Nope....I don't need one....never did....had one and never used ti and gave it to my daughter....who used it a lot as at the time she had only one oven.

Thanks, Linda. I don't need one, and I don't even really have room for one. Plus, my big family is grown in more ways than one, and spread out, so I don't often cook the vast quantities I used to cook. Since i last saw my parent's Nesco nearly 50 years ago, I don't think I've even seen one!

Alas, alas, for so many reasons I don't need it, I just want it. But good sense will prevail, and I will not succumb. Sometimes I just need a talking-to. Now, about that toaster oven...

A toaster oven may be OK for a couple of baking potatoes, or a small casserole, but it takes too long for toast. I got rid of mine because I got tired of waiting 5 minutes for a piece of toast and having my potatoes take an hour and have a side of burnt skin. But it's great for melted cheese on top of a bagel or an open face sandwich with cheese on top. If I had room I would have a toaster oven and a simple 2 slice pop up toaster.

We do a lot of big meals, like reunions and big birthday things and I have a couple of the big ones. They come in handy if you are having a lot of things to cook and also to keep warm. I don't think they are the best thing to bake things in, but for cooking a big turkey or keeping things warm while your oven is in use, yes. If you don't have lots of big meals then you would not need one. I have two of the convection counter top ovens and I used those when I did not have a regular oven. Now I use one just for fixing and baking a few rolls. muffins, a pie and such for myself. I have lots of crock pots too and they also get used a lot. In the past we set up 3 big canopies with our folding tables and chairs under them and had great family get togethers.

Sue

Of course you need one. I have two, a large one and a small 6 quart one, plus a couple of the GE variety.

Like Marilyn, we do large meals. Those big Nesco roasters are always full of baked beans or au gratin potatoes or sloppy joes. I use my biggest one to make chicken stock for canning, just toss in the chicken "parts" (mine are necks/backs/feet/carcasses), some vegetables, roast until nicely browned, add water and let it cook overnight. I then strain it and let it sit in the fridge for a day so I can skim the fat and I get chicken jello, basically. It's liquid gold for soups and gravy, chicken pot pie, dumplings, whatever. I also use them to cook down apple butter, no constant stirring with little volcanos of thick apple pulp popping up to spatter your arms. Just put it on 300 or so, stir occasionally, leave the lid ajar for the release of condensation, works like a charm and no more scorched apple butter.

I have done the turkey in it, because I peel off the skin, can't stand the stuff on any poultry. It gets brown, but not as crispy as Mother likes it. More likely it will have a ham, or Elery's occasional leg of lamb, or baked potatoes for an army. I've also used it as an oven while my stove was being fixed, just set it on 350, put your pan of brownies/whatever inside, and bake it, works great.

The small one gets used for baking potatoes, roasting chicken, making the best pulled pork I've ever made, simmering a "pot of beans". I have a lovely and expensive Bosch cooktop, which I mostly love, but not a single burner, including the simmer burner, is low enough to actually simmer anything. The Nesco steps right up for me, I love it.

I do have crockpots, and use them, but the Nesco can be adjusted down to 200F or below, and just keep things warm too, I have more control than just high/low with the small Nesco.

So I love them. I have a microwave that gets used mostly for reheating leftovers, a toaster oven that never gets used and is a useless waste of space, and 11 separate and diverse coffee makers. Yeah. That would be my husband, LOL.

So, although I have huge double ovens, by the time I fill them with pies and dinner rolls, side dishes and the turkey, those Nesco roasters always have a place somewhere in the kitchen for family dinners.

Annie

I love my roaster! It wasn't very expensive, so I don't feel bad using it maybe twice a year. It makes great turkey. When I use it for turkey, I turn the temp way up high for about a half hour, then down to a more medium temp for the remainder of the cooking time. It usually takes 3 hours or so to cook at 20 pound turkey. The skin is crispy and browned, and the meat falls off the bone. What I also really like is that if it's done early, the roaster holds it warm as long as necessary without the turkey getting limp or rubbery. Using a roaster leaves our one oven available for everything else that needs to be baked or heated up.

