Aga Cooker: a joy to cook with or a $$$ PITA?
olivesmom
11 years ago
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olivesmom
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
Lacanche, Cornufé or Berta range w/ Bosch or DCS wall oven?
Comments (81)Dear Gardenwebbers, I haven't posted in a while but have been following every single word you have all typed-I've turning into a stove stalker ROFLOL! Of all the threads I've read over the past year regarding stoves, this is the only one whose posters have actually taken the time to break down the decision-making into the critical components. Not just reviews or opinion, but usage, wear, cost, BTUs, options,even the way the stove sticks out from the walls and integrates into the space. Well done!!You have no idea how helpful you've been! I still haven't made a decision, but I'm inching closer. Like a few of you, I took a step back and asked what I really needed/had to have. One of you rightly pointed out that deciding whether one is a stove top or oven cooker could help out. My ovens are super important to me, and have been the big sticking point in my choices (more on that in a minute) but I do most of my cooking on the stovetop.I REALLY want a coup de feu.If I pick the two burner one coup combination offered by Molteni or Gullo, I'll have to really up my cooking game and plan a bit more ahead (you have to allow the plaque to come to temperature to really use it effectively. So I was concerned I wouldn't have enough "regular" burners.But then, like you all advised, I took a step back and paid attention to what I was really doing "most" days-turns out I'm usually only turning on two burners anyway. When i move to more burners, that's when I could use a million more, so the coup definitely could work out then. I'm still kind of intimidated by it-the Molteni and the others I'm considering are very powerful, but I think that's just lack of self confidence. Burner strength/BTU's were very important to me as well. I currently have an old Wolf Gourmet line-they were better made than the current offering, heavier and more powerful.The max burner is 18K, but it loses power when the other ones are turned on, and then I can't get that nice carmelized sear on the food. I love the oven though. It's gas with a broiler and a (very noisy) convection fan, and sticky racks. Don't love the noise and the stick, but the size is pretty good, and it works well. All the units I'm considering are more powerful, but some more than others.Like everyone has noted, the ovens seem to be what pose the most dilemmas. I worry about cleanability. My current stove is a PITA to clean.The Rorgue has a neat water bath under the burners to rinse out spills-cool!It's also the least expensive of my three choices (So far. Am waiting on the cost of the UL listing fee, plus I have to add in taxes and VAT) but I can have every little gadget I had lusted for(of course, I'm now really rethinking everything). But it's the least pretty/french range looking of the batch. It does come in colors though. I'm nervous that if i select a range with two ovens that I won't be able to use them for what I occasionally need-larger sheets and pans, so I'm really leaning towards one gas oven in the range, and a Miele Masterchef 30" in the wall, which is 6" bigger than my current oven (I have a few pans that I really have to grease up the sides of the oven to squeeze in). I'm going to a Gaggenau cooking demo at Purcell-Murray this weekend and check out their ovens too. Anybody have some feedback on those? I'm also considering getting a smaller range and adding in two induction burners into the counter for quickie cooking for the kids (I have five). I could have had them built into a bespoke range, but the electric components have to be kept far away from a high heat source, which screwed up the size of the unit massively Our quotes from the contractors are coming-scary! I just wanted to thank everyone for all the input-every single comment has been so helpful. Oh, on a side note, there's a ROCKIN' Morice stove for sale that I found on the internet. It's not the right color for em (it's blue and silver) but maybe it would work out for you. It's got 3/4 burners (one is a single grate but with two burners under it-is that one or two?LOL) and a coup de feu. The oven is electric. I've (hopefully!) included the link. Parts are still available for the Morices. If it had been a different color, I would have jumped on it-great price. well, I'll be continuing to follow everybody's stove progress, and hope to have a stove too. Soon... Here is a link that might be useful: Sea Sales Morice cooker...See Moresolid, easy to clean, joy to cook on 36' rangetop/cooktop?
Comments (12)I have a Gaggenau gas cooktop and a Wolf induction cooktop in two different homes. I would have done gas in both homes, but only electric was possible in the second home. While the induction cooktop is miles ahead of standard electric cooktops, I still prefer gas. I like the visual cue that one gets from seeing the size of the flame. I have the Gaggenau model KG-291, a 36" five-burner model. It's definitely at the high end of the price spectrum, but it's a dream to use, and it cleans up beautifully and easily. Everyday cleaning is accomplished by lifting off the grates and spritzing with Windex or Formula 409 and a quick wipe with a sponge. It takes less than a minute. A more thorough cleaning (about once a week) involves lifting off the burner assemblies and scrubbing more thoroughly, usually taking 10 to 15 minutes. There are no crevices, gaps or crannies for crud to accumulate. The burner assemblies are sold brass, and darken over time, but they still look good, although not that nice brassy yellow color they have when new. My cooktop is almost 5 years old and still looks like new. It cooks like a dream with the same low simmer temperature available on all four of the main burners, regardless of whether it's a large or small burner (2 of each). The center burner is much larger, and can't be lowered to quite as low a temperature, which isn't a problem. The only real drawback to this cooktop is price. It has gotten significantly more expensive than it was when I bought mine, but I still think it's worth the price. I'd buy it again if I were outfitting a new kitchen. Here is a link that might be useful: Gaggenau KG-291...See Moredutch oven vs slow cooker?
Comments (21)I use the crock pot as a warmer to keep things like mashed potatoes warm while I finish the rest of the dinner for big family dinners.They don't get scorched like they would on the stove. I also use it to keep baked beans warm that I cooked on the stove. They are great for keeping rolls and corn muffins warm when you making a lot for a big family dinner.If they get too moist then place a paper towel or napkin over the top. I rarely use it for cooking. We don't care for way the meat and vegetables turn out for stews.It does a good job on spaghetti sauce because you don't have to worry about it burning with a long cooking time. I like my dutch oven for stews.It does a great job on tough meat.After slow cooking it for hours, it will be tinder. I like to make chicken stews as well. A small dutch oven is great as a deep fryer.You don't need so much oil and it holds it's temperature well.You can deep fry donuts or tempera with great results.You don't need a deep fryer that you might only use once a month....See MoreMy Aga arrived today :) , but no cabinets yet :(
Comments (12)Dh thought our house would be finished in September...I figured October or early November to be safe...Still waiting (and working). We ordered our appliances in August...Supposed to be here in 4 wks. Good thing we didn't need them, as all but 3 came Nov 15th. The last 3 came Dec 28th. One of the ones that came in November was damaged. We're finally getting it traded this Thursday. HVAC ductwork was installed in the late summer, the furnace put in place in Nov, the furnace finally hooked up and turned on right before Christmas, and heat pump finally hooked up last week (when he turned on the furnace, he said he'd be back in about a wk to get the heat pump working). The dampers to operate the upstairs zone and the upstairs thermostat still aren't in. Our wood flooring started to go in last Monday. They came back to do more Friday, and wont' be back til Thursday or Friday this week. It was supposed to take 2-3 days from the day it was started. So, "Is it really THAT hard to estimate accurately when a job will be done?" ...Apparently, yes! ;-D...See Moreliriodendron
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