About Convection Ovens

15 years ago

I am a long lurker here on the Cooking Forum, enjoy everyone posts so much and have learned a wealth of cooking knowledge over time. Thank you all.

My husband is a gadget guy and is now thinking I might need a Convection Oven, a countertop model. I have never ever considered one, I know nothing about them, not real sure I need one or even want one. At the same time I am now curious, especially since DH has become interested. I told him I would ask the CF bunch what they know and their opinions, pros and cons on Convections Ovens. We are listening, Gee I cannot believe I am posting. Thank You all in advance for you comments.

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Comments (7)

grainlady_ks
15 years ago
There are many styles, so do you mean one of the round ones made famous in infomercials (glass or plastic dome), or one that is more like a toaster oven, or a combination of convection/microwave oven style toaster oven? I've had all of those, which led me to purchase a Sharp Convection/Microwave Oven that is installed over my stove (with an exhaust fan on it), and I absolutely consider it a workhorse in my kitchen. With only two of us to cook for, I can do most of my baking in the smaller oven (when I don't use one of my solar ovens).

The convection feature allows me to make baked goods in 25% to 50% less time, and at a reduced temperature (usually 25-degrees less. With both racks in my Sharp, I can bake two pans of cookies on round piazza pans in 5-8-minutes, depending on the kind of cookies I make.

I bake two full loaves of bread in 25-minutes and without any preheating for a substantial savings of energy over using my regular oven.

There is a bit of a learning curve for using a convection oven, so be sure to read the manufacturer's user manual. I'm the gadget person in our family.... (there's really no cure for the condition ;-). And if there is something that will save energy - I probably have one. If you like the convection oven, then I'd suggest an induction cooking top (hot-plate) to go along with it. I rarely use my stove these days.

-Grainlady
User
15 years ago
Years ago I had a Microwave Convection oven, made by Quasar. It was great unless you wanted to microwave and the oven was still hot from using the oven/convection setting. Not a great idea to put something plastic in an oven that had recently been heated to 500ÃÂ°F.

So if you you already have a microwave but are looking for an additional oven that you can bake, roast or broil in, using regular or convection settings than I can suggest the Waring Pro Convection oven. I love mine. I also love the fact that it heats up to 500 degrees. Not all small countertop/convection ovens will do that.

Big enough to roast whole chickens or small turkeys. Fits decent size casserole dishes, etc..

It is as simple to use as any other oven.

