The word convection in convection ovens means heating through the air. A convection oven still uses old methods of heating, but now they have introduced a cycle that blows hot air across the cooking dish and vents it back out again. It is a process in which heat transfers between two elements, in this case, it involves heat transfer between the oven and the food. This means that your food is being cooked by both circulated heat and heated air passing over the food. This speeds up the cooking process, but it also offers other advantages as well. Food in convection ovens tends to cook more evenly without putting any hot spots and its easier to brown foods a bit for a delicious crunchy crust when appropriate. A convection oven has a fan and exhaust system that a regular normal oven does not have. These appliances include one or more fans that circulate hot air in the oven. The food is cooked through the hot air circulation process.
Key Facts About Convection Ovens You Must Know About!
- The heat produced in Convection oven melts fat and creates steam faster which helps in creating more lift in pie doughs and pastries like croissants.
- If you are covering up the food with a lid or covering a casserole dish with foil and loss of moisture is not an issue, then, in this case, we must use convection ovens as it will cook faster.
- These convection ovens are more expensive as they are larger in size as compared to the old traditional ovens.
- Convection ovens heat frozen food fast by forcing hot air to circulate over and heat food equally from all sides.
- Foods that require roasting or caramelizing are an excellent fit for convection cooking.
- One of the main advantages of using convection ovens is that they are time-saving as food cooks really fast in these ovens.
- As food cooks really fast in a convection oven, and generally at a lower temperature, that’s why it is more energy-efficient than regular ovens.
- Convection speeds up the cooking process by raising hotter air and sinking colder or less dense air for quicker heating.
Best Convection Oven In The US Market Available Today!
There are so many different models of convection ovens are available in the market. The choice totally depends on some of the parameters like its use, available space in your kitchen,size of the appliance etc. These aspects should be in your mind while choosing a convection oven. In this section, we are briefing about some of the best convection ovens present on the US market.
1. Breville BOV800XL Smart Oven | A 1800-Watt Convection Toaster Oven
The Breville Smart Oven is currently one of the most popular convection ovens in the US and it tops our list due to its high-level features.There is an interior oven light that will help to keep an eye on your cooking.In this convection oven, there are ten pre-set cooking functions i.e toast 6 slices, bagel, bake, roast, broil, pizza, cookies, reheat, warm, slow cook.These conventions have a huge capacity of cooking like 13 inches pizza of dimensions 18.5 x 14.5 x 11 and 6 slice toaster.It comes equipped with Element IQ cooking technology, which adjusts power to cook food more evenly and quickly. This heating system distributes heat throughout the oven when and where it is needed, to guarantee more efficient cooking.There will be an inbuilt fan that circulates the hot air within the oven.It speeds up the cooking process by stripping away the cold air that surrounds your food.The walls on the inside of the oven have a nonstick coating for easy cleaning and good maintenance.The oven comes with a 1-year full warranty.This convection oven reduces cooking time up to 30% and its body is made up of stainless steel.
2: Cuisinart TOB-260N1 Chefs Convection Toaster Oven
It is a very spacious oven which has 0.95 cubic foot capacity that fits 13″ pizza and 9″ x 13″ baking pan into it.This convection oven comes with a heat sensor that adjusts the heating elements to the best settings for each function. It has a very friendly user interface with digital functions. It has 15 pre-cooking functions that are Toast, Bagel, Waffle, Keep Warm, Bake, Broil, Roast, Pizza, Leftovers, Sandwich, and Defrost along with an innovative dual cook and speed convection functionalities.This oven has digital controls with a large blue backlit display and LED buttons. It is BPA free and very convenient for an auto-slideout rack.This is helpful when cooking tougher cuts of meats, or slow cooking items for up to 4 hours on two cooking settings.In this convection oven, two different cooking items can be cooked simultaneously at two different temperature levels.Unit Actual Dimensions are of length 20.87″, width 16.93″ and height 11.42″. It has a feature of speed convection which will help in cooking without oven preheating.
