(PULLING A PERFECT PIZZA OUT OF THE WOOD FIRE OVEN)
How good does that look?
Now that’s exactly how a pizza should be served if you ask me… but unless you’re a millionaire, eating out every night just isn’t realistic.
However some ovens these days come with a pizza mode which is designed to deliver a perfectly cooked pizza in the comfort of your own home. Probably best not to say that too loudly in here!
But deciding whether you want a feature like this is just a small part of the decision making process.
I’m Georgina Burnett from Which? and over the next few minutes I’m going to be finding out some hot tips about built-in ovens – a popular choice when fitting a new kitchen and something you’ll find in 90% of new homes.
There are so many different built-in oven designs to choose from it’s hard to know which one is going to perform best for you. Only a few perform well enough to earn the Which? Best Buy accolade and that’s why we need the Which? experts to tell us what to look out for.
Joining me now is one such expert, Nikki Ratcliff, a lady that knows so much about built-in ovens she can make sure that you end up with a model that suits you, your lifestyle and all your cooking needs!
So, Nikki where de we start?
Well, it’s important to make sure your oven cooks evenly. This can be the key to whether it’s a good buy or a dud – and there’s absolutely no way you could know this when you’re browsing in the shop.
Fortunately Which? have a test specifically for this.-. and it’s quite good fun. It involves placing trays of small cup cakes on each shelve in the oven and then measuring how uniformly they bake and we also evaluate the grill using slices of crustless white bread.
Do you get to eat it afterwards?!
It’s been known!
And there are other things you need to think about as well when shopping for built-in ovens, so, for example:
Whether you want to go for gas or electric.
If your oven comes as part of a fitted kitchen you may not have a choice.
Over 90% of the ovens on the market are electric so if this is what you’re looking for, you’ll be spoiled for choice.
You might have to look a bit harder to find a gas oven, but there are models on the market.
Now a key decision is whether you go for single or double isn’t it?
That’s right.
If you tend to cook for one most of the time, it’s unlikely that you’ll need all of the cooking options a double oven has to offer. However if you’re a keen chef, whether it’s gas or electric, make sure that your oven is flexible enough to meet all your needs.
If you do a lot of cooking, you’ll want a double oven or at least choose an oven with a separate grill.
I want to talk size next. Buillt-in ovens are all very well and good if you’re fitting a brand new kitchen, but what if you’re not?
If you’re not buying an oven as part of a new kitchen then you’re going to have to measure up carefully.
It will obviously need to fit in to an existing space.
Most built-in ovens are 60cm wide so they fit in a standard kitchen cupboard unit, but their height varies.
A single oven is usually around 60cm high, so it can be located either under a worktop or in a tall eye-level unit.
A double oven on the other hand can either be built-under, which are around 72cm high, or built in at eye level, which are about 90cm high.
Now, over at Which? HQ, you do a lot more than just measuring ovens don’t you?
Tell us about the Which? testing process?
Well, if I said it was thorough that would really be an understatement! As well as the cooking tests I mentioned earlier, we also test how quickly it takes to pre heat the oven to set temperatures, and how accurate the controls are. We carry out useability tests, looking at doors, shelves and controls - and we even bake gravy onto the insides of the oven to test how easy it is to clean and you’d actually be surprised how many ovens perform fail both these tests.
And after all the rigorous procedures we put the built-in ovens through, only a handful make it through to Which? Best Buy status.
And to find out exactly which models are the best, all you need to do is sit back and click… by going to the Which? website.
That’s right, and buying the Best Buy model doesn’t necessarily have to be the most expensive. We’ve got some that start at around £300.
Music to any buyers ears…
Thanks for all your advice today Nikki, and some great pointers on how to find the best buy for your new built-in oven.
Now for all the info you need just check out the Which? website.