Can I really cook just with a combi microwave?

I have a panasonic slimline combi microwave. I don't use the combi function much, but I actually prefer using the convection-oven setting to using the cheap and nasty gas oven our landlord provided. The only issues I have with the combi are that the max temp it can reach is 220C which isn't quite hot enough for some stuff, and that you can't fit a regular size yorkies/cupcake pan in there. Well you can, but when the glass microwave plate turns they catch on the door cause they're too wide for the depth of the oven... if that makes sense.

We put yorkie batter in tinfoil pie cases instead of using a tray. And it will fit a small-medium roasting tin, and most other cake/pie/tart baking tins easily so roasts and other baking are just like using an ordinary oven.

I'm not sure how to find out the litre capacity of ours to compare to the one you're looking at, but the glass plate is about 16cm in radius if that helps.

Hi,

My husband and I lived for about 3 yrs with only a combi microwave to cook in (we had no hob either!). It was a good way of learning alternative cooking!!

I bought a sort of pressure cooker type thing that could go in the microwave and that was invaluable for doing pasta and rice.

We ate a lot of roasts as well, doing a small joint with the potatos/veg around the edge.

My tip would be to get the biggest and most robust combi micro/oven you can afford and also take tips from teh recipe book they normally put in there and you should be ok.

Hope this helps!

Most emphatically YES! In fact, next time I have my own kitchen I'll get two combis rather than a conventional oven.

My advice would be not to skimp on the size, it's sometimes difficult to compare go and have a look at some and take in a couple of your pans. The drawback is if you want a roast + roast potatos plus more oven cooked dishes, if you are happy to substitute boiled potatos etc then that's easy but otherwise you need to look for one with a shelf facility so that you can fit two pans and that of course limits the size of your roast. (Hence my planning to have two).

Panasonics have traditionally been good but the current Which? best buy is the Samsung CE1031-B which is larger than average.

Another yes from me....we have been using a Panasonic combination microwave and a single induction hob whilst the kitchen has been undergoing a refit and we still had people round for meals.
I used a 3 tier steamer and a pressure cooker on the hob but not at the same time!

I even managed to make greengage jam in the microwave.