solo microwave or combination?

kezlou

Hi all,

I'm off out to buy a microwave today and i'm wondering which one to go for. The reason were getting is because the kitchen is getting fitted and it could take a while, and i personally am sick of takeaways. I have a camping stove but with all the plaster dust going everywhere it hard to cook.

I've found a combination microwave in Argos for £65, but they also have a solo microwave for £36.

Which one would you all get?

I can't get a secondhand as my OH is scared of radiation and stuff and to be honest so am i. We've never had a microwave before so it's new to us.

Thanks for your help

Kez x

joedenise

If the only cooking facilities you'll have is a camping stove then I would go for a combination microwave as you can use it as an oven, grill or as a conventional microwave. I've had one for years (since they first came out - it's getting pretty old now!) and wouldn't be without it.

Denise

Emmzi

personally I'd go for a halogen oven instead. Then you can do roasts and baking as well.

torbrex

I have a combination but hardly ever use anything but the micro side of it these days. I do like the baked tatties it does on the pre-set programme though

When I got it first, it was because I did not have much in the way of cooking facilities but once the oven went in, I was using it less straight away as it was a pain in the shirt to clean.

SailorSam

My microwave died a few months back and i decided i'd upgrade to a combi 'cos i'm here by myself and i thought it would save putting the main oven on when it's just for one. I suppose typical man i've not read the instructions yet so only using the microwave.

kezlou

Thanks for the replies everyone

I think i will go for the combo one as i think it would probably be better.
The cleaning part doesn't sound good though, but then i hate cleaning lol

I was thinking of a halogen but not sure how it would with soups and things. Does that sound silly

sonastin

We're in the midst of a massive house renovation so I was without a proper kitchen for the best part of 10 months. Camping stove, george foreman grill, slow cooker and combi microwave gave me the means to cook everything I could ever want to cook - and a few more things besides.

The irony is I never even wanted a combi. My parents bought it for me as a xmas present one year. All I wanted was something to replace the prehistoric microwave that I'd inherited from them when I went to uni. My dad bought the combi and my mum berated him because "she doesn't want bells and whistles" and a big argument ensued. To keep the peace I had to try to explain that is wasn't I didn't actively "not want" extras. I just didn't want them to spend on stuff I didn't think I'd use. Many years later, my dad's frivolity/generosity/disregard for what my ma told him turned out to be a life saver. Or at least a sanity saver!

PipneyJane

My vote is for a combi oven. I use mine several times a week. Per my electricity smart meter, it uses about a third less electricity than the electric ovens on my stove.

I've had mine since 2000. We moved into our current house in 2003 and, for the next 7 years, it was the oven. The kitchen wiring was insufficient to wire in my double-electric-oven-gas-hob stove, so if I needed an oven or a grill, I had to use the combi. Even after the house was re-wired, I still use the combi as an oven more than I use the "real" ovens. And I don't think we've used the grill on the stove at all since 2003 - just grill whatever-it-is in the combi.

I've cooked virtually everything in it: stews, roasts, cakes, muffins. It'll take two of my Le Creuset casserole dishes (one oval, one round) but not at the same time, of course. The largest thing I've ever cooked in the combi was a roast duck for Christmas 2009. The original "roasting dish" was a round pizza tray with a one inch lip that is now quite decrepit but I can't find one to replace it. However, I've since found that MrT's enamel lasagne dishes fit quite nicely, so use those.

ETA: we're due to go into the next round of home renovations in the summer (a new kitchen roof), so I expect yet again to be using the combi as my only form of cooking for a few weeks. Wouldn't be without it. We won't be finishing our renovations until at least 2015, which is about the time we'll be able to afford a new kitchen. In the meantime, this is what I'm living with:

spike7451

I've got a combi midrowave but only use the microwave bit,havn't had much luck with the oven/grill so can anyone point me in the direction of a good site with recipies ect for it?..

Thanks.

kezlou

Well i did it, i've bought a combi and used it to make a dried pasta cheese / broc thing for the boys.

Wow pipney, you cook all that in a combi? great! Were renevating too, pretty soon i won't have a bath / shower, well if the landlady agrees to it.
Bet your kitchen will look amazing when its finished

Oh and any tips would be fab!

Thanks again!

Stephen_Leak

My tip: read the manual, and experiment with every function.

I'm still learning how to fly my Hitachi MC300 combination oven. The main thing is to remember that it's not just a microwave.

Living on my own, it's much more economical than my big main oven.