So is this right? Sometimes you put things - meats, soups, casseroles- right in the roaster itself, but if you're baking something, you use the correct pan for the item and put that in the roaster? That can't be right. How do you wash it? Is there an insert like a crock pot has?

Vedabeeps gets flabby skin in hers, but bluebell gets crispy skin. Can you make lasagne in one?

I think I need to see one in action. But I may have been swayed to maybe I definitely need one. Perhaps. Very interesting.

I probably should have done this in the first place... I just googled it. Looks pretty useful!

Now I need to investigate toaster ovens. Seems like a toaster oven stays on the counter, but a roaster gets put away like the crock pot does. The roaster must be three times as big as the crock pot, though. Are roasters heavy? Awkward?

Before my daughter's rehearsal dinner this summer I had three crock pots baking beans in various bedrooms. One roaster would have done the trick. Can you use a roaster sort of like a crock pot and let it slow cook all day?

Seems like now that I'm cooking for two most days, all I think about is making vast quantities like I used to. I didn't even have a dish washer when the kids were all home!

A convection counter top oven? Hmmm. Sounds very interesting.

Roasters come in different sizes. The big ones are bulky, but not much heavier than my biggest crockpot. It's an 18 quart. My small one is a 6 quart, and is lighter than any of my crockpots and is about the size of one.

If I make beans, au gratin potatoes, chili, stock or soup, it goes right in the insert. If I roast a chicken or turkey, a pork roast for pulled pork, a ham drenched with root beer, it goes on the rack that is included. If I'm baking brownies or upside down cake or cobbler, I put it into a pan and place the pan on the rack. I've never tried to bake bread in one because I don't think it would brown nicely and lasagna would only work directly in the insert if you like crispy edges. The roasters heat from the sides, not the bottom.

Annie

sheesh, Annie has been coaching me on using roaster ovens. I bought a cheap 18qt first, just to try, and used it many many times this summer on the back porch! I even baked bread and muffins in it -- the bread came out great!!! the muffins had just a touch of burnt edge on the 4 corner ones because they were so close to the wall of the roaster, apparently. Totally acceptable, considering they were blueberry muffins fresh-baked outdoors on a 90F day. :) I didn't 'need' that roaster, but I loved it so much that I bought a 6.5qt to play with. You should get a roaster oven. :)

PM, my favorite use was also outdoors. I do not like lamb. At all. I don't like the smell either, so Elery's leg of lamb got cooked outdoors on the porch. He and the dogs loved it and I didn't have to smell it for two days, LOL. It's great for cooking outside in the summer when you don't want to heat up the house and especially good for cooking something "stinky"!

Annie

Thank you all very much for your comments. It looks like a roaster would be very useful, especially for summertime cooking. I certainly don't need it everyday, but it then I don't use anything in the kitchen every day!

I'm really glad I asked.

I have a 6 qt and a 18 qt Nesco like Annie. I get more use out of the 6 qt oven and mostly use the large oven for holiday turkeys. And I have used the 18 qt as an outdoor oven when I lived in the Sunbelt.

Much, much more useful for me is the countertop 'toaster' oven (that I've never used for toast. ) When I got my oven, I made sure that it was large enough to fit a 9x13 pan....so it's not one of those tiny little ovens. I use it almost daily. Heats up quickly, uses less energy than full size oven, lightweight so it is easily portable, browns nicely, (unlike the Nesco) and, there is less risk of burning yourself on it, vs the Nesco. (I would often burn myself when I was loading or unloading a pan from the Nesco.)

Downside is that, if you're buying new, a good sized countertop oven is going to be more expensive than a roaster oven. I actually have three vintage portable ovens all from garage sales and all in nearly new condition. The most 'expensive' one cost me $6. I bought the first one, liked it, so bought it's twin to have as a back up. Later, I found a slightly larger oven with convection and a dehydrate function and that's the one I'm using now. (I rarely use the convection feature; I use the dehydrate function more than I thought I would.)

