Hobs Brands

[mrs_bean 0]

Dear PorkyPig,

Thanks for the PM. I went to Poh Joo yesterday. For the same model of HOBZ cooker hob, the shop in Jln Besar quoted me $130 lesser than the shop in IMM, without having to bargain at all. I will buy it if my mom is game enough to try out glass hob. She cooks everyday, and loves to boil soup.

got my hob, hood n oven fr poh joo too... good deal

[herbman76 0]

some link for hoods & hods

FYI reference

Fujiton

Tecnogas

Rinnai

Mayer - Ariston, Delizia & Indesit

Ellane

[anise 0]

anyone use electrolux hood and hob before? as compare to mayer, which is better?

[reds79 0]

I decide to buy Ellane.....

[SYTan 0]

Any reviews on Hobz? I was quoted a pretty cheap price at Geylang for a stainless hob and hood package. =)

[sgpeace 0]

Any reviews on Hobz? I was quoted a pretty cheap price at Geylang for a stainless hob and hood package. =)

Hi Porkypig & LLCC

Is the length and cost of your glass HOBZ hob? I trying to get a 70cm glass one but having problem finding its website for pics.

Thks

Hi Porkypig & LLCC

Is the length and cost of your glass HOBZ hob? I trying to get a 70cm glass one but having problem finding its website for pics.

Thks

What is the length and cost?

[leen 2]

I'm thinking of getting ovens ... Is a conventionl better or microwave oven ? any brands to recommend ?

conventional oven and microwave oven are different.

they are different in terms of the way they cook the food.

microwave oven:

- vy fast in cooking the food (follow the manual or the selection indicated on the oven)

- after cook, the food tends to be drier, eg. if you cook chicken in soup in microwave oven, the chicken meat tends to be drier inside.

- cannot really bake cake / pastry properly as most baking requires top & bottom heat element to slowly bake the cake internally without burning the exterior. even if the microwave oven indicates that it can bakes or hv baking functions, it cannot be compare to a conventional oven.

- a handy and gd kitchen appliances for quick cooking but consumes electricity

conventional oven: (hope you refer to those that can bake type)

- can bake cakes / pastry

- can grill food / meat

- can do double boil by cooking in aluminium foil or in casserole pot (eg. double boil chicken meat tonic food)

- try to choose those that got more functions, meaning can bake and cook meat type.

- depend on what you intend to do, eg. if you grill turkey, then hv to get a bigger oven, or if you bake many cakes at 1 go, also need a bigger oven, if not you have to queue them up. otherwise a mid size type can do already.

above appliances are tried, tested and certified coz i use them all to try many things bakes, grills, double boil, warm, cooked many many....

even use microwave to warm up my cold milk (from fridge).

hope the above helps.

[SYTan 0]

Hi Porkypig & LLCC

Is the length and cost of your glass HOBZ hob? I trying to get a 70cm glass one but having problem finding its website for pics.

Thks

What is the length and cost?

Hi, maybe you want to check on this site for Hobz.

http://www.hobz.com.sg/aboutus.html

[Dazzle08 0]

conventional oven and microwave oven are different.

they are different in terms of the way they cook the food.

microwave oven:

- vy fast in cooking the food (follow the manual or the selection indicated on the oven)

- after cook, the food tends to be drier, eg. if you cook chicken in soup in microwave oven, the chicken meat tends to be drier inside.

- cannot really bake cake / pastry properly as most baking requires top & bottom heat element to slowly bake the cake internally without burning the exterior. even if the microwave oven indicates that it can bakes or hv baking functions, it cannot be compare to a conventional oven.

- a handy and gd kitchen appliances for quick cooking but consumes electricity

conventional oven: (hope you refer to those that can bake type)

- can bake cakes / pastry

- can grill food / meat

- can do double boil by cooking in aluminium foil or in casserole pot (eg. double boil chicken meat tonic food)

- try to choose those that got more functions, meaning can bake and cook meat type.

- depend on what you intend to do, eg. if you grill turkey, then hv to get a bigger oven, or if you bake many cakes at 1 go, also need a bigger oven, if not you have to queue them up. otherwise a mid size type can do already.

above appliances are tried, tested and certified coz i use them all to try many things bakes, grills, double boil, warm, cooked many many....

even use microwave to warm up my cold milk (from fridge).

hope the above helps.

Thank for the detailed explanation. I will go for conventional oven

[leen 2]

Thank for the detailed explanation. I will go for conventional oven

glad that the above helps. and happy using your oven. there r many possiblities that you can try with a conventional oven. some are convection oven. you can google search to see their difference.

just remember that the oven must hv a:

1) top element

2) bottom element

3) fan function

4) combine use of top & bottom element

5) combine use of top element with fan

6) combine use of bottom element with fan

7) glass door big enough for you to peep at your food / temperature gauge that you hv put inside the oven to measure the temp.

