Ovens Worth Coveting
If you’re in the market for a new oven, it’s likely that it’s your first time, this millennium, purchasing one. That’s because the average lifespan of an oven is 15 years. While they still come with broilers, a door lock and adjustable racks, there are plenty of new and exciting add-ons now available. Here’s our list of some of the newest oven innovations on the market:
Convection Steam Oven: A steam oven boils water from an internal reservoir in order to create steam within the oven. Cook times are faster than those of a conventional oven (a 14 pound turkey can be cooked to perfection in 90 minutes). Food prepared in this manner retains its vitamins & nutrients better than a conventional oven. The sales representatives at Warners’ Stellian see a trend in shoppers choosing a single oven with a steam oven over it more often than traditional double ovens.
Sabbath Mode: Jewish law forbids food preparation during Sabbath and manufacturers have taken note with Sabbath mode ovens. This feature, much like a slow cooker or heating lamp at a restaurant, allows food to maintain a consistent temperature for an elongated period of time without drying the food out.
Delayed Start: This feature is great for homeowners on the go because it allows you to preprogram temperatures and cook times. This comes in handy if you want to throw dinner in the oven as soon as you get home from work and don’t want to wait for the preheating process. You can also place food in the oven and delay the baking of it until your desired time.
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Dehydration: Why buy a food dehydrator when your oven can do this task for you? Foods are best dehydrated at temperatures less than 200 degrees but many ovens do not have settings that go that low. Ovens with a dehydrate setting circulate low air temperatures with their built-in fans and remove any moisture in the oven.
Proofing: Used to bake the perfect bread, the proof feature on an oven provides the ideal temperature for bread to rise prior to baking. Some ovens have a steam injection system, as part of the proofing process, which makes for a crispier bread crust.
Dual Temperatures: One of the most frustrating things about hosting a dinner party can be figuring out how bake two dishes that require different oven temperatures. Problem solved with new technology that allows you to set two different temperatures in the oven at the same time. During this process, the homeowner places a divider in the oven that separates the top from the bottom in order to separate the two different climates.
Oven with Apps: Since smartphones are essentially life’s remote control, it should come as no surprise that ovens are now being integrated with technology that allow you to control the appliance with an app on your smartphone. While features vary by model, it’s not uncommon to be able to set cooking temperature and oven mode from the app, though there is industry chatter of future ovens that will be able to store recipes and read them to you as you cook.
