Update: bryansda: yup, indeed, I grabbed that roaster and FAST! For $25.00. But not before I plugged it in and tested it at the thrift store to be sure it worked! Arkansas girl: Yup, there is an initial burn off required and I did it according to owner manual specs today out on the patio. It did emit some electrical fumes (barely), which I was instructed to expect, but no smoke ensued. Sushipup and all others: I made a boneless pork loin roast with assorted vegetables...onions, carrots, Brussels sprouts, rutabaga, and a couple apples as my test run. I rubbed garlic on the roast, and coated it in some flavor of Montreal seasoning I had on hand. Put all meat and vegies on oiled rack (I used peanut oil which has a higher smoke temperature, to be safe). I placed this inside oiled cookwell, and started to let her rip at 400F w/ convection fan on. Because it smelled SO very delicious SO quickly, I got worried at 30 minutes into the scene, thus decided to decrease temp to 350, stop the fan a while, then started it again....basically played with it to see what IT could do, and how I should be responding to this new appliance. I took out the meat at temp 155F, to tent and rest, knowing it would continue to increase in temp. Some of the vegies were still a bit hard, but there developed a nice sticky, well cooked (but not burned) bits on the bottom. I found some Port wine, added a splash with another splash of water, (stirred with a wooden spoon so as not to scratch!) and kept the vegies alone in there at 350F with convection for another 20 or so minutes til the rutabaga was tender enough. The apples were squishy, so I'll add them later next time, or take them out early...as I think they added to the yummy tart yet sweet drippings. Can I say it was just divine with no gravy, just the drippings (of which there was only a bit since pork is so lean now). I can't wait for sandwiches of the leftover pork! (Never over cook pork anymore...get it to 155F, and tent it with foil for a half hour or so...it will continue to cook and be fine, juicy and tender). So first round was a thrill!!! Me happy! Thanksgiving turkey of about 13 pounds is next!

I love mine too, I have the 18 quart and the 6 quart, and I do everything in mine that I do in the oven, even Boston Brown Bread and I've baked brownies in mine when my oven was on the fritz. I roast the bones and vegetables for stock right in the roaster and then add the water and seasonings and let it go, everything done in one pot. I've posted pictures of roast chicken on WFD and the skin was as brown and crispy as I get in the oven. And mine has vents, but you can close them. However, as cynic mentioned, it may be more efficient to do the browning on the stovetop. Not necessary, but perhaps quicker. And, as cynic has suggested before, the small ones make great crockpots, my 6 quart even has a temperature setting for "slow cooking". I use the big one several times per year and I'll roast the prime rib in it tomorrow. The small one gets used at least a couple of times a week, and Elery liked it so much he bought one for his house. Far more efficient than turning on the oven for roasting one small chicken for myself, or baking a small amount of beans all day. I also do huge batches of apple butter and tomato sauce in mine for canning, just leave the lid ajar so that it cooks down, and because they heat up the sides too, you don't have the scorching issue or the spattering that I have on top of the stove. Enjoy it, Alexa, I love mine. Annie

cynic, as an aside to the roaster discussion, I use a big green unbreakable Stanley Thermos. It's not pretty, but I got mine because all th farmers and construction workers I know used them. Mine will keep a pot of hot chocolate steaming hot for several hours while the kids go tobogganing, so we're talking outside in a Michigan winter and usually stuck right into the snow. I used them a lot for camping, I could make coffee at breakfast, put it into the Stanley and it would still be drinkable at supper. Oh, and I've put ice water in it or iced tea when spending a few hours out in the hay field and it keeps ice in the liquid for a couple of hours too. I can definitely recommend them, although my oldest one is over 20 years old, so I'm hoping they haven't "improved" them. Annie

If you have any questions on using it, I'll be glad to try to help. You can even email me if you like. Pretty much self explanatory though. Unless they changed it since I bought mine, the fan unit, hence operation, was the same on the 6, 12 and 18 quart units. At the time I got mine, there was no fan available for the 4 or 5 quart units.