8) glass door is best to be double layer so that the outer layer will be cool to touch even when you r cooking. you don't want to scald yourself, or older folks or kids accidentally touch it when its cooking coz the heat is really high and hot.

9) hv a rack and a baking tray.

10) hv at least 3 layer for you to choose the appropriate layer to place your food to cook. eg. top layer for baking cookies, where its small in size & qty and cooks easily with a light browning on top. mid layer for baking of most cakes and cooking of most food that require longer time to cook. seldom we use bottom layer as it will burn the bottom of the food with the top uncook and the middle of the food (eg. cake, or chicken, turkey) half cooked.

11) light inside the oven (can be on for you to see the inside of the oven clearly without turning on the cooking function. once cooking function is selected and used, it will be on till you turn it off).

12) timer on the oven

(the rest are optional coz you may not be using many functions most of the time)

and some ppl may persuade you to spend $4k & above for ovens, do seriously consider if your usage of the oven is high and you are into full time cooking or professional cooking coz:

1) 1stly, technology changes vy fast, so if the oven last you for 10 years, there may hv spare parts if it broke down.

2) the more expensive an electronic item is, the more intricate and complicate component it has and thus any maintenance or repairs will be costly. eg. if you buy a jap car, there are plenty of cheap parts readily available, if you buy a beemer, the repair / maintenance cost is vy high.

3) self cleaning function

i find this unnecessary. coz after every use of the oven, the heat will melt away all food / sauces that are splatter on it which is ususally not so if you protect your oven by putting the food in casserole pot to cook or wrap up the food in aluminium foil to cook.

and if you are grilling a chicken (eg.), you poke a bbq stick through the chicken and you can place in a casserole pot without the lid to grille so that it catches the dripping sauce or have the bbq stick hang across the internal oven for a more rounded grille but do place a tray below to catch the dripping sauce.

after the you hv finish the cooking, you will also wash your dishes right? so its the same thing, once the oven is cooled down (really cooled down), use a damp cloth to just wipe it will do.

4) turnspit

this is a function where it have or allow a bbq stick in the oven where it will rotate the roast automatically while cooking. this will not require you to turn your roast to get it cook.

but do be mindful. are you doing alot of heavy roasting? eg. every week there's roast ribs, roast turkey, roast chicken, etc.

coz if not you will not need this additional function.

5) electronic selection vs knob turning selection ovens

electronic selection press button oven:

pros: more precise as you can choose the exact time and degree to cook the food.

cons: some are hard to choose as its not well labelled on the oven itself, so you hv to keep refering to the manual for the settings.

LCD display is small.

once spoil, that's it. you hv to send for repair and its costly.

knob turning selection oven:

pros: you can see what you choose

cons: the knobs can drop out due to wear & tear and you may plug it out to clean it, and forgot you hv turn to which function or accidentally turn to which function after that. never take out the knob for cleaning.

selection of cooking temp is estimation, coz the temp selection comes in: 20deg, 50deg, 80 deg, 100deg, 120 deg, 150, deg, 180deg, 200deg, etc. so when you need something that is in between, you hv to estimate.

if you go to baking / cooking schools to learn baking / cooking, do look at what type of ovens they use. most of these ovens are choosen by the schools coz they hv the basic functions that they want and can perform the job well.

just like buying handphone. one can buy a handphone with plentiful of functions but honestly, most of these functions are not fully utilised. eg. your handphone hv gps logging system but do you ever use it? your handphone hv wireless function, how many times you use it or use it to send your infor to printer thru wireless printing or faxing from your handphone?

hope you put your usage pattern, lifestyle, logic, experience, budget ($ no enough even if its for the richest ppl) etc. & combine them into your choice of buying an oven.

[leen 2]

1 thing to add. i have attended baking classes conducted by Ms Valerie Kong at CC and Safra, she is 1 practical person. when the places that she teaches don't have those big built in oven, she carries her own Aerogaz portable oven. but its the bigger type. she say that this type of oven can bakes well also and she has demostrated it as well.

so if there are budget constraint, or if you are not sure you are going to bake or use the oven for a long time, can try the more inexpensive oven. just that get a bigger capacity unit so that you can roast at least a turkey if you need to so that you can put a casserole pot in it. if you buy a too small type, you may face constraint if you want to roast or bake bigger size food/cake.

just buy something that you need within your budget/constraints/usage pattern, frequency if not it will become a white elephant at home.

hope the above helps.

