Oven Deep Dive

 How does it work, why does it work, and how can you break an oven?

We are back again for our final appliance deep dive article. This one is all about the oven in your kitchen. We bake with it, we cook with it, we roast with it, and that’s only some of what your oven allows you to do. We're taking a look at the types of fuel, the parts that you need to be aware of, and the most common features that you can be on the lookout for. 

Types of Ovens

When it comes to ovens, there are three main categories. You have your conventional electric oven, your conventional gas oven, your steam oven, and then the convection oven. 

A conventional oven will cook your food by heating it with radiant heat created by the internal elements rather than an open flame. There are typically two heating elements or resistors in the top and bottom of the oven. Because of the ease of production, this is the most common and most basic oven available on the market. However, these are also not as precise when it comes to cooking. They're fantastic for cooking lots of food, they heat up quickly and evenly, and as we said, they're easy to replace. 

A conventional gas oven, on the other hand, is much better for more precise foods. A gas oven dates back to the 19th century. They can still be found all across the globe, both because they're effective in terms of cost and also because of the ability to fine-tune the temperature. 

The pieces within your gas oven are the ignition, the cooling fan, the thermostat, and the burner or burners, depending. The most important though is the flame failure device. This tool works to cut off the gas supply and prevents the build-up of gases if something goes wrong.

Your gas oven today is actually much safer than many would have you believe when treated properly and maintained. In the past, gas ranges and wall ovens used what was called a free-standing pilot light. Today they rely on a safety valve, that flame failure valve that we mentioned, that doesn't permit gas to flow into the burner unless the igniter is producing enough heat to ignite the gas. If there's no electricity, the oven igniter doesn't get hot enough, and therefore the gases cannot build up. 

The steam oven, though, is an oven that either cooks just by using steam or has an additional steam function on top of other more 'standard' functions that it can switch in between. Most steam ovens function by siphoning water from a cistern that you fill up into a built in boiler. That gets heated to 212* F and then vented into the oven. The heat from the steam is just as effective for cooking your food as any other method, and can actually be faster. 

Our final style of oven, the convection oven, is actually different from either the electric convection oven or the gas oven. In this type of oven, the main feature is actually the fan that enhances both the circulation of air and the temperature in the oven. The other elements include a tray at the bottom to protect your bake elements from drips or spills, a fan blade, a cooling compartment, and a convection baffle. If you're like most people and haven't heard of a battle before this is a case that protects and encloses the fan separate from the rest of the oven. The fan serves to move hot air evenly around your food, causing a faster cooking time.

The convection oven is for more than baking, although that is what some say it's best for it's capable of roasting, broiling, toasting, and dehydrating. All of that with hot "just" hot air. 

Parts of Your Oven

Now, while it's true that your oven types are all very different, there are some similarities that can be found across all of them.

All ovens are going to have an element that accomplishes the goal of making it into a very, very hot box. Electric ovens have a bake element, gas ovens have the burner system, the steam oven has the boiler, and the convection ovens have fan and bake elements. 

They also all have an internal thermostat that's meant to measure the heat inside and shift temperatures as needed. If your oven that you're dealing with is particularly old you might not have that and will need to look for other methods of checking the temperature. 

Most will also feature a small vent inside to help with mitigating the smoke that can be created or a duct for removing the smoke outside.

Beyond these few parts though, your ovens will be different. It's best to hold on to your manual when you purchase it so that you can reference it as needed.

Features With Your Oven 

All right, that's the boring stuff Let's move on to some of the interesting stuff like features you can look out for.

Multiple types of heat settings - 

We love it when an oven has options from baking to boiling to 'keep warm’. Because cooking can be so different at different stages having something like this makes life so much easier and more precise.

Dedicated warmer tray or drawer-

Instead of offering a separate mode, some ovens will offer a dedicated section of the oven for keeping foods at a certain temperature. This is fantastic if you are looking to proof bread or wanting to keep different pieces of a meal warm while other pieces are still cooking.

Steam cleaning mode-

As we've mentioned before, the only good way to clean your oven is with elbow grease. However, we will say that ovens which come with a steam clean mode rather than the burning method, are much more to our liking. These make it so much easier to get in and get everything wiped off and don't require running the risk of melting and important component within your oven.

Safety locks-

Parents rejoice! It is possible to find ovens that feature a safety lock to keep your little ones out of the oven. While that is one feature in a household of many places they can get into, it is definitely a worthwhile feature in our opinion. 

