October 24, 2023 - 3:53am
Need a new oven
My oven has recently gone kaput. I am interested in the best ovens for bread baking. We are set up for duel fuel. Lots of options out there, some very $$$. Interested to see if anyone has used steam assist or moisture plus or proofing mode. Want feedback before I make an investment.
BTW--Z-line is terrible!!
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Several years ago we remodeled our kitchen and bought a relatively expensive Bosch double oven. It’s terrible! I can’t wait to replace it, but haven’t yet convinced my wife! ;-)
FWIW other Bosch appliances we have (cooktop, dishwasher) are fine, just not the double oven.
We have a duel-fuel setup, with a gas cooktop and a KitchenAid electric convection oven. We've been happy with the oven. It's been accurate and reliable, other than one time when some of the parts got fried doing a self-cleaning (which I think is a pretty common issue for ovens). In terms of modes, proofing mode is useless because you can't control the temperature, I think it's 100°. Convection is great to have - I use it for some bakes and not for others, great to have the option. The biggest drawback (not for bread, but for other cooking) is that the broiler is really wimpy, so it take a long time to brown anything.
In terms of steam ovens, our friends have one and have asked me questions about baking bread in it. The biggest issue is that the max temperature is pretty low, it doesn't get up to the 450-500° that you need for a good crust. So that's something to watch out for.
When we remodeled our kitchen in 2007 we had a KitchenAid convection wall oven installed. the performance was exceptional and the convection feature was used a lot. I never had issues using the proofing mode employed it all the time during the winter when the kitchen temperature was on the low side. We never used the self cleaning mode having read that it was a great way to 'fry' the control board which costs a fair amount to repair. Alas we moved into a condo 18 months ago and bought a 30 inch Cafe slide in range which works fine but I have to kneel down to load bread loaves onto the baking steel.
I've just started investigating some new oven options as well and have been looking at Z-line. I haven't found a lot of information on it. I'd appreciate hearing what your problems with it were. Thanks
If you are looking for something more substantial than a Rofco - someone in a thread mentioned the Häussler - these are different to most as they are fully brick lined and go up to
500 degC.CORRECTION....only 320 degC.Good luck on your journey.
Installed a double (electric only) oven from Miele 2 years ago. Upper oven has steam injection (“moisture plus”) with manual or timed triggers. I love it. Requires a plumbed water line and 220/240 wiring.
Phil
Agree with bmorse on proofing, You would have far more control with a DIY or a Brod and Taylor . I have tried a number of combi ovens and not sure they are worth the expense for bread because all of them that I have found run the convection fan at all times, which is the opposite of what we want during steaming . I currently have a Miele, non plumbed, and agree plumbed is more money ( to run the supply and drain line ) but would probably be worth it since the Miele ovens are XL and consume a lot more water than smaller combi's , like the Thermador. Some have posted really good results with the Wolf combi. i get pretty good results with the MIele combi baking bread , though bagels are even better ( you bake on steam for 6 minutes, add topping and increase the heat to finish - no messing with boiling water) Used to have a dual fuel, and I think for baking, that would be your best bet. You will have to add boiling water to a heat sink in the oven - like a tray with volcanic rock, but the electric oven is usually much better sealed than a gas oven, and so long as it can be run in bake mode ( not convection ) it won't dry out the surface during the steaming portion of the bake.
…that both ovens support proofing at 75-125 dF for up to 2 hours. Greater than 2 hours you have to call up additional cycles. Kind of a PITA, but not a problem too frequently.
P
We purchased an older model on close-out sale about a year and a half ago. I sought advice on this board before purchasing and am glad I did. I love it! Ours is a dual-fuel slide-in range with Moisture Plus. I don't use the proofing feature because I feel I can manage that better "manually." We just bought a new house and the big decision is whether we should take the range with us – that's how happy we are with it. Good luck and have fun deciding!
Just don't buy whirlpool. I bought it for the "steam" option and it ended up that you have to add water to the bottom of the oven. That's their definition of the steam oven.