Toaster ovens

[rotuts]

full disclosure: the toast in the B oven is not exactly like toasts in a hight end pop up: on mine ( the smaller one ) the heating elements (smart ones) seem to vary in intensity near the end of the timming ( which is limited ) resulting in a toast that is on th 'baked'side: not the very crispy on the outside with high heat throughout and a touch of a soft center: more crispy throughout.

Ive gotten used to that.

[StanSherman]

My only issue with Breville is their construction teniques. They don't make the units user repairable. Or toaster went out afet a couple of years and it's virtually impossible to fix it. The cost to send it in and have it done is virtually the same a buying a new one. IMO it's one of the few items where an extended warranty should be figured into the cost of the purchase.

[Panaderia Canadiense]

A hearty vote here for the Black and Decker convection model, which is smaller than a Breville but still large enough to roast a good-sized hen or a small duck. My current one cost me just a hair over $100 (but bear in mind those are Ecuadorian prices - they're surely cheaper stateside!)

What Jaymes has said about hot-weather climates and toaster ovens holds especially true, but she missed one lovely feature of the TO that's essential to hot-climate cooking. When it's 110 out and you absolutely don't want to add even half a degree more heat to your house, a toaster oven is portable and you can set it up outside. Which means that if you've got a hankering for garlic cheese potatoes to go with your grilled meats, it's a snap to pull the oven out onto the balcony or deck and plug it in there.

EDIT - I should also mention that I have never used my toaster oven to make toast, but that's a function of always having fresh bread available and not liking toast all that much. It's no comment on the oven's ability to toast bread.

Edited March 3, 2013 by Panaderia Canadiense (log)

[Emily_R]

In case you don't want something massive like a Breville -- I certainly didn't even want anything as big as their smaller unit -- I have been very very happy with this:

http://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-TOB-40-Classic-Toaster-Broiler/dp/B004JMZGM2

Toasting is amazingly fast and even, and works great as a mini oven as well -- very even browning and baking of chocolate chip cookies!

Note that the *SMALL* Breville is 16 x 14 x 10, and this Cuisinart is 16 x 12 x 8. To me that is a much much better countertop size...

[GlorifiedRice]

Shall we all post pics of toast made in our TOs?

Toast made in a Black and Decker Spacemaker toaster oven TROS1500

Top side Left Bottom side Right

[lancastermike]

We also have the Breville Smart oven and it is all everyone claims it to be. It is out of the price range the OP indicated and perhaps the size as well. But it is the most used device in our kitchen. I could not beany happier with it.

[Shel_B]

Sizewise, the small Breville is OK. The price is a little more than I'd like to pay for such a tool, but it is workable.

The Cuisinart is better WRT price and size, but more than 30% of the reviews were low and at least somewhat negative.

I've never had good luck with B&D products, so I tend not to consider them

However, I'm in no rush to make a purchase, so there's ample time to do a more complete investigation.

I like the idea of being able to toast more tha two "standard" slices of bread as th Breville does, although I usually use more artisnal styles of bread, and some of those produce large slices. It would be great to see more pics of toast.

Thanks for all the suggestions ... Shel

[peterm2]

My only issue with Breville is their construction teniques. They don't make the units user repairable. Or toaster went out afet a couple of years and it's virtually impossible to fix it. The cost to send it in and have it done is virtually the same a buying a new one. IMO it's one of the few items where an extended warranty should be figured into the cost of the purchase.

I had my Smart Oven completely die on me, but my interactions with Breville's customer service were unparalleled. They were extremely helpful and paid for me to send mine back, then sent a replacement right away. Really a great experience, so I'd suggest giving them a call and seeing if they help you out before you junk it or do something locally.

[Jaymes]

I don't want to contradict anyone that said they liked the Cuisinart, and perhaps they had a different model than we did, but we hated ours. So we tossed it after a year or so, and got that Oster at Sam's. Not perfect, maybe, but at $40, the price was right and we liked it fine. Much better than that Cuisinart and half the price.

[dcarch]

It does not matter how much you paid for a toaster oven.

They are all limited by the maximum allowed electric outlet capacity, which is about 1,800 watts in the USA.

dcarch

[andiesenji]

One of my neighbors bought a Cuisinart, I think I wrote about it last year, she described it as a "whole tree full of lemons" the heat regulator was not reliable and then one SUNDAY morning, when they had guests, the door fell off.

They took it back to the store as it was only four or five months old and got a run around until they made a lot of noise.

They got the Waring Pro Toaster oven and Toaster combo because they have 7 children and this way they could retire the separate toaster and make enough toast for everyone.

It has a hefty footprint but has worked very well for them and it has taken a beating from their kids.

Her sister got one a few months after they did and had a problem with the toaster lever - took it back to the store (Sears) and no problem given a new one which has worked fine.

Amazon has it.

[Jaymes]

It does not matter how much you paid for a toaster oven.

They are all limited by the maximum allowed electric outlet capacity, which is about 1,800 watts in the USA.

dcarch

Right, but the construction and features can vary widely. That Cuisinart didn't even have a timer for the bake function. It did have a timer, in seconds, for the toast function, but if you wanted to bake something for, say, twenty minutes, you had to set a separate timer, like the one on your range or microwave or something, and then when it rang, go turn off the Cuisinart, which would cook until Taylor Swift finds someone to marry, if you didn't turn it off manually. No timer and no automatic turnoff. Which was a real turnoff for us, too. Among many other turnoffs. Like extremely shoddy construction, for example.

