Cooking a Sunday dinner or preparing for a big family meal is much less stress-free if you have a decent oven. If you have a separate oven and hob then you have a huge range to choose from when upgrading your oven for a newer, more efficient model. Choose from conventional electric ovens, fan ovens, gas ovens, steam ovens and multi-function ovens which have various settings to give you perfect results every time. But which oven is the right one for your needs and your style of cooking? To help you make an informed choice Dalzells have put together the following oven buyers guide. Take a look at the sections below and find out more. Alternatively why not visit our retail store at Markethill? We’ll give you the best advice, not to mention the best deals available in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. For ovens think Dalzells.
What type of oven?
Here are the various kinds of oven available on the market today with a description of each to help you choose.
Conventional ovens
Conventional, otherwise known as electric, ovens can be either single electric ovens or double electric ovens. They work on the premise that heat rises from the bottom to the top which means that the top of your oven will always be the hottest. This is perfect for cooking different dishes at the same time which require slightly different temperatures. You will however, need to pre-heat the oven first to get it to the right cooking temperature.
Fan electric ovens
Fan assisted electric ovens help to maintain an even cooking temperature throughout and heat up more quickly than a conventional oven. Pre-heating your oven is still necessary but you won’t need to do it for as long so you’ll save energy. Top end fan ovens mean you can cook different dishes at the same time without transference of flavours. Neff’s Circotherm fan oven is a perfect example of this.
Multifunction ovens
Multifunction ovens as the name suggests are electric ovens with various settings to give you complete control over your cooking. They generally combine fan assist with conventional cooking to allow you to defrost, bake and roast with complete precision. You can also use bottom heat only for crisping pizza or pie bases, or top heat only for browning.
Gas ovens
Ignited by an electric spark a gas oven is often the choice of professional chefs as gas gives of moisture which is especially good for avid bakers.
Steam ovens
The sous vide method of cooking is used in many top restaurants and a steam oven allows you to cook this way to ensure the flavour and moisture of your food is retained. You can also buy electric ovens with a steam feature to circulate moisture which keeps your roasts juicy.
Compact ovens
The term compact oven can be deceiving as Dalzells sell a range of compact ovens with a 50l capacity which are actually bigger than some standard ovens. The external casing is more streamlined however which allows a compact oven to fit into a more limited space.
Microwave ovens
For speed and convenience, a microwave oven is perfect. Defrost frozen foods in seconds and heat up left overs in the blink of an eye. Some microwave ovens also come with a combination grill.
Delivery & Installation
Dalzells offer free delivery across Northern Ireland and within counties Lough, Monaghan and Dublin. See our website for full delivery information. For details on installation see our appliance connection page.