Did you learn what you expected about ovens? Did we miss something glaringly obvious? Let us know over on our Facebook page or in the comments below. 

If, instead, you are here because your oven specifically is giving you trouble, we're sorry to hear that. You can reach out to us via our contact page or by giving us a call at ((214) 599-0055) to set up an appointment today. We will work with you to find a time that works best for you and your schedule. At Appliance Rescue Service, our goal is to get your home running smoothly again.

P.S. And for those of you wondering the answer to our question in the headline of how to break an oven? The answer is easy, you press the “Self-clean” button.

Why Should I Purchase A Steam Oven?

Pros and Cons To A Fantastic Kitchen Appliance

How often have you been faced with choosing between a junk meal you can cook quickly and a delicious meal that takes time? Exactly. We all face that problem time and again. Many of us face it several nights a week. There are entire industries built around how to avoid this very problem. Someone got sick of the idea and figured out how to invent a steam oven. Speed ovens take advantage of cooking quickly and thoroughly, without losing all of the taste and nutritional value of your food.

"Wait blogger," we hear you say* "we've been using steam for ages, that's not any faster than any other way of cooking." And you're right. Just steaming your food isn't particularly fast. Humans have been using steam for ages, so long in fact that historians bicker over who solved it first. Was it the Chinese who wove bamboo steamers? Or was it the people who would end up becoming the French, the Auriganeans who used wet leaves and embers? We're left asking 'why does it matter who did it first if both figured out how to make tasty food?' We might be biased though. Either way, you have food that is introduced to a wet environment, where the water is heated by application either of boiling water or directly by fire and cooked. You can use steam baskets made of bamboo or metal, or you can use double boiling where you place two pots that fit well together where the bottom pan is full of water and the top pan is heated by that boiling water, but no water comes into contact with the actual food. (Fun fact: Chocolate is melted best in this fashion so that the chocolate doesn't seize and become grainy and gross.) 

A steam oven though is an oven which either cooks just by using steam or has an additional steam function on top of other more 'standard' functions that it can switch in between. 

Why Do I want a Steam Oven? 

You might want to purchase a steam oven for several different reasons. 

a) As a replacement for a standard stove.  

    If you're looking at replacing your current oven already, looking at the various functions you'll use or need makes sense. With a steam oven that has multiple modes, you can do many different things and incorporate steam into your life a little at a time. 

b) An addition to your kitchen, such as purchasing an on-the-counter steam oven. 

If however you're not sure about a steam oven, but you want to test it out, you might get a countertop one. This way you can take your time learning to use it and how to adjust recipes you already love to it. 

c) If you're doing a full dietary overhaul. 

While we won't say this can't fit into the other two categories, this is one that we think can also stand on its own as a reason to purchase a steam oven. As we mentioned already steaming your food can lead to tastier food that retains the natural vitamins and nutrients. 

Pros and Cons of Steam Ovens

Pro: You don't need to use oil with a steamer. The steam oven retains moisture both in and around the food as it cooks. This means that the food can't stick as easily to surfaces. (We will note though that this feature only works if you make sure to fill your reservoir before you cook each time.) 

Con: You're not going to get super crispy skin or browned foods. Because those reactions both rely on a 'dry' heat the steam oven can't provide that. (Unless of course, you're working with a multi-function oven like this one from Jenn-Air.)

Pro: Your foods retain more of their nutrients because they aren't leaching into cooking water or oils. Have you ever been told that baking broccoli or carrots is healthier than boiling them? The nutrients leaching into the cooking water is the reason for that. The majority of the vitamins and minerals end up in the water rather than in your stomach. 

Con: This doesn't mean that all of your food is instantly better for you because it was cooked in a steam oven. ((We know, we hoped it would make delicious breads healthier too.)) 

Pro: If you choose a full-sized oven with a steam feature, you can cook multiple foods at once without the flavors blending into each other. 

Con: There is a learning curve in adjusting or coming up with recipes.  (Fortunately, there are plenty of people over on Pinterest with recipes just for cooking with a steam oven! ) 

What do you think? Will you be looking into getting a steam oven sometime soon? Let us know what you think or some recipes you love over on our Facebook page. We'd love to hear from you. 

If you ended up on our site because your current steam oven is broken, we're sorry to hear that! We can still help. Appliance Rescue Service works on all major appliances and we'd be happy to work on yours. Just give us a call at ((214) 599-0055) or visit our website at https://appliance-rescue-service.com/contact-us to make an appointment today. 

* yes, we can hear you through the vast reaches of the internet in terms of this post.