"Hated it" is not too strong a phrase.

In fact, "actively loathed" is closer to the truth.

.

[Chris Hennes]

That Cuisinart didn't even have a timer for the bake function. It did have a timer, in seconds, for the toast function, but if you wanted to bake something for, say, twenty minutes, you had to set a separate timer,

What is it about toaster ovens that seems to bring out the worst in product designers? I've never owned a Cuisinart, but I have owned TWO different toaster ovens that suffered from similar lacking-or-garbage-timer issues. Seriously, how hard is this?! It's a toaster OVEN. OVEN!! Ok, I'm done ranting now...

[EMichels]

Definitely purchase a model with dials for time and temperature settings. I have a Krups model, which I otherwise like very much but it suffers from digital settings with up/down buttons to set the time and temperature. The temperature adjusts in 25 degree intervals and the time in 1 minute intervals. This wouldn't be so bad if the default time were not set at 30 minutes. I cook a lot of things in my toaster oven but I cannot recall ever cooking something for 30 minutes. The result is that every time that I use the machine it requires at least 27 button presses to set the combined time and temp. It is easily the dumbest design among anything that I own.

[Jaymes]

Definitely purchase a model with dials for time and temperature settings. I have a Krups model, which I otherwise like very much but it suffers from digital settings with up/down buttons to set the time and temperature. The temperature adjusts in 25 degree intervals and the time in 1 minute intervals. This wouldn't be so bad if the default time were not set at 30 minutes. I cook a lot of things in my toaster oven but I cannot recall ever cooking something for 30 minutes. The result is that every time that I use the machine it requires at least 27 button presses to set the combined time and temp. It is easily the dumbest design among anything that I own.

Boy, I agree with this. I will say that the Oster I mentioned above has an excellent timer system. All in all, a pretty good product. Especially at that price.

[Shel_B]

I'm about ready to buy the toaster oven - in fact, I may slide on down to the local BBB later this morning - and I'm inclined towards the small Breville, BOV450XL. A couple of the reviews mentioned that the oven doesn't have a broiler pan. Is that the small, jelly roll like pan that some toaster ovens have? Thanks!

[gfweb]

Shel look hard at the bigger breville. I love it.

[rotuts]

I have the smaller BV. i got it over the larger because there was a place it "just fit" on my counter.

generally when i buy 'hardware' I get the 'next model up' if i can afford it as then i won't be stuck with something that didnt' have

a feature I missed thinking about that was on the Next Up. I also hem and haw a lot as I probably didnt need this in the first place.

Violating my Own Law, in this case was a big mistake as the larger one does some stuff this does not. and now Im stuck.

" single charge costs " are cheap over the long run. 'mistakes' are expensive over that same amount of time. not the that

the smaller one is a mistake: i would have enjoyed the larger way over the price difference.

BTW the smaller has one very very very annoying design issue: the racks to NOT have the lip on the back end that prevent them

from sliding out all the way: on your counter, on the floor. For this price range that's just Criminal.

So... doing this again, Id get the larger and fiddle 10 minutes with my counter array. I be a bit happier. just a bit.

Alway Take Your 20 % Coupon with You.

I also think this doesnt do a very good job with conventionally thick/thin toast. it more or less bakes it.

thicker Home Made bread does fine.

Edited October 20, 2013 by rotuts (log)

[gfweb]

The big one is big enough for casserole dishes, a full sized meatloaf and small loaves of bread. We rarely use the big ovens now so we save big on fuel.

[rotuts]

on the Big One, do your racks slide all the way out w/o a lip on the back to keep them 'in check'

also think of this as An Oven that Toasts.

Edited October 20, 2013 by rotuts (log)

[gfweb]

Racks do not slide all the way out.

[Martin Fisher]

Is the big one large enough to accommodate an un-spatchcocked 5 to 6 lb. chicken?

[rotuts]

as Alton Brown states at the end of the 'Good Eats' shows (during credits) " Buzz, ... , Buzz , Buzz, Buzz. "

I motored down to my Local BB at Speed and politely explained how unhappy i was with the BV small. Politely. I explained

i had had it probably ( ) more then 6 m. But I really wanted the Big Boy. would they exchange it? Having a spanking brand

new 20 % coupon in hand they said " Sure "

as my good friend W.C.Fields used to state after getting out of bed in the morning afternoon:

"Ill be drinking early today "

Thanks Shel !

[gfweb]

Is the big one large enough to accommodate an un-spatchcocked 5 to 6 lb. chicken?

I'm not sure. I'd say probably.

[MelissaH]

I agree with everyone who's saying to look really really really hard at the big one. It's enough larger that it can take the place of your standard range oven for many things, in ways the smaller one could not. I can fit a 9-inch dish (square or round) in mine, with plenty of room around it. My standard 13-inch pizza screen also fits in nicely (and the oven does a reasonably good job on a pizza). We don't typically get chickens that large, but I agree with gfweb that it probably would fit in.