Microwave - Is a Combi moneysaving??

daska

some don't have a grill, some do, mine does

I've had a combi for a good 15 years, longer I know but I can't pin down when I got the first one. I consider it a more valuable bit of kitchen equipment than the oven, to the point that if I installed a new kitchen I'd ditch an oven in favour of two combis. It gets more use, is better at cooking and easier to clean! TBH in the event of a fire I'd walk straight past it and rescue the thermomix but otherwise it would be top of my list.

And in answer to your specific questions yes, yes and yes.

(Personally I'm a Panasonic fan)

meercatsunited

I have a panasonic combi bought earlier this year, I am a newby but have successfully cooked cheaper cuts of meat....pork spare rib, braising steak in half the time, going to fit a new kitchen and not installing an oven. cooked my first chicken last week, lovely.

have cooked dauphinoise potatoes, roast and slice pots in stock cube with caramelised onions. use an electric steamer for other veg.

I am using all functions including grill which seems quicker that the conventional oven.

it does take some effort in learning how to use all functions but is well worth the effort.

two negatives would be if you have a large family you might struggle with the limited space and how the meat that has to be cooked uncovered on combi splashes the walls as someone else said, lots of cleaning.

Mrs_Chip

Both my Panny and the Sharp grill perfectly well. Perhaps not as good as a full gas grill, but I did not have one anyway, we had an electric grill. You might prefer to use a toaster for making toast which is what we do, then if making cheese on toast it goes into the combi. Just takes a little bit longer as the grill is only at the back (so food has to rotate to it iyswim)

Alot_does_not_exist

Am I right in thinking that some of these require a lot of space to either side because of side venting?

As such... I assume they simply will not fit into the standard 60cm housing that conventional microwaves will quite happily.

Charlton_King

Alot_does_not_exist wrote: »

Am I right in thinking that some of these require a lot of space to either side because of side venting?

As such... I assume they simply will not fit into the standard 60cm housing that conventional microwaves will quite happily.

Some but not all. The one suggested by slinky does need lots of space to the side.

meercatsunited

mine is a NN-CF778S Model, requires 10cm at the back and 5cm one side, the other side must be open for ventilation and 15cm at the top and should sit on the worktop
you cannot place this one in an oven housing, it needs more ventilation than a microwave because it is an oven.
the grill elements on this one go from the front to the back as you would have with an oven and there is no rotating dish, we do as others do toast in toaster then grill the cheese

Slinky_Malinky

I am so glad you posted that info regading the space required for the Panny - my wall cupboards are 46cm above the worktop which only leaves a gap of 13cm Maybe I could get away with placing it accross the corner so only a bit would be under the wall cupboard and there would then be plenty of space at each side too. I am not too sure how awkward it would then be to access the microwave to remove hot food though....I suppose the drop down door means you can put a hot dish down if you need to so might work ok.

daska

Alot_does_not_exist wrote: »

Am I right in thinking that some of these require a lot of space to either side because of side venting?

As such... I assume they simply will not fit into the standard 60cm housing that conventional microwaves will quite happily.

Yes BUT... there are ones designed to fit inside the std 600mm housings so they can be placed in the same bank of cupboards as the oven. Some of these are like 'built in' type ovens i.e. with lips to top, bottom and side (I think Bosch still make this type). Others, such as Panasonic's, are free-standing but with the option of a 'trim kit' that makes them look built in.

Living_proof

I have recently bought a Panasonic lusted after by Slinky M and it replaced another combi microwave. It is extremely complicated but you can grill and micro or grill and oven cook at the same time so would be good for cheese toppings. I don't have much time to look at the instructions and really feel I would like to gone on a day course to get the best out of it. One slight disappointment is that having hoped to cook two layers of fairy cakes or similar in it, I find my baking trays are the width of my little finger )or a quarter of an inch in old money) too big so I would probably use my main Die Deitrich fuel guzzler if the mood ever takes me.

Having said that, I may use my big oven for Christmas Day but for the last five or six months I have used the combi for everything. If you are at home a lot and have plenty of time you will probably get your head round all the different facilities it has. And then you can run the course teaching dimbos like me!

Living_proof

The other thing about space is that it takes up pretty much the depth of the worktop and I positioned it carefully so that I could access a plug and still get to my other appliances. I then had a nightmare few days when anything I cooked on the gas hob was undercooked - things like basmati which had always been perfect. I eventually twigged that the fan from the combi, even quite some time after it had finished, blew the gas flame either out or partially out under whatever I was cooking. Fortunately I have two electric hobs too and I use these if I am using the combi at the same time as hob cooking. The Panasonic is a seriously big bit of kit.