New oven at last! What to look for?

twignme

I finally get the opportunity to buy a second oven and I'm astounded at the number of different functions that are now available over and above the usual conventional/fan choices. I do quite a lot of cooking and baking and there no restrictions regarding placement or building in of the new oven. I could even consider an extra wide 90cm built in one too.

So what are the functions you couldn't live without and which ones would you love that you don't have already and why?

Faith

I've had a wide oven for the last two years and I love it (American wide, not quite 90cm wide). I'd choose a wide oven, to have a choice of convection or convention cooking, self-cleaning, a "preheat" function... I'm sure there are other things, but that's off the top of my head.

Dizzyblonde

I'd love to be able to switch the fan off when I'm baking.

Shenshen

I've got one where the door slides in under the oven, makes it very easy to put things in and take things out.

Unfortunately, those don't come with a self-clean function. That would be a useful thing to have, too.

twignme

Shenshen wrote: »

I've got one where the door slides in under the oven, makes it very easy to put things in and take things out.

Unfortunately, those don't come with a self-clean function. That would be a useful thing to have, too.

I have seen those doors, they look such a good idea.
Does anyone have a steam oven? Or a proving drawer?

rubadub

Higher temp than standard. Mine gets really hot, there is no temp indication on it at all but its hotter than any other I have used, good for pizzas.

IvyTheTerrible

My mother in law has one that beeps when the oven reaches the temperature you're aiming for. Very handy.

Shenshen

twignme wrote: »

I have seen those doors, they look such a good idea.
Does anyone have a steam oven? Or a proving drawer?

A proving drawer would be nifty.
I'm not sure a steam oven makes so much sense - I usually turn mine into one when needed by putting a pan with boiling water in it.

twignme

Shenshen wrote: »

A proving drawer would be nifty.
I'm not sure a steam oven makes so much sense - I usually turn mine into one when needed by putting a pan with boiling water in it.

I do similar when I bake bread but I was wondering if the steam ovens gave a more regulated and consistent atmosphere? I agree that the extra cost wouldn't be justified if a bowl of water can do the same job so I would love to hear from anyone who owns one.

Gloomtastic!

I wonder can you find one with all of the above?

Birdsong

Would like an oven where the door goes under, like on the great British bake off. Have got a few burns from the oven door

Toto Wolfcastle

I looked up proving drawers before and a lot of what I read suggested that proving drawers make dough rise too quickly.

twignme

Toto Wolfcastle wrote: »

I looked up proving drawers before and a lot of what I read suggested that proving drawers make dough rise too quickly.

I'm reading a bit more about them now too, it looks like you are right. I also realise that I can't really afford a gizmo that is quite limited in use. A very expensive plate warmer maybe !

Alun

Personally I'd be more inclined to go for an oven (or any other appliance for that matter) that does a few things as well as possible, than one with all kinds of programs, bells, whistles and gizmos that you'll only ever use once or twice for the novelty and then forget about. Unfortunately that's getting more and more difficult as manufacturers add features to differentiate their products from those of other manufacturers.

If I look at the features I use on, for example, our washing machine, dishwasher, cooker and bread maker, I'd say that 99.9% of the time I'll use one, or maybe two programs, despite at the time looking through brochures and thinking "That'd be handy!". The others are used either once when the thing is brand new, or never at all.

the beer revolu

Alun wrote: »

Personally I'd be more inclined to go for an oven (or any other appliance for that matter) that does a few things as well as possible, than one with all kinds of programs, bells, whistles and gizmos that you'll only ever use once or twice for the novelty and then forget about. Unfortunately that's getting more and more difficult as manufacturers add features to differentiate their products from those of other manufacturers.

If I look at the features I use on, for example, our washing machine, dishwasher, cooker and bread maker, I'd say that 99.9% of the time I'll use one, or maybe two programs, despite at the time looking through brochures and thinking "That'd be handy!". The others are used either once when the thing is brand new, or never at all.

This was my view when replacing my oven.
Things that were important for me :

Dimensions. I wanted a double oven. Many models have tiny internal dimensions in the top oven.

Temperature. I want high heat.

Ability to turn off fan in main oven.

Knobs rather than buttons and digital readings.

Less gadgets and programs.


All the above left me with a choice of one oven. Turned out to be an Electrolux. Have it a good few years now and am very happy with it.

twignme

the beer revolu wrote: »

This was my view when replacing my oven.
Things that were important for me :

Dimensions. I wanted a double oven. Many models have tiny internal dimensions in the top oven.