I was a latecomer to the portable ovens having only 'discovered' them in that half dozen or years. Kinda' like with parchment paper, after I used one, I wondered 'Where you been all my life!?"

I learned over the past months that I can't eliminate ignorance from those who won't open their eyes and here is some more it seems. (heavy sigh) OK, the question is what types of things would you want to cook? That would determine the size of the unit you should get and I wouldn't be without my two Nescos. I have the 6qt with the Roast-Air lid and can tell you that there is no "flabby skin" unless you want it. I can also tell you your birds will not dry out like in a conventional oven. Here's a link to a demonstration of a Nesco and let's see if you think it's "flabby skin" on that turkey.

I had my mother's Kenmore roaster but I didn't need one that big, plus when I loaned it to my sister, I never got it back. Currently I can buy Nesco 18 qt ovens locally for less than $30. Add a Roast-Air lid kit and you're still going to be under $50. The washboard of appliances, known as a slow cooker will cost more than that most of the time these days and it won't do a fraction of what the roaster will do.

I have the 4 qt and the 6qt and use them both. I don't cook for large groups anymore but have thought about a bigger one just because of the bargain prices they're at these days. But I don't really have room to store it. For using it, you can use it obviously in your kitchen, but that's not all. Outside? (Shielded from weather of course), in the basement (many just set it on the washer or dryer and not heat up the kitchen), in the garage, or any available room.

I cook burgers, soups, stew, chili, meatloaf, pot roast, turkey breast, bake potatoes, bread, rolls, biscuits, and that's just the start of it. I see a number of people who get one, then realize how good they are so they get another in a different size. I threw out my washboards, er, slow cookers after using the roaster a couple times. They're obsolete as a 300 baud modem.

Break it in right, keep it seasoned and you'll have years of service and good eating coming out of it.

So am I saying everyone should have one? No. Some don't like them and some can't use them. I'm in the group of those who have found out how to use them and learned the value of the appliance. And for a toaster oven, I wouldn't have one. Had two. Tossed them too. Can you guess what replaced them?

Cynic, I was hoping you'd pitch in. I don't have the "roast air" lid, but the skin still gets brown, it's not flabby by any means. I didn't spring the extra for the convection lid because I don't care about crispy poultry skin, I always peel off the skin and toss it into the stock, I never eat it.

So, what other things benefit from the convection lid? I make pot roast and bake brownies and bake potatoes and roast chicken and they're all fine with the regular lid. The OP might want the convection lid, depending on what she wants to cook, but I love my roasters even with regular lids.

Annie

The convection lid interests me. We had Thanksgiving at my dtr's today. She made her turkey - a 20 pound butterball - in her convection oven (not a roaster), and it was delicious! Crispy skin, juicy white meat, and great legs! Loved it. First time she used the convection for a turkey, and I'm afraid she is stuck with Thanksgiving forever.

If I get a roaster, it will have a convection lid!

Hi Sheesh, I learned about the Nesco roaster on here - it intrigued me for a couple years, but no room to store it in the kitchen so I didn't get one...until Thanksgiving time a year or so ago my sister asked me a few days before Thanksgiving to bring a second turkey as she couldn't find one big enough. I mulled over all the ways to cook, transport, and keep warm this second turkey (as we bring mashed potatoes in our crock pot) and ended up ordering the large Nesco that arrived the day before Thanksgiving! It worked great - I do have to store it in the garage. I now use it for making my annual large batch of tomato sauce for Christmas - It also fit all the sausage & meatballs - I normally have to use my 3 biggest pots on 3 burners to hold it all. Like Annie, I also love it for chicken stock. I freeze chicken carcasses in zip lock freezer bags, and do the same with veggie scraps. When I need stock, I just dump it all into the Nesco, add a little seasoning or whatever, cover it with water and at the end of the day have a lot of great stock! I just tried pulled pork in it, but the Nesco was too big - should have just done it in the crock pot, but that makes me think I could use the 6 quart size?! Bottom like is I thought about it for several years first, and I am now glad to have it. As for a toaster oven, I have always had one and it gets practically daily use - other than toast, when the the kids are away I used it broil a lamb chop or two for myself and my husband if he is home, one or two baked potatoes, etc. When the kids are home from college, my son uses it all the time to melt cheese on opened face sandwiches, make a lunch size serving of nachos, etc. He prefers to reheat practically anything in that as opposed to the microwave as he prefers the texture. He has the same one in his college apartment. Let us know if you put either to use!