[LGG 0]

Hi

Can anyone help me to analyse for me the Panasonic Steam Oven Model No. NN-CS596AYPQ?

I'm new to cooking and baking and would like to start trying. Can this oven cook and bake well?

Also, this is supposedly a non-built in oven, can i do a cabinet hole and hide it inside with door closed when unused? Is this feasible?

Many thanx!

[typhoonz 0]

Need to ask something here. My wife has decided to take up an oven (entry) level type so I'm here doing a bit of research. What's the difference between convection and multi function ovens? Multi function as in they also microwave? No right? Someone please advise... Many thanks in advance

Please pardon me if you find my questions ignorant...

[leen 2]

Hi

Can anyone help me to analyse for me the Panasonic Steam Oven Model No. NN-CS596AYPQ?

I'm new to cooking and baking and would like to start trying. Can this oven cook and bake well?

Also, this is supposedly a non-built in oven, can i do a cabinet hole and hide it inside with door closed when unused? Is this feasible?

Many thanx!

hi,

since you are new to cooking & baking, i suggest you go and look at many different type of ovens that are within your budget, hse design constraints, etc. before deciding on whether you are going to be a long time user of the oven, if not, even if you buy the best oven in the whole world, its going to sit in your kitchen, taking up space and become a white elephant and most importantly wasting your resources and earth resources. and not to mention that electrical applicances require regular usage or turning on the power & the heat to prevent it from breaking down after long time of not using them.

to start, many salesmen or sales aunties will persuade you on their ovens pros, new technology etc. but it has been proven for so many decades that the most basic normal type of ovens is the safest, fool proof type of cooking/baking (provided you follow strictly what the recipe instructions are and also dependent on your type of oven), and many recipes that you can find from the books, internet, blogs, cooking forums, cooking / baking schools, etc. actually based their recipes on normal ovens. you can easily understand the type of food that you are going to cook require what temperature, heating element, with fan or no fan, etc.

and also if possible, put your oven on a table top if possible or if space allow. reason: use simple logic thinking.

1) firstly, how are you going to bring out your cables & plug into wall socket? if there are cabinets, etc. you will need to drill holes right? and if you need to bring out the whole oven for repair, maintenance, etc. wouldn't it be a hassle?

2) experience tells me that such kitchen applicances has high heat when they are operated. and if you put them in a build in cabinet or inside a cabinet, heat from the applicances are not able to circulate into the air and are build in the cabinet. think in long term, are you going to change your cabinets often? cabinets' quality will deteriorate fast.

if you have an oven, show it, don't hide it. trust me, alot of guests, relatives & friends who come to your hse will go gaga over it, and complimenting "wah! you can cook well leh, that's why you got an oven!"

do shop around or go attend cooking/baking demo classes at CC which are cheaper and see what applicances and utensils (pots & pans) they use in order to bake a cake or cook a fish/chicken/turkey, then decide are you going to do that for a long time, then do your research and go shopping at many different areas to find out the mkt prices & functions of ovens before deciding to buy an oven. because the accompanying lot of 'necessary' utensils will be a tidy investment as well. eg. you need a mixer, mixing bowl, spatula, cake knife, baking tins, for baking cakes, etc.

hope the above helps

[leen 2]

Need to ask something here. My wife has decided to take up an oven (entry) level type so I'm here doing a bit of research. What's the difference between convection and multi function ovens? Multi function as in they also microwave? No right? Someone please advise... Many thanks in advance

Please pardon me if you find my questions ignorant...

hi,

i think you are asking conventional oven vs convection oven vs microwave oven. nowadays all ovens are multifunction type.

multifunction type of ovens: many different cooking options, temperature etc.

pls read my above postings on "conventional oven and microwave oven are different..."

the following descriptions on the differences between convection oven & conventional oven is found from this website:

http://ezinearticles.com/?Convection-vs.-C...?&id=190510

convection oven vs conventional ovens:

If you are in the market for a new oven and you’ve already begun shopping for one, you’ve probably noticed that there are a few different types.

Two of the most popular oven types are conventional and convection, and many newer ovens have the option of cooking food in either fashion depending on the set mode. The difference in these two types of ovens is the way in which the heat in the oven is dispersed during the cooking process.

Convection ovens

A convection oven uses a fan which is usually located on the back side of the oven. The purpose of the fan is to force the heated air inside of the oven and circulate it around the item being cooked. The heated air is constantly pushed over and around the food, and therefore a convection oven cooks food much faster than a conventional oven.

Not only does a convection oven cook food more quickly than a conventional oven, but it can also thoroughly cook food at lower temperatures. The average amount of time saved when cooking with a convection oven is about 20 percent of the food’s normal cooking time. The temperature a convection oven uses to cook food is also about 20 percent lower than a recipe’s suggested cooking temperature.