Temperature. I want high heat.

Ability to turn off fan in main oven.

Knobs rather than buttons and digital readings.

Less gadgets and programs.


All the above left me with a choice of one oven. Turned out to be an Electrolux. Have it a good few years now and am very happy with it.

That's a good list and very similar to my needs, especially the capacity. I'm also looking at things like very fast heat up and self cleaning and not terribly bothered with lots of pre-programmed recipe or cook times that some ovens have.
I will certainly look at the electrolux ovens, hadn't really considered them up to now so thanks for the good steer!

HelpImAlive

For what you're looking for, I'd definitely be considering a Neff single oven. It can meat pretty much all your requirements.

You can get a slide and hide (door goes under the oven), self cleaning, steam oven within their range - for around the 1300 euro mark.

The oven has your standard convectional, fan, and grill options.

It has a temperature probe that can be used to cook by core temperature as opposed to setting a standard time length on it.

The steam function is absolutely fantastic for baking the likes of scones/cakes, you'll never taste a nicer one, the added moisture really improves the consistency. It's also fantastic for simple things like chicken goujons etc.

I sell ovens for a living and it'd definitely be my main choice.

Marcusm

twignme wrote: »

That's a good list and very similar to my needs, especially the capacity. I'm also looking at things like very fast heat up and self cleaning and not terribly bothered with lots of pre-programmed recipe or cook times that some ovens have.
I will certainly look at the electrolux ovens, hadn't really considered them up to now so thanks for the good steer!

I've recently fitted a new kitchen and specced up the appliances. I like cooking and have had various frustrations over the years. I chose to instal two single ovens rather than a double oven to get best bang for buck. Each is full size with a grill and fan/no fan options. Most importantly both are self cleaning and a bonus of that is that they each heat consistently up to 250c which is handy for pizza making.

Each oven cost approx €600 and is from Bosch - from the more practical/useful value for money end of their range. Model is
HBA73R350B

twignme

Marcusm wrote: »

I've recently fitted a new kitchen and specced up the appliances. I like cooking and have had various frustrations over the years. I chose to instal two single ovens rather than a double oven to get best bang for buck. Each is full size with a grill and fan/no fan options. Most importantly both are self cleaning and a bonus of that is that they each heat consistently up to 250c which is handy for pizza making.

Each oven cost approx €600 and is from Bosch - from the more practical/useful value for money end of their range. Model is
HBA73R350B

That's another brand I hadn't considered before and should have done as I have always been happy with other tools I have bought that are made by them. I guess it just goes to show the power of marketing, especially using search engines when only a few brands consistently appear in the search list.
Have you checked the oven temperatures for accuracy at all Marcusm?

janmaree

Many, many years ago my Mum had a cooker with a rotisserie that worked with the eye-level grill. She used it quite a bit to spit roast chicken, roasts of pork and the like. Not to everyone's taste but she used to stuff lamb hearts and do them on the rotisserie, they were moist and absolutely delicious. Wish I had some now. Wish I had a rotisserie too.

twignme

janmaree wrote: »

Many, many years ago my Mum had a cooker with a rotisserie that worked with the eye-level grill. She used it quite a bit to spit roast chicken, roasts of pork and the like. Not to everyone's taste but she used to stuff lamb hearts and do them on the rotisserie, they were moist and absolutely delicious. Wish I had some now. Wish I had a rotisserie too.

You just took me back years janmaree, I remember those rotisseries very well and it was quite an art to get them loaded properly and balanced otherwise they were all over the place! They were all the rage about the same time as the original hostess trolleys and teasmades, brilliant things! And I remember making roasted and stuffed lambs hearts for my 'domestic science' exam over 40 years ago :eek: and they were wonderful but haven't done them since.

Gosh, happy days ....

rubadub

twignme wrote: »

They were all the rage.

Ours looked similar to this, so did a few friends ones.





I think the knobs on ours were more like this.


The big handle was twisted to open it. There was then a second glass door inside which was a good idea since you could view the food but not let all the warm air rush out easily. I remember the spikey clamp things to stick in the chicken. Like you say if not balanced it was screwed, it would be turning around and around with the chicken hanging there heavy side down not turning.

twignme

Great photos rubadub, a nice reminder of the glass doors that were an absolute divil to clean but worked really well.

Dizzyblonde

twignme wrote: »

You just took me back years janmaree, I remember those rotisseries very well and it was quite an art to get them loaded properly and balanced otherwise they were all over the place! They were all the rage about the same time as the original hostess trolleys and teasmades, brilliant things! And I remember making roasted and stuffed lambs hearts for my 'domestic science' exam over 40 years ago :eek: and they were wonderful but haven't done them since.