3: KitchenAid KCO275SS Convection 1800-watt Digital Countertop Oven
The KitchenAid KCO275SS is a convection oven that offers adaptability in cooking a wide range of dishes. It is not the cheapest convection oven but it provides great quality instead of heavy discounts.It has even-heat technology that provides consistent heat throughout the baking cycle for delicious results.This oven is very useful for baking pizza, broil a side dish, keep an already cooked dish warm or toast bread.This oven has nine pre-programmed functions already present such as the Asado Roast Function to adjust from high to optimal cooking temperature for better roasting.The oven cavity features a non-stick coating for easy cleaning. We can set a 120-minute timer as a reminder that a dish is finished cooking.It offers plenty of time for the requirements of most recipes.It Offers enough room to cook 2-12″ pizzas or cornish hens. This convection oven includes a 12″ non-stick multipurpose pan, 12″ broiling rack, cooling rack, non-stick drip tray, etc.It is made up of stainless steel which is very easy to handle and easy to clean as well.
4: Oster Convection Oven with Dedicated Pizza Drawer
If pizza is a priority dish to make then this convection oven by Oster is best.It is specially designed with turbo convection heat technology. This electric oven uses a fan to circulate hot air and help ensure faster, more consistent cooking and browning.If pizza is a priority dish, this convection oven by Oster is a great and accurate option to buy. It comes with a pizza drawer that can also be used for preparing bruschetta and quesadillas. The oven includes separate top and bottom crumb trays for better cleaning. The 60-minute timer with auto-shutoff and bell signals help to manage your cooking when you are multitasking.This convection oven cooks quickly and browns food evenly.It has separate top and bottom crumb trays and a cool-touch handle for safe operation.This will make your working with oven safer and easier.The oven has a sleek brushed stainless steel exterior that will look good in your kitchen.This oven also has baking pan and baking rack that are assembled together.It has a timer of 60 minutes with auto shut off and bell signal functionalities.
5: Hamilton Beach 31331 Convection Toaster Oven
The Hamilton Beach 31331 is a basic, affordable and good option for people who like to cook limited baked options.This convection cooks faster and more evenly compared to other convection ovens.It is small in size and designed for easy access.Its large, curved glass door improves its easy access to food.The ovens capacity fits 6 slices of bread or a large 12-inch pizza. Main settings are toast, bake & broil. This is an energy-efficient option, using less than 71% energy when compared to peer non-convection toaster ovens.It has contoured knobs that are specially designed to be easy to turn and grip.This model comes in black and silver colors in the market.It has auto shut off functionality with an indicator light that the food is ready.
Planning To Buy A Convection Oven? Here Is Everything You Should Know About It!
Using convection ovens means to save space, time, and maintain better health.Not all the models are the same.All have different functionalities with different features.So it is very important to know about the different options before making a decision.
pros and cons of a convection oven:
- Microwave ovens destroy nutrients that damage the molecular structure of food but convection ovens heat your food evenly by using the surrounding heat.You don’t have to worry about rotating pans.Food crisps up better.
- They are energy savers as they cook food 30% faster than the traditional ovens. The vitamins and nutrients of foods remain intact.They will not be lost during cooking.
- As convection ovens circulate heat throughout the oven so even larger dishes or multiple dishes are baked more effectively.
- It is always recommended by experts to subtract 25C from the set temperature when cooking with a convection oven.
- A convection oven makes sure that heat moves all around the dishes placed inside the oven cavity for even cooking on every dish.
- Convection ovens are more consistent to cook means we dont have to worry about whether your dish should be placed on a lower rack, middle rack, upper rack, to the right, left, or center. A quality convection oven will cook your dish just right no matter where in the oven its placed.
- One more advantage of a convection oven is that we can cook more than one dish at a time.If we want to cook two or three items at the same time,then these ovens are the best option to use. It saves time as well as energy.
- You can put the dishes anywhere as it has more number of sections to keep the pans.
- The main disadvantage is that they are less affordable than conventional ovens. But they provide a lot of other savings as we use this in future.
- They are not designed for all types of food. Foods made from flour such as biscuits as they are best prepared in conventional ovens.
How should I use my convection oven?
There are two key aspects that we should know about cooking meals to perfection.Convection is only effective if the air can circulate well over the food. Use trays, roasting pans, and baking pans with lower sides, and dont cover the oven shelves with foil.As food cooks more quickly on convection, check your food after 15-20 mins again and again according to the recommended cooking time and make any necessary adjustments.
The heat distribution of convection ovens is different from the old type of ovens. Recipes mentioned in books or on the internet provides the cooking time and temperature according to conventional ovens only. To adapt these instructions to your convection oven, youll need to subtract 25F and/or shorten the time by around 25%.
