How to Clean Your TM7™: Daily, Weekly and Monthly Care

Mi gente, everything we cook in the Thermomix® TM7™ touches the same bowl, blades and lid, from the sofrito to the flan. A few minutes of care after each use keeps it clean, safe and ready for the next recipe.

Here is what I want you to know, following the TM7 user manual and the official Thermomix help pages for the United States. Mira, you don't need special products: warm water, a drop of dish soap, a soft sponge, a small brush and a towel do almost all of it.

The quick clean after every use

Pre-clean is a TM7 mode made for this: a quick clean of the bowl between two steps of a recipe, or between dishes. Find it under Manual Cooking, pick the program that matches how dirty the bowl is and follow the screen (the info icon at the top right explains each option). Take the butterfly whisk out first, the manual is clear about that.

Then wash the parts in warm water with a drop of dish soap and a soft sponge, rinse, and let everything dry completely.

• Let the bowl cool before you take it apart. The light band helps: red means the bowl is hot.
• Take the bowl off the base and empty it before you unlock the blades.
• Dry the metal contact pins under the bowl before it goes back on the base, so no rust forms inside.
• Clean right away. Leftover spots get hotter the next time you cook, and food sticks and burns there.

Taking out and washing the blades safely

The manual calls the blades the mixing knife, and they are very sharp. Go poquito a poco:

• With the empty, cooled bowl on the countertop, slide the locking lever away from the handle. Don't turn the unlocked bowl upside down, or the blades and the steel bowl can fall out.
• Hold the knife by the top, never by the blades, and lift it out. Then lift the steel bowl out of its outer cover by the rim.
• Rinse the knife under running water, with a small brush around and under the blades.
• To put it back together, set the steel bowl in its cover with the small tab toward the handle, insert the knife and slide the lever toward the handle until it locks.

Don't leave the knife in a sink of soapy water: the manual warns that a long soak can damage its sealing ring and shaft. After a sticky dough like pan sobao, use the dough releaser at the end of the spatula handle, it turns the blades so the dough comes free.

The lid, the seal and the rim

Take the lid cap off the lid and wash both with a soft sponge and warm, soapy water, or on the top rack of the dishwasher.

• Look at the sealing ring each time. If it is twisted or out of place, gently work it back so it sits evenly.
• The seal needs no routine replacement, just a regular look. If it is cracked or the lid leaks, the TM7 help pages say to replace the lid.
• Wipe the rim of the steel bowl too, so the lid sits evenly. If the lid leaks, check that the rim isn't bent.
• Against smells, store the lid upside down on top of the bowl so air reaches the seal. Don't hang it on the edge of the bowl, that can damage it.

The Varoma, the accessories and the dishwasher

Every part except the base can go in the dishwasher, with the plastic parts set loosely on the top rack so they don't bend. Still, the manual's own chart marks hand washing as recommended and the dishwasher as possible. Mi consejo: wash by hand most days and save the dishwasher for busy nights.

Keep the Varoma's steam slots free of food bits. For a white film from hard water, rinse it with a splash of white vinegar in warm water, then wash as usual.

Smells, stains and stuck-on food

¡Ay, bendito! In a Latin kitchen, orange is part of life. The achiote oil in my sofrito, the sazón in arroz con gandules, the achiote paste in cochinita pibil and the turmeric in red lentil dal or butter chicken all tint plastic. The TM7 help pages say food colors can stain the lid without changing how it works, so don't worry.

• Sunlight: set the washed, stained plastic parts on a sunny windowsill for an afternoon. Achiote and turmeric stains fade little by little.
• Baking soda: soak the part, or fill the bowl, with a spoonful dissolved in warm water for about 15 minutes, then wash. Keep soaks short for the knife's seal, and never scrub with a gritty paste.
• Lemon for smells: after garlic, onion or fish, leave lemon slices in warm water in the bowl for 15 minutes, then wash and dry it with the lid off.
• Stuck-on food, like the bottom of a tembleque: run Pre-clean again with the program for a dirtier bowl and brush around the blades. For a stubborn spot, the help pages suggest a cleaner made for stainless steel.

Never use scouring pads, gritty cleansers or harsh liquids like acetone on any part.

The base, the cord and the scale

The base holds the motor, the screen and the scale, so it never goes near the sink. Unplug it and wipe it with a dry or slightly damp cloth, the screen gently. Keep the air vent on the back free of grease splashes, important if your TM7 lives near the stove.

The cord pulls out up to 1 m (about 3 feet) and the rest stays inside. Check the cord and plug now and then, and never use or repair a damaged one yourself: call Thermomix customer service.

The scale is in the feet. For good weighing:

• Keep the TM7 on a clean, level, steady surface, with no crumbs under the feet.
• Leave the cord loose, never stretched, knotted or under the base.
• Don't lean anything on the base or touch it while it weighs.
• Pour steadily, not in a slow trickle, or the scale may miss it. It reads about 1 g at a time, so tiny amounts can jump a little.

A quick home check: an unopened 1 lb (454 g) package of butter should weigh a few grams more, for the wrapper. If it is far off, call Thermomix customer service.

When the TM7 shows a warning

First, read the screen: the TM7 tells you what it needs. The common cases:

• Blades won't start: the lid must sit evenly, its handle lined up with the bowl handle, and the lid cap pressed on with a small turn, like closing a jar. Above speed 2 the lid locks by itself and a padlock shows on the screen.
• Lid won't open: it waits until the food stops spinning. Never force it. If it stays locked, unplug the TM7, plug it back in and try again.
• Motor stops: the TM7 protects its motor from overload and shuts it off if it gets too hot; it may also stop and restart to free the blades. With a very thick dough or a full bowl, work in two batches and let it rest.
• Turbo or Dough mode won't start: both wait until the bowl is below 60°C (140°F).
• Liquid under the bowl: switch it off or unplug it, dry under the bowl with a towel and don't move or tip the base. If you can't be sure no liquid got inside, don't turn it on: call Thermomix customer service.
• Error 13100: move it away from strong magnetic fields, like an induction cooktop that is on.

Your weekly and monthly checklist

Use only original Thermomix® parts. If a part breaks while you cook, the manual says to throw that food away, since tiny pieces could be in it.

A clean TM7 is ready when you are. Start tonight with the quick clean, add the weekly list on Sunday, and poquito a poco it becomes a habit. ¡Wepa! If I learned to cook, you can too. Buen provecho, mi gente.

Adapted with permission from Life With Thermomix, the blog of Beatriz Tarrega, a Thermomix® advisor in the United Kingdom, and rewritten for American kitchens.