Gosh, happy days ....

Remember back then, potato soup was the first thing they let us cook? The worst part was having to clean the mouli strainer afterwards

janmaree

twignme wrote: »

They were all the rage about the same time as the original hostess trolleys

Gosh, happy days ....

Happy days indeed and your mention of hostess trolleys made me smile as I have Mum's still, it works perfectly despite being many decades old and has been out to dinner in other people's houses more often than I have! I get annoyed at the currently fashionable snide references to them, frankly uttered by those who know sweet f a about them, as if they're a sad reflection on years gone by. Many a marriage has been saved by "what time d'you call this?" followed by "your dinner is in the trolley" rather than "in the dog"!!! Ours even served as a cat feeding station when the dog was on a diet and would eat everything she could reach!

And I think I'm going to give the hearts a try, gentle roasting and lots of fingers xd! I'll let you know how they turn out!

Alun

Talking of hostess trolleys and such like, I was at someones house the other day and she asked if we would like coffee. What did she get out of one of the kitchen presses but a ceramic Russell Hobbs electric coffe percolator!! I don't think I've seen one of those since the early 70's.

twignme

Alun wrote: »

Talking of hostess trolleys and such like, I was at someones house the other day and she asked if we would like coffee. What did she get out of one of the kitchen presses but a ceramic Russell Hobbs electric coffe percolator!! I don't think I've seen one of those since the early 70's.

Was the coffee good Alun and did it have the little glass bubble in the lid so you could see it percolating? How wonderful that it's still working.

The first thing we cooked in the cooking class at school was shepherds pie, but bear in mind this was many moons ago when anything other than salt and white pepper would have been unknown and considered a little exotic. We were taught to boil the mince and onions in water until they took on a lovely greyish shade then just top with mashed potatoes. Yumm. And olive oil was only available in perfume sized bottles from the chemist and used to cure earache....

Good luck with the hearts janmaree, let us know how they turn out!

Sorry Mods, I've taken us a little off my original thread topic but getting a bit carried away with the reminiscing. I think we have the makings of a whole new thread here!

Alun

twignme wrote: »

Was the coffee good Alun and did it have the little glass bubble in the lid so you could see it percolating? How wonderful that it's still working.

Yes, complete with all the glug, glug noises. Really took me back.

We were taught to boil the mince and onions in water until they took on a lovely greyish shade ...

Hey, that was my mum's recipe too!

Tree

My mother has a less fancy tricity oven, but it still has the glass inner door and a superb grill. The elements on top have been replaced a billion times. I have dibs on it if she ever gets rid of it (though after 30odd years, I might be waiting a while yet).

Living in rental houses, I have yet to encounter an actual good oven, but i can list all the bad points of a cheap oven...

BelleOfTheBall

Double oven !!!'n

Marcusm

twignme wrote: »

That's another brand I hadn't considered before and should have done as I have always been happy with other tools I have bought that are made by them. I guess it just goes to show the power of marketing, especially using search engines when only a few brands consistently appear in the search list.
Have you checked the oven temperatures for accuracy at all Marcusm?

No, not that fussy!!! I'm more of an instinctivecook adn don't do that much baking. Having checked again, in fact the thermostat goes up to 300C.

Alun

Marcusm wrote: »

No, not that fussy!!!

Me neither, but after discovering that my oven is actually hotter than it should be by about 20 degrees, it's made life a lot easier. It is getting on a bit mind you so could be just a faulty thermostat or something.

Whistlejacket

I finally splashed out and got a Neff oven last year with the slide and hide door after coveting them for ages on the GBBO. I was wondering if I was daft to go for it instead of a standard one for half the price.

Not any more! I absolutely love it. Really easy to use with enough functions that are useful (fan on or off for baking, self-cleaning cycle, low heat so I can slow cook properly etc.) but not loads of settings I never use.

My sister has since got a similar one into her new kitchen and is also very happy with it.

twignme

Whistlejacket wrote: »

I finally splashed out and got a Neff oven last year with the slide and hide door after coveting them for ages on the GBBO. I was wondering if I was daft to go for it instead of a standard one for half the price.

Not any more! I absolutely love it. Really easy to use with enough functions that are useful (fan on or off for baking, self-cleaning cycle, low heat so I can slow cook properly etc.) but not loads of settings I never use.