Ann
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HU- and suburbanguy, what brand of ovens do you have? Also are they gas or electric? I’m guessing electric. HU, can you use nonconvection modes in your oven? Convection can be uneven depending on how the manufacture designs the oven. “Eveness” is way oversold. If you have a fan and especially if it has a third element, it sets up an air current that dries and browns one side of what you are baking/roasting. Many companies use baffles, dual fans or reversing fans to deal with this. Some ovens have a slower fan with the conv bake mode. This gives you more control over the browning. I love convection but just use it part of the time when I want something to brown more. I agree the hidden bake element is horrible. You lose a lot of radiant heat. Bad for pies but the hidden element is just the way they make ovens. Very few have the open element. I would get a thermometer and check how far off the temperature is. Also read the manual as some have an auto correct for convection modes that turns the temperature down by 25°F. Sometimes this can be turned off. Make sure the oven has preheated for 30 min before baking. Convection should make things cook faster because they accelerate heat transfer unless you have the auto correct. Also some ovens once they are preheated do not have a way to bring temperatures up quickly if you open the door. This is really bad. It is really just poor design on the oven not the convection. I had a Dacor oven that did this. If you were baking cookies or appetizers and had to open the door, the temperature drifted down. It had to drop 150°F before the preheat would come back on. It would just oscillate the element on and off to maintain otherwise. Capital electric oven was like this and Wolf is but only has to drop about 50°F to come back on. Wolf can be turned off and on and it seems to make the preheat back on. If you just turn up the temp, it takes forever to move up 25°F. __________ Suburbanguy, Not all ovens are like that. That is the problem. It is very hard to figure out what the different ovens actually do. Sometimes reading the manual, before you buy helps and sometimes it doesn’t. You have two or more fans in your oven. One type is the convection fans but the other is the cooking fans for the computer boards that run your oven. Not a good thing to disconnect those. Many ovens do have a rapid preheat so that your oven preheats in 7-8 min. It does need to continue to preheat for 30 min to fully heat the bulk of the oven for baking.
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Everything I've read about convection ovens suggests adjusting either the temperature or cooking time. Lower the temperature by 25 degrees and bake the regular amount of time -OR- keep the temperature the same, but start checking your food about 3/4 through the regular cooking time. I have a convection oven and it automatically reduces the temperature by 25 degrees, so that might be an easier way to go. Either way, I'd check the quiche at least 15 minutes before it's supposed to be cooked, just to avoid overcooking.
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I bought a small convection oven made by Breville. It works like a toaster oven with heating elements at both the bottom and top. The main difference is the fan at one side that blows the heated air around the interior. This ensures even temperature throughout the oven. Not every setting uses the convection fan. Toast, Bagel, and Broil do not use convection. Full size convection ovens are essentially the same; they use a fan to circulate the heated air around the oven. Some reviews warn that times and temperatures for convection cooking should be shortened and/or lowered. I've not noticed a problem with recipes, but if my frozen pizza thaws out before I start cooking it will be done sooner. The pizza does need to be rotated 1/4 turn half way through the cooking time. I've used the oven to make brownies, and to reheat fast-food fries that got soggy on the way home. Convection is great for crisping; the microwave is better for keeping food moist when heating. My particular model is about 0.8 cubic foot. The interior rack is 11.5 x 13 inches, but the outside measures 15.75 x 18.5 inches. There is a larger model with 1.0 cubic foot cooking space, and its outside dimensions are 17.2 x 21.4 inches.
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Another parent of an 8 years old; and a 6 years old. Please note that there is a difference between steam assist and a true combination steam oven (*). One of the the nice things about our Miele CSOs is the fact that you can select between 0% and 100% humidity across the entire temperature range. Steam-assist ovens usually can't do that. Also, our CSO has very precise temperature control at the low end. This makes it possible to be used as a sous-vide cooker. And that opens up a whole lot of other possibilities. You can slow cook first and then in the same appliance roast to finish the dish. Also, temperature and humidity control is great when baking bread. The short preheat times are great too. Bigger ovens frequently take a lot longer to change temperature. For some dishes that's ok; for others, it's a nuisance and requires careful meal planning. @dorianday, no way would I let you sit and watch. I'll find a task for you. Do you like peeling potatoes, or do you want to pit a half gallon of olives? *) Edit: It does look as if Thermador makes a real combination steam oven and not just a steam-assist oven. But the manual (like most of these manufacturers) is woefully inadequate. I can't quite tell in which modes I can enable steam and what temperature and humidity ranges I am restricted too. Also, I can't tell whether temperature control is sufficiently precise to allow sous-vide cooking. That only works, if temperature swings are really minimal. Finally, while Thermador boasts to have the largest oven cavity of any steam oven, I can't quite tell how that compares to Miele. I know that my Miele can, in a pinch, hold a regular half-size cookie sheet. It won't quite fit with the railings, but it's close. According to Thermador's spec sheet, the oven cavity is much too small for an 18x13" half pan. On the other hand, their oven seems taller. Yes, no? Hard to tell. The Miele XXL is also quite tall, but I can't find precise numbers for its size. Arrgh, these manufacturers don't really make it easy.
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dcarch7 d c f l a s h 7 @ y a h o o . c o m
15 years ago
What Ann_t and Grainlady said.

Foundamentally the convection principle is great for baking and roasting.

However, like any other devices, there are good ones and there are bad ones. You still have to do the research.

I just want to mention one more thing. A convection oven can work very well as a dehydrator.

dcarch
foodonastump
15 years ago
If the toaster oven style is what you're looking for, I'll post a preemptive "not recommended." I bought it based on a lot of recommendations, but I just don't get the hype. A "medium" toast setting is preprogrammed for 4:40, which seems more like "all morning" compared to a regular toaster, and believe me that toast will barely show any color. Bagel settings similar but worse. Baking performance isn't bad, but you'll sure hear the clunky fan. Slide an 8x8 casserole on the rack and it's bound to buckle and fall. Until reading about the Waring, I figured I couldn't ask for more than 450 deg, but now I might just contemplate an exchange.
foodonastump
15 years ago
LOL I just realized I forgot the most important part! I'm talking about the Breville, which Wms Sonoma, BB&B and others are selling.
deeebert
15 years ago
i have looked at that several times at WS and also looked at others. If I were buying one that is the one I would buy, it seems to be far better size and quality than the random ones I see at Kohls(around the holidays) and Costco occasionally. I thought as an extra oven it would be helpful at the Holidays, I think it holds about a 9x11 casserole or a reasonable size chicken.Since I now have two 30 inch convection enabled double ovens my need went away. Convection is a good way to cook any things, good luck!
ntt_hou
15 years ago
My 11-year-old toaster oven died. I purchased a convection toaster oven, Hamilton Beach 31199R, about a month ago from Amazon. I chose this model because of its good reviews and the timer is up to 2 hours instead of the usual 1 hr.. The price from Amazon is also very reasonable and affordable to me. I'm really enjoying it and the fan is quiet.

Be awared that convection oven generates more heat than the normal toaster oven.

Here is a link that might be useful: Hamilton Beach 31199R at Amazon

About Convection Ovens

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grainlady_ks

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