Pots and utensils to be used in a convection oven
It is important to know which type of utensils will not interfere with the distribution of hot air inside the oven. Just like with conventional ovens, youll be able to use trays without edges if youre cooking biscuits or other fatless foods. A convection oven works well with aluminum and light-colored metal pans. Dark or anodized cookware will brown quickly in your oven. Glass, ceramics and clay pans will work in your convection oven. These materials have less effective heat reduction so we should use standard or convection bake settings to use the bottom element. Cast iron is like a glass or earthenware pan. You will need a standard or convection bake setting for proper cooking. For roasting, we should purchase a V-shaped roasting rack. If the meat is elevated above the pan, it will allow the hot air to flow around the meat and brown and bake your roast evenly.
What Can I Cook In My Brand New Convection Oven?
Convection ovens are just what you need if youre looking for the quickest way to make food nice and crunchy. We have plenty of convection oven recipes. They are-
- Harissa-Roasted Carrots With Pistachios
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Mustard Dressing
- Classic Roast Chicken
- Everything Bagel Roasted Salmon
- Strawberry-Rhubarb Pretzel Pie
Some more dishes that we love to cook in our convection oven are:
- Hotpots: Dishes that need slower cooking are ideal for convection ovens. These appliances have even heat transfer that allows the dish to cook from all sides. Another use is that these ovens also allow preparing the food quicker than conventional models.
- Roasts: Convection ovens help keep roasts juicy. The hot air circulates in the oven also helps in browning the skin, giving it a crunchy and attractive appearance.
- Dehydrated food: Your convection oven also serves as a food dehydrator. This is because its fan and convection cycle will speed up the dehydration process of food. That is why you will get the best results by using vegetables,fruits, and nuts.
Cleaning Your Convection Over | Tips That Will Help!
- We should wait until the cooktop cools down and use a damp sponge to wipe off if anything or any cooking spills.
- We should put a small amount of cooktop cleaner over the cooktop and rub the top with a paper or towel until the surface is clean.We should not use any hard scrubber otherwise fine lines will destroy its shiny surface.
- Always use a dry cloth to wipe off the cleaner from the cooktop surface.
- Time to time we should remove oven racks and clean it with soap and then put it back for further cooking.
- Better use an oven-cleaning product.We should apply an adequate amount of oven cleaner to the interior of the convection oven to make it clean and hygienic as well.
- Always being careful to follow the specific instructions on the container for better cleaning.
- We should read the instruction manual to know what all the products we can use to clean it. You should also avoid cleaning your oven directly with water jets or using chlorine products.
Types Of Convection Ovens Available In The Market Today!
Five main types of ovens on the market are available are:
- Regeneration ovens: It is an automatic system for adding moisture to food to be regenerated. These are extremely common in professional kitchens, they are designed to shift foods from frozen to room temperature.
- Steam ovens: These ovens make us cook at low temperatures. In steam ovens, steam and heat combine to retain the natural taste of the food. Food cooked in steam retains moisture better than food cooked in a convection oven. Steamed food always retains more vitamins and minerals than food that is boiled.
- Vacuum ovens: Vacuum ovens cook at low temperatures. This means that the food maintains its original flavors and nutritional content inside it. Vacuum cooking requires you to prepare a container with food and close it with sealed packaging.
- Combi steamers: These appliances carry out all the functions of the previous types of the oven that cook, heat and defrost. Certain models also include the vacuum cooking option. These steamers are more expensive and we mostly found these in professional kitchens.
- Convection ovens. Convection ovens are designed for cooking in general. They are designed in such a way that their power allows us to save both time and energy.
Shopping Criteria
It is always important to consider several features before finalizing any purchase.
- Functionality: There is a wide variety of ovens available in the market. We should see what all features we need to use in our kitchen. Ovens generally feature anywhere between 5 and 12 combined functions of heat, roasting, and convection.
- Capacity: Convection ovens allow you to cook different foods at the same time without mixing flavors. If time-saving is important for you, you could place even more dishes and get cooking. Depending on your use, you could go for a model with a capacity ranging from 10 to 40 liters.
- Size: Again size depends on your needs and available space in the kitchen. Dont pick a model that takes up too much space if your kitchen is small.
- Accessories: The majority of convection ovens also include certain accessories that facilitate cooking, roasting, and frying. These may be handles, trays or roasters, for example. You should consider that the accessories of the model you are buying are useful to your cooking habits.
- Power: The power required by the convection oven is also important to consider. An appliance with a higher voltage will cook the food in less time but it will use more power. This will naturally increase your electricity bill.
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