New Kitchen Advice

[cliveb]

Induction leaves any other option standing. As controllable as gas, but safer.

Not only as controllable as gas, but massively quicker to get stuff going.

The only possible downside is that if you whack it up to max to start a pan, you need to watch it like a hawk otherwise you can turn your back for 5 seconds and the damn thing has boiled over.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Forummers experience please of compact multifunction ovens with microwave…

These are generally £1000+ and we are considering combining one with a ‘full size’ oven. Lot of money so how we’ll do they deliver…ease of use etc.

Concern is that we might be wishing to use microwave at same time as compact oven is in use. How often that is I don’t know…probably pretty rare…so could go separate compact oven and microwave, but the combination?

I guess the key question on combi compact oven/micro is…If I have something oven cooking and want to use the microwave…can I just take the food out of the oven and switch to and immediately use the microwave. Then when done with microwave put the food back in to continue oven cooking?

 

[cliveb]

Forummers experience please of compact multifunction ovens with microwave…

These are generally £1000+ and we are considering combining one with a ‘full size’ oven. Lot of money so how we’ll do they deliver…ease of use etc.

Concern is that we might be wishing to use microwave at same time as compact oven is in use. How often that is I don’t know…probably pretty rare…so could go separate compact oven and microwave, but the combination?

I guess the key question on combi compact oven/micro is…If I have something oven cooking and want to use the microwave…can I just take the food out of the oven and switch to and immediately use the microwave. Then when done with microwave put the food back in to continue oven cooking?

We had one of them installed when we had the kitchen done about 6 years ago. It was a top of the range AEG and as you say, cost about £1000.

As a conventional small fan oven, it was fine. The big full size oven only got used when it was really needed.

As a microwave it was absolutely useless, with hot spots and cold spots. Supposedly had a rotating antenna, but it didn't do the job.
We once tried to defrost a naan in there and part came out still frozen while in another place it was burnt.

We ended up having to buy a normal countertop microwave.

 

[bobmac]

Here's mine....

 

[Bunkermagnet]

Forummers experience please of compact multifunction ovens with microwave…

These are generally £1000+ and we are considering combining one with a ‘full size’ oven. Lot of money so how we’ll do they deliver…ease of use etc.

Concern is that we might be wishing to use microwave at same time as compact oven is in use. How often that is I don’t know…probably pretty rare…so could go separate compact oven and microwave, but the combination?

I guess the key question on combi compact oven/micro is…If I have something oven cooking and want to use the microwave…can I just take the food out of the oven and switch to and immediately use the microwave. Then when done with microwave put the food back in to continue oven cooking?

Combination oven/microwaves can be a good idea, but also expensive if they go wrong. Right now supply isn't good, but an integrated one wont be cheap. We have a Panasonic one (I bought the integrated kit to go with it after buying it) to go with our Miele oven. The Pana combi is a great little oven, economical and quick to use, and as a microwave is perfect. It doens't have a turntable, just wave guide antenna's (as all microwaves go that don't have a turntable. The biggest upside is that the cavity will take more or bigger items when using the microwave but some can suffer from uneven cooking IF the user doesn't pause the cooking and move the item/'s around as the instructions will probably say. Mine though cooks fine and even.
As far as using different cooking methods straight after each other, yes thats not problem other than be sure to use an item to hold the food thats happy with the temperatues already created.
Personally, I think they are an ideal companion to a single oven and something I would always have in a kitchen now.

 

[cliveb]

but some can suffer from uneven cooking IF the user doesn't pause the cooking and move the item/'s around as the instructions will probably say.

I thought the idea of a microwave is that it's convenient. Having to faff about constantly moving the food around as it cooks (as we had to with our AEG) doesn't exactly fit that purpose.

The fact that a £50 microwave with a turntable cooks just fine but a £1000 combi oven needs babying is frankly scandalous.

 

[Bunkermagnet]

I thought the idea of a microwave is that it's convenient. Having to faff about constantly moving the food around as it cooks (as we had to with our AEG) doesn't exactly fit that purpose.

The fact that a £50 microwave with a turntable cooks just fine but a £1000 combi oven needs babying is frankly scandalous.

Microwave cooking is about speed of cook, not convenience. Most microwaves mount the magnetron(fires the very short radio waves) on the side so the waves emanate form the side. Unless the item being cooked is rotating it is a challenge to keep an even penetration by the microwaves.

 

[cliveb]

Microwave cooking is about speed of cook, not convenience.

And there was me, thinking for the last 40 years that convenience was an important aspect to microwave cooking.
I guess you're never too old to learn!

 

[Bunkermagnet]

And there was me, thinking for the last 40 years that convenience was an important aspect to microwave cooking.
I guess you're never too old to learn!

Since I can’t read which way to take that, I’ll try and be as neutral as I can.
If you consider reducing cooking times of something dramatic as inconvenient because the item has to be moved midway through the time, then I can only assume you also consider having to allow the food “standing time” after your cooking time as finished also inconvenient.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Appliances…we’re mostly Bosch folk, but for no great reason other than it has always done us fine. We‘ve been quoted for Zanussi appliances of which we have little experience. They look fine and the price is right…but I would welcome thoughts on Zanussi - ovens, fridge freezer, induction hob etc.

 

[KenL]

We've had Zanussi fridge and freezer for 14 years. Still going strong.

 

[bobmac]

Don't forget lighting.
A run of wifi led lights under and over the wall cabinets linked to Alexa/ Google home work a treat.

 

[chellie]

Appliances…we’re mostly Bosch folk, but for no great reason other than it has always done us fine. We‘ve been quoted for Zanussi appliances of which we have little experience. They look fine and the price is right…but I would welcome thoughts on Zanussi - ovens, fridge freezer, induction hob etc.

Which has the longest and best guarantee.

 

[GB72]

Which has the longest and best guarantee.

I do not worry so much about that any more as I always have a policy in place to cover the repairs to the main kitchen appliances as they are not expensive. My issue has been with what brands can be repaired easily. May be simply heresay but I have head comments that Bosch are a nightmare to repair by anyone except a Bosch engineer.

 

[chellie]

I do not worry so much about that any more as I always have a policy in place to cover the repairs to the main kitchen appliances as they are not expensive. My issue has been with what brands can be repaired easily. May be simply heresay but I have head comments that Bosch are a nightmare to repair by anyone except a Bosch engineer.

Used to have a Bosch washer and we never used their engineer to repair.

 

[GB72]

Used to have a Bosch washer and we never used their engineer to repair.

It was my ftaher in law who had Bosch appliances in his rental properties and could never find anyone other than Bosch engineers who would repair them. Mind you, that could easily be him being not bothered to find a decent independent engineer.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Don't forget lighting.
A run of wifi led lights under and over the wall cabinets linked to Alexa/ Google home work a treat.

Sounds cool but other than that what‘s the point of WiFi controlled lighting…?

 

[bobmac]

Sounds cool but other than that what‘s the point of WiFi controlled lighting…?

You can control your lights with your voice.
Turn them off and on, change colour, change brightness etc

 

[Mudball]

We may be in the market.. have heard great things about Howden, but not sure we can afford it. We may end up with Wren simply because of the financing ...

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

You can control your lights with your voice.
Turn them off and on, change colour, change brightness etc

hmmm...i suppose so...though not something we've ever thought we needed, and not sure we are colour changing folks. But who knows, something to consider.