My sister has since got a similar one into her new kitchen and is also very happy with it.

Does it have the bread proving function whistlejacket? I just saw that the other day on the Neff site and wondered how effective it was as it's something I would find very useful. And the circotherm thingy that heats up very quickly? Is there anything about the oven that you don't like or would change?

Dizzyblonde

I'm actually looking forward to the day my oven dies so I can buy a Neff

janmaree

This is a very informative thread and I will refer to it when our oven succumbs to the "chip" again but I'm REALLY feeling my age today. Not only do I have an old Sona coffee percolator (from 40 years ago) sitting on the draining board waiting to be refilled, I have two "new" ones in reserve for when my current one finally gives up the ghost. It was a gift from my Mum and I am emotionally attached to it (sad excuse for a grownup that I am ) but when it's perking away in the kitchen, the aroma of fresh coffee takes me back and just makes me feel better. Thank goodness I say, for Ebay and all the hoarding types who decide to share Over and out.

twignme

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

I'm actually looking forward to the day my oven dies so I can buy a Neff

They do look rather good. I'm thinking of heading over to the Neff showroom so I can see them all up close and personal, just for comparison purposes you understand

Dizzyblonde

twignme wrote: »

They do look rather good. I'm thinking of heading over to the Neff showroom so I can see them all up close and personal, just for comparison purposes you understand

Ooh, report back please

Gloomtastic!

We inherited our Hostess trolley from my Granny I believe. We only ever used it at Christmas when we had lots of people over. It was a real lifesaver. Went to plug it in last year and the plug socket had corroded to dust.

Bought a new electric oven/hob last year. Hob is rubbish.

twignme

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

Ooh, report back please

I went today!
It was well worth the trip, they have all the Neff, Siemens and Bosch there and the staff are really knowledgeable. When I called for directions they made an appointment so there would be someone available to spend time with me. The woman I spoke with was a cook and also the one who does their demonstrations, so she had first hand knowledge of the equipment and wasn't simply a salesperson.

The Neff are terrific ovens, closely followed by the Siemens and the functions you can choose really are fabulous. I'm really taken by the vario steam and bread proving but closely followed by the reheat, keep warm, ultra fast heat up, meat probe, and after playing with the hide and slide door, the regular door on the other ovens just felt damned awkward ...oh alright, yes I loved ALL of them!!

Unfortunately, as they are just the showrooms they don't have any pricing information so it was difficult to compare value side by side. I will have to do some searching now to get some prices but it will be a little easier as I am clear about what each of the models can do. All I have to do now is flog the family jewels so I can afford one .....

Whistlejacket

Does it have the bread proving function whistlejacket? I just saw that the other day on the Neff site and wondered how effective it was as it's something I would find very useful. And the circotherm thingy that heats up very quickly? Is there anything about the oven that you don't like or would change?

Yes you can prove bread in it by just turning the light on. I've only used it once or twice as I normally make sourdough and prove it in the fridge overnight. It worked well though, it didn't get too hot which I think can be a problem with the proving drawers.

The circotherm rapid heat is very handy. It's on the fan oven only which has a max heat of 200C so if I need it hotter I heat the fan first and then switch to the baking functions (fan plus bottom +/- top element) for the last 30-40 degrees.

Overall I'm very happy with it and wouldn't change it.

twignme

Whistlejacket wrote: »

Yes you can prove bread in it by just turning the light on. I've only used it once or twice as I normally make sourdough and prove it in the fridge overnight. It worked well though, it didn't get too hot which I think can be a problem with the proving drawers.

The circotherm rapid heat is very handy. It's on the fan oven only which has a max heat of 200C so if I need it hotter I heat the fan first and then switch to the baking functions (fan plus bottom +/- top element) for the last 30-40 degrees.

Overall I'm very happy with it and wouldn't change it.

Having seem them now up close and personal, I can see why you are pleased. It's nice to know that all the hype does actually translate into real life. I was told in the showroom that the oven can heat from cold to 180 in about 6 to 8 minutes. That's about 20 minutes quicker than my current oven!

janmaree

Gloomtastic! wrote: »

We inherited our Hostess trolley from my Granny I believe. We only ever used it at Christmas when we had lots of people over. It was a real lifesaver. Went to plug it in last year and the plug socket had corroded to dust.

Bought a new electric oven/hob last year. Hob is rubbish.

Just in case you're thinking about it, they can still be had.

http://powercity.ie/?par=60-45-6232D

http://forsale.popamo.ie/used/hostess-trolley