Anyone actuallyuse Combi Microwave/Grill/Fan Oven???

Dclutterchique

I have a De Longhi combi that was purchased in 2020.  I have no advice on adjusting/converting settings for combi mode.  When using convection/fan oven mode I've found that reducing the fan oven temp by 10 degrees Celsius but keeping the time the same as the instructions works perfect.  EG if the instructions for a dish say cook Fan 180 degrees C for 30 mins I cook at 170 degrees C for 30 mins.

ouraggie

Our new build came with one. Used it a couple of times. It’s now just another kitchen cupboard and i cook everything in the air fryer or the halogen oven!

vacheron

silvercar said:

I have a Neff one. I have used it as an oven when I've run out of room in my main oven. I usually use it as a microwave, but it isn't as even in microwaving as my previous stand alone microwave, I'm guessing because it doesn't have a turntable.

Exactly this! 

I also have a Neff combi alongside a larger Neff "Slide and Hide" Steam oven.
IIRC, the Combi cost about £300 more than the larger steam oven did. 
Here are the pro's and cons from my experience. 

Pro's

• Saves a bit of room on the countertop where the microwave would go, and fits 2 appliances into 1.

• It it goes 20 degrees higher than the larger oven (220C vs 200C) and heats up very slightly quicker because it is smaller... but regardless of this we still tend to use the larger oven for almost all "ovening", especially as the larger one is pyrolytic, but the smaller on isn't. 

Con's 
Inferior in almost EVERY other regard! 

• The lack of a turntable (because it is trying to be a "Jack of all trades"), means the food doesn't warm as evenly, so it needs to be moved around a few times if what you are microwaving is large.

• It tells you you need to run a 15 minute "drying cycle" after using it as a microwave so that you don't get musty smells from the moisture (we just leave the door slightly open for a couple of hours). 

• The 750w Asda microwave we had before it which cost about £35 absolutely destroys it on power and heating times despite the Neff claiming to be 1000W (which it really isn't if you read the manual) it is more like a 600W with a short turbo feature, but it still heats slower than a 600W conventional microwave in my opinion.

• When you really need it (lots of guests, both ovens going) you will probably also need a microwave as well, but you don't have one because your microwave is currently functioning as an oven. 

• You need to remember that if you microwave directly after using it as an oven, the insides are still red hot. This means that you cannot put plastic on the shelf to microwave things in, as it will melt, and also if you use something like a ceramic or glass bowl or jug during microwaving, you need to unlearn not to just grab it when done like a normal microwave, because the container will now also be hot because it has been in a residually hot oven for the last 5 minutes!

• Oh, and it was about £1,100 at the time we did the kitchen renewal (about 6-7 years ago), and is used 95% of the time as an inferior version of a £35 microwave! We have NEVER used it in combination to cook something, and can think of no example where we ever would. 

My advice to anyone else: Buy a dedicated oven and a separate dedicated microwave (a "built in" one if you want the neatness). Then get an air fryer for the rare occasions when you need 2 "ovens" at once. 

silvercar

vacheron said:

silvercar said:

I have a Neff one. I have used it as an oven when I've run out of room in my main oven. I usually use it as a microwave, but it isn't as even in microwaving as my previous stand alone microwave, I'm guessing because it doesn't have a turntable.

Exactly this! 

I also have a Neff combi alongside a larger Neff "Slide and Hide" Steam oven.
IIRC, the Combi cost about £300 more than the larger steam oven did. 
Here are the pro's and cons from my experience. 

Pro's

• Saves a bit of room on the countertop where the microwave would go, and fits 2 appliances into 1.

• It it goes 20 degrees higher than the larger oven (220C vs 200C) and heats up very slightly quicker because it is smaller... but regardless of this we still tend to use the larger oven for almost all "ovening", especially as the larger one is pyrolytic, but the smaller on isn't. 

Con's 
Inferior in almost EVERY other regard! 

• The lack of a turntable (because it is trying to be a "Jack of all trades"), means the food doesn't warm as evenly, so it needs to be moved around a few times if what you are microwaving is large.

• It tells you you need to run a 15 minute "drying cycle" after using it as a microwave so that you don't get musty smells from the moisture (we just leave the door slightly open for a couple of hours). 

• The 750w Asda microwave we had before it which cost about £35 absolutely destroys it on power and heating times despite the Neff claiming to be 1000W (which it really isn't if you read the manual) it is more like a 600W with a short turbo feature, but it still heats slower than a 600W conventional microwave in my opinion.

• When you really need it (lots of guests, both ovens going) you will probably also need a microwave as well, but you don't have one because your microwave is currently functioning as an oven. 

• You need to remember that if you microwave directly after using it as an oven, the insides are still red hot. This means that you cannot put plastic on the shelf to microwave things in, as it will melt, and also if you use something like a ceramic or glass bowl or jug during microwaving, you need to unlearn not to just grab it when done like a normal microwave, because the container will now also be hot because it has been in a residually hot oven for the last 5 minutes!

• Oh, and it was about £1,100 at the time we did the kitchen renewal (about 6-7 years ago), and is used 95% of the time as an inferior version of a £35 microwave! We have NEVER used it in combination to cook something, and can think of no example where we ever would. 

My advice to anyone else: Buy a dedicated oven and a separate dedicated microwave (a "built in" one if you want the neatness). Then get an air fryer for the rare occasions when you need 2 "ovens" at once. 

Totally agree, other than the main oven is a fan oven, so you set at 20 degrees lower for the same cooking capability. The main oven also has a quick heat mode, so heats to the desired temperature, meaning you can add the food far quicker. I would be interested to know the comparison on power used.

I would say for cooking time of 1 hour, the main fan oven will cook in 50 minutes at 20 degrees lower. Add on some heating up time for the combi and you have say 65 minutes at 220 degrees vs 50 minutes at 200 degrees. Both are going to cycle on and off to maintain that heating temperature, the main oven also has a fan to power and the combi has a smaller space to heat.

Ictmims

Gifted a £400 faulty one, I swapped out the magnetron, and it works fine. Convection cooked my pie, and then microwaved a 5-minute jacket potato last night. I have used small bits of aluminium foil, but won't microwave with the metal racks in the oven. 

Regularly heat ready meals at 30% to allow heat to permeate through more slowly, saving burnt corners.