Hi! My husband randomly bought the Oster 22 quart roaster that cooks up to 26 pound bird. We used for the first time this Thanksgiving for a 23 pound bird. It was the best turkey we ever had! Crisp skin and moist meat, cooked so quickly, and was so fab having the oven free! We did "loose" a wing (it stuck to side. It cleaned up super easy and is light for its size. No clue what else I would do with it (great ideas here). I say get one! He got it in clearance for 20 bucks :)

Hi Annie, I too would get browned skin without it but boy does the fan crisp it up quick and picture perfect. So many people seem more concerned with looks over taste it seems. I use it to crisp up most anything. Ribs, roasts, even chops. If I want it good and brown (which occasionally I do) then turn on the fan and let it go. Keep in mind it will evaporate a lot of the juices. So I often cook it first, suck the juices out that I want to keep and then turn on the fan for a while. You likely would not use the fan during the whole cooking process. Other things to use it for? I use mine to make burgers and convection makes them look like they're off a grill and helps the taste IMO. Baking certain things.It's a convection oven then. Much is subjective. Personally for things like brownies I think it's fine, maybe better without? I never think to try it when I make biscuits or rolls in there but should try. Not sure if the convection would work like some claim to make things rise higher. You probably would minimize or eliminate the need to rotate pans if you put in layers and side by side pans in a larger unit. One of the problems with a roaster oven is the occasional issue of the edges of the food or pans next to the side of the unit will cook faster or overcook, and the fan would minimize to eliminate that issue. Virginia Olson of Nesco used to recommend a sacrifice noodle be placed against the cookwell to absorb and even it out when you make lasagna in the cookwell. I never did it and never had a problem but then, I like a bit of the crunchy noodles in lasagna and pasta anyway so if it happened, it wouldn't bother me.

Before I bought the Roast-Air adapter kit I used to just cock the lid to let out some of the excess moisture. Things brown more in dry heat. Electric roasters, slow cookers and pressure cookers for example are more moist heat environments while a conventional oven is a dry heat environment. That's why things will stay more moist in a roaster than a conventional oven. Here's a link to a convection roaster manual that might give some other ideas.

People make a big mistake by assuming. Roasters are a different appliance and they operate a little differently. There's a bit of a learning curve to maximize the benefit. It's not difficult to learn and learning is also tasty. I often tell people that although it's an oven and for the most part think of it as an oven, but sometimes you need to think of it as a slow cooker the way a slow cooker oughta be.

Maggie2094, that's a good looking (and may I say NON FLABBY) bird! :) You bring up a good point I often forget. They're lightweight and easy to move around. My mother's was heavier but then it had an insulated lid and I think had insulation around the sides too but that was an OLD roaster.

This is such an interesting conversation. I've learned much more than I expected about roasters, and even other appliances, and am grateful. Roasters seem much more useful than I thought, not just something extra I might or might not use. Sometimes I feel guilty about using my knives instead of my food processor, so I worry about getting another under-used item like a roaster when I have a perfectly good oven, but now I see that the roaster could be quite useful! Thanks!

Well, if you see the thread I started, Imoffett likes the 3 in 1 cooker even better than the Nesco - something else to research!

Yes, I just saw that, Elba. I have the same concern about the non-stick pan you do. The 3in1 is smaller, too. This is getting harder than deciding what options I need on a new cell phone! Oy.