Typically, convection ovens are known for their popularity in the restaurant industry as well as in commercial cooking facilities. However, it is becoming more popular for individuals to own convection ovens in their homes… or at least a conventional oven that can switch to a convection mode upon request.

Convection ovens are speedier and more efficient than conventional ovens, and therefore may be more expensive. However, professional chefs from around the world swear by them and rely on them for delicious tasting food. Also, since the air circulation in a convention oven is the same throughout, food will cook at the same rate no matter where it is placed in the oven… on the top or bottom rack or near the front or back.

Conventional Ovens

Traditionally, most personal residences in the United States come equipped with a modern conventional ovens. These are the most common types of household ovens, and are used every day by men and women to cook all sorts of meals, desserts, breads, and many other types of food.

Conventional ovens are similar to convection ovens in that they both cook food using heat. They both have the ability to use either gas or electricity, depending on the hook-up in a home. Some may have the versatility to use either gas or electricity simply depending on what is plugged in to them, and some are made to be either gas specific or electricity specific.

The most obvious difference between a conventional oven and a convection oven is the fact that in a conventional oven, air is not forced throughout the oven on a constant basis with the aid of a fan, as it is in a convection oven.

In a conventional oven, the heat circulation in the oven can become blocked by pots and pans inside of the oven. The blocking of the heat can cause uneven cooking. Uneven cooking is especially noticeable when both the bottom and top racks in the oven are being used at the same time. The items on top will cook faster because heat rises to the tops of conventional ovens and when there is a lot in the oven, the heat gets trapped there.

There are pros and cons to both conventional and convection ovens. Conventional ovens have been serving people for years and years and food has been cooked successfully in them for many decades. Convection ovens have many followers and fans, but these types of ovens can be hard to get used to… especially for novice cooks.

My own experience:

i prefer convection oven. from my cooking & baking experience and the cooking/baking classes that i have attended, there are sometimes certain recipe call for fan forced cooking/baking.

if you don't have this function, you will have to gauge from your own oven's cooking capability.

there are pros and cons of it.

eg. if you don't have a fan force function, heat may still circulate but not evenly, therefore certain portion of the food may be more well cooked than other portion, eg. a turkey or chicken.

but if you have a fan force fuction, most baking recipes do not prefer using it as the top will be burnt more faster without the middle of the cake being cooked unless you are able to watch over it carefully and turning it oven, switching racks at certain time etc. which will be very troublesome.

if you use a fan force with heating element on at the same time to cook, eg. turkey, chicken, meat, the outer portion of the meat will be more dry. to solve this problem, you can wrap it up in a aluminium foil to cook.

for beginners, ususally its best if one can start cooking without the fan force function to try out first. until you understand the logic of baking/cooking, understanding how your oven cooks, have learn special technics in cooking/baking in using the ovens and are confident to try out the fan force, do not fear of spoiling the food, then go ahead and try out the function.

or just try out the functions with different food and you eat it and will know what is the difference. ususally the oven will come with a manual which will have quite a list of recipe teaching you how to cook/bakes. just follow the instruction and you will be safe most of the time. if you want to try other functions with the same recipes, go ahead and you will know how the result is.

but having a fan forced function is gd so that if you need it, there it is.

i have looked at many ovens and so far the reasonable priced is the one that i have bought which also receive adverse critiques from other forumers who recommend those ovens which are at least $3k and above!!! maybe they are selling those ovens.

mine is La Germania, Itay made, standing cooker. those type that have cooking hobs on top and a oven below. mine is connected to and runs on PUB gas. it only cost me S$1.3k for the whole set. so if i need to replace a new set, i will not feel heart pain.

and this standing cooker cum oven has many functions. it has 9 (if i remember correctly) basic different type of cooking/baking functions including fan force combining with heating element options. the functions are basically required for cooking/baking. nothing fanciful but it delivers.

why did i choose such a set? because i use to stay at Australia and the old angmo landlady is one full time hsewife who is also a heavy cooker, uses that standing cooker cum oven for ages and it still performs well. and the angmo lady did not specially takes care of it, only cleans it after cooking.

just a note, some expensive ovens have alot of functions but most of the time you do not use them. just like having a complicated, multi-function handphone nowadays, do you use all the functions? how frequent you use the functions? what are the basic functions that you normally use?

i hope the above answer your questions. do feel free to ask aunties, especially those who cooks alot, have a basic oven, who is a miser to part with unneccessary $$ to buy something, and you will get many beneficial answers to your questions coz they are frequent and long time cooking experts.