Mini Oven

kylith

I'm looking at getting a mini oven because my normal oven is rubbish and I can't afford to replace the whole thing just yet. I have a thermometer in there but even though it'll read 200C it still takes two and a half hours to cook muffins, and even that's not totally cooked.

Anyway, do you have a mini oven? How do you find it? Can you recommend a brand? I don't need one with a hob on top because my hob works grand.

Maphisto

Hi Kylith. Is the thermometer accurate? Just that if the oven is really reaching that temprature a new oven probably won't solve your problem.

Another thought do you move the thermometer around just to see if you have any cold spots?

Alun

I agree, something isn't right here ... if a thermometer is showing 200C, then unless it's a completely rubbish thermometer, then it is 200C or pretty close.

Could it be a fan gone somewhere so that while there might be a single hot spot that's 200C, the hot air isn't being circulated around the oven. On such ovens the element and fan are usually at the back, so it's usually easy to see if it's working or not.

kylith

It's not a fan oven, so it can't be that. I'll try moving the thermometer around and it's also been recommended that I try laying bred slices in there to see if the heat isn't distributing properly, so I'll try those before I go buying a little one.

Animord

Yes, I have a mini oven. I got it in Lidl; the brand is Bifinet (sp?) it was under €50.00 as far as I remember.

I don't use it often but have roasted chickens/potatoes etc in it and made cakes. I have found it perfectly good for occasional use. I have no idea how it would stand up to being used a lot though.

Lucyn

I've had two morphy richards mini ovens. One with hobs on top and one without. Both were great. I would recommend them.

oscarBravo

I have an Aldi one. Our rule of thumb since we got it is, if it fits in the mini oven, it goes in there; otherwise it goes in the big oven.

Maphisto

oscarBravo wrote: »

I have an Aldi one. Our rule of thumb since we got it is, if it fits in the mini oven, it goes in there; otherwise it goes in the big oven.

Why is that Oscar?

We got a toaster oven from QVC, it has a bread making paddle and a rotissary (sp) - it's OK, but if we were roasting a chicken it would come out better in the calor gas oven.

oscarBravo

Honestly? Because it pretty much just works. It's fairly tiny - we wouldn't fit a chicken in - and doesn't have any of those doodads, but I reckon it uses about a quarter of the electricity we'd otherwise use to heat up two breaded fish fillets for lunch.

Maphisto

oscarBravo wrote: »

Honestly? Because it pretty much just works. It's fairly tiny - we wouldn't fit a chicken in - and doesn't have any of those doodads, but I reckon it uses about a quarter of the electricity we'd otherwise use to heat up two breaded fish fillets for lunch.

Thanks. Those add-ons seemed more useful at the time we bought it than susequently.

The bread maker is OK for a dough but then you're better off reforming the loaf or rolls and baking seperately rather than in the paddle tin that they supply.

Also the rotissary is OK but you need quite a small chicken to fit in. If you get one it does a lovely job but it need to be pretty small.

Anyway I see that they don't sell them anymore
http://www.qvcuk.com/cook%27s-essentials-26L-Compact-Oven%2c-Rotisserie-%26-Breadmaker.product.801693.html?upsh=1

oscarBravo

Maphisto wrote: »

The bread maker is OK for a dough but then you're better off reforming the loaf or rolls and baking seperately rather than in the paddle tin that they supply.

Funnily enough, I find the same with my bread machine. It has been largely relegated to being a dough-mixing, -proving and -kneading machine. Which, to be fair, it does ever so well.

kylith

Anyway, it turns out I'm an idiot, I've been reading the Fahrenheit temperature off the thermometer, not Celsius. The oven is struggling to get to 150C, which explains an awful lot.

It's good to know that the mini ovens are of use. Is there a brand anyone can recommend, rather than the Aldi or Lidl ones since who knows when they'll be in stock again.

danjo-xx

Aldi have a mini one next week but it is very mini, only 9 litres, says for grilling and baking, no mention of roasting, would stay away from it.

I've had a coolworks and find it brilliant. Its 1500 watts, top and bottom elements and full width grill pan, and 25 litres these are my basic standards now:) Its not too big and not too small.

Some grill pans must be used with the wire shelf and that must be very fiddley.

kylith

I got a Cookworks one for about €80 in Argos and it is fantastic. It hasn't had any problem with baking or roasting. I have 2 minor niggles with it: there's nothing to indicate that the oven has reached temperature, and it loses a fair bit of heat when you open it. Other than that I'm having a great time baking, eating chicken, and all kinds of other oven-y things.

D Trent

On sale in Aldi
Capacity 13 litres
https://www.aldi.ie/en/specialbuys/sunday-16th-february/products-detail-page/ps/p/mini-oven-1/

oscarBravo

Sunday 16th February?

danjo-xx

D Trent wrote: »

On sale in Aldi
Capacity 13 litres
https://www.aldi.ie/en/specialbuys/sunday-16th-february/products-detail-page/ps/p/mini-oven-1/

this is the one I saw, 9L next thursday 28th

https://www.aldi.ie/en/specialbuys/thursday-28th-august/products-detail-page/ps/p/mini-oven-2/

Cant find yours though

stmol32

D Trent wrote: »

On sale in Aldi
Capacity 13 litres
https://www.aldi.ie/en/specialbuys/sunday-16th-february/products-detail-page/ps/p/mini-oven-1/

I have one of them and have been using it for everything since my main oven died and it works really well

The only problem with it is that although you can fit a small to medium roast in there fine there's not any room left for veg or yorkshire puddings.