this). I invert right away. [if I am not adding the frosting before baking I cook it I let it stand about 5 minutes before inverting]

Don't worry if a piece of the cake breaks off or sticks to the pan. It's easy to hide when you garnish. Garnishes: frosting melted to pouring consistency in small microcooker and drizzled over it, chocolate or nuts grated with the microplane, any sprinkles, powdered sugar in flour sugar shaker, fruit....

 

[NewtoMom]

Thanks for all the suggestions!
I bought the mini kit when I signed up because I already had a lot of items that I bought over the years. I do have the full set or ERMC, 2 grean knives, mix n chop, dry measuring cups and two scrapers.
I never thought about the fluted pan. Def gives me something to think about. Sounds like the manual chopper is a must have as well.

 

[katem51]

I'm not sure if you said you have it, but if you don't get the 8" non-stick saute pan and use it to do the burnt rice demo at shows. Should help to create a desire for cookware.

 

[wadesgirl]

My manual food processor has replaced my food chopper both at home and at my shows!! I don't hardly use it any more because the MFP is that great.

 

[ShellBeach]

I'm with the others - get things you will use in your kitchen! Then you'll be able to talk about them since you use them.

The french fry cutter is new & looks neat but I would suggest the wedger if you don't have that, before the FF cutter. The wedger is more versatile for tomatos, onions, etc. as well as potatoes. I make oven fries a lot with it, on the bar pan spritzed with olive oil and various rubs.

I use the cutting boards multiple times per day.
The silicone baster - I have two of them because I was tired of it being in the dishwasher.

Since you already have the DCB I would pass on the small round one, unless you want to carry it to your shows and it's more lightweight.

The MFP is darling. Also a bit overpriced IMO, so PC $$ are perfect for it.
Save the pantry stuff for a supply order. You'll get more bang for the PC buck$ on other items you'd have to pay full price for.

The stainless mixing bowls are another high-priced item where the catalog doesn't do them justice. They are gorgeous. But - if you can host your own show in March, get them at 60% off instead of using your PC $$.

My fave cookbook is 29 Minutes to Dinner. I have the Korean Beef recipe memorized from making that 3-4 times per month. All the Best is a great all-purpose cookbook, but it's starting to show its age with some discontinued items in it.

edit - woo hoo on earning the grill pan set! Way to go!!!!

 

[babywings76]

As for recipes, I usually pick a couple of new ones from the SB that I like. I own all the cookbooks, but honestly hardly ever use the recipes for shows. :blushing: I'd get the DCB. The RCB is lighter and new, but you can feed more people and have a lot more recipes options for shows with the DCB. Then you can let people know about the RCB if they are needing something smaller. I'd also get the 12" skillet and the Trifle Bowl (or put them on your wishlist and see if they come up as a monthly host special down the road). The reason is because they are also great main PC items that you can do a lot of show recipes with. But only get them if you think you would love to have them for your kitchen. Other things that I like to have for shows:Large Groove Cutting Board (or the large flexible cutting mats--I'm always needing new clean surfaces at my shows it seems)
Santoku knife
Timer
Hot pads/oven mits
Mix N Chop
Salad Choppers
Digital Thermometer
Medium Scoop (use it all the time for Lava Cakes in the DCB)
MFP is great!!! Get the little recipe card collection, too, so you can see all the possibilities. Just remember as you plan what you want to buy...you can always be the host of a show and use the host rewards to get products. You also can get a Kit Enhancement (in your 4th month, if you've been active in the previous 3 months. You get a 40% discount on up to $500 worth of products--someone correct that amount if I'm remembering wrong.)Look through recipes that appeal to you and see what products you'll need to make them. Get things that you want for your kitchen, plus some things that are good for shows, popular "must-haves".

 

[NewtoMom]

Thanks! I should have known that ordering was going to be difficult..lol. I can't ever seem to decide. Even before I was a consultant..lol. Does anyone use the small ridged baker at your shows?

 

[Intrepid_Chef]

The round baker is great for workplace shows or shows with small microwaves (more common than you think which is why it is the most requested item) but I agree ... it's 50 percent off this month. And the stainless bowls are 60 ... well worth having your own show to get them.

If you want the dijon rub you can have mine! Yucky!

 

[Jennie50]

Thanks! I should have known that ordering was going to be difficult..lol. I can't ever seem to decide. Even before I was a consultant..lol.

Does anyone use the small ridged baker at your shows?

I use the SRB at shows all the time. I have used it for meatballs, bacon, chicken breasts. My director uses it for the Mile-High Apple pie recipe.

I'd reiterate what babywings said about planning your purchases carefully, and waiting to get the best bang for your buck (free or not!). Does your director live close to you? I'm fortunate in that mine lives right around the corner and is very open to letting me borrow anything. I used some of the PC bucks I earned to get prizes, spices for the recipes I was making and paperwork on supply orders, and also used some on the sample order products at 50% off. I accumulated $800 during my first 90 days, though and used the bulk of that in Feb, my Kit Enhancement month, when I could get everything at 40% off. In the meantime, I borrowed everything I didn't have from my director, and kept a running list of the items I asked for the most.

April, as I understand it, is Kit Enhancement month for all consultants, which is exciting for you...unless there is some rule against it that I'm not aware of, you'll be able to get 40% off in April, and in May, your KE month. If I were you, I'd buy as little as possible for the next couple of weeks until you can double your discount.

 

[ChefBeckyD]

My manual food processor has replaced my food chopper both at home and at my shows!! I don't hardly use it any more because the MFP is that great.

Same here.

I seriously wonder how long the french fry cutter will be around, if they can't get the issues fixed with it - I wouldn't spend money on that until you know for sure it's going to be in the next catalog. (3 of my team has had broken ones. I haven't used mine, because we mostly only make sweet potato fries, and we can't with the cutter.)

Of the things you have listed, the MFP and the Round Covered Baker are the most valuable for shows (IMO). Other top sellers for me are the Veggie Wedger, the Cool n Serve Tray, and the Simple Slicer.

I don't do microwave cakes at shows - and my fluted stone hasn't been used since the deep covered baker came out, because all I ever used it for was to roast chicken.

 

[NewtoMom]

When I wrote this, I totally forgot that we were doing a booth at the mall during the craft/home business fair. So, I started a party and put my orders on there. That means I can get the stainless bowls for 60% but I have to pay out of pocket I guess.
I am pretty lucky because my recruiter and advanced director live in the same town as me and I also have a friend who has TONS of PC items. So I think I'm going to do my best to wait and order. I also didn't realized that I'll be earning more PC now until my 90 days is up! So hopefully I'll have more by April.
Does anyone know how I earn more? Is it so many PC dollars for submitted parties?

 

[Jennie50]

When I wrote this, I totally forgot that we were doing a booth at the mall during the craft/home business fair. So, I started a party and put my orders on there. That means I can get the stainless bowls for 60% but I have to pay out of pocket I guess.
I am pretty lucky because my recruiter and advanced director live in the same town as me and I also have a friend who has TONS of PC items. So I think I'm going to do my best to wait and order. I also didn't realized that I'll be earning more PC now until my 90 days is up! So hopefully I'll have more by April.
Does anyone know how I earn more? Is it so many PC dollars for submitted parties?

You earn $100 dollars for every $1250 in commissionable sales you submit during your first 90 days. You also get another $100 for every $5000 you submit. Rack 'em up, baby!!

I'm hoping there are more opportunities for consultants to earn PC dollars, beyond their first 90 days, 'cuz I've kinda gotten addicted to checking my account to see how many I'd squirreled away.