WRITER | LINDA RICHTER CLUTTER
PHOTO | WITBECK & BIG GEORGE’S HOME APPLIANCE MART
May Be Exactly What Your Kitchen Has Been Waiting For
If you want to introduce a 5-star restaurant-style appliance into your home, the French door oven is a great way to do it. These super stylish, professionally designed ovens bring phenomenal cooking power to your kitchen. This oven style offers a walk-up experience where you can open both doors with one hand and still hold the cookie sheet with the other.
The ease and safety with which you can bake, roast, and broil within a French door-style oven will make you wonder how you ever dealt with a standard oven door. As you might guess, with this style oven the doors open to each side instead of dropping down. Not having to stoop over to remove hot, heavy dishes and the overall ergonomics of this style will change how you work within your kitchen space. Not having to compensate for a drop-down door provides great space savings in a small kitchen.
Beyond the stylish design are impressive cooking features and capabilities that have become quite popular with homeowners.
Most cooks look for cooking power and added features when researching brands that make French door ovens. If you’re in the market, start by creating a list of features that matter the most to you and how you cook and prepare meals. Is it the size of the oven that matters the most, as in does your favorite baking sheet need to fit inside the oven? Or is it how fast it preheats so that you can get dinner on the table more quickly on a weeknight? Does a touch screen or the ability to program features from your phone or a tablet interest you, or would you prefer to keep it simple? These are key items to think about when you are learning about French door ovens. Do you like to broil meats and seafood, creating restaurant results? If so, then you need to look at the wattage of the infrared broiler. Precision temperature probes are a nice added feature and can provide perfect control and doneness.
Learning about different cooking modes can seem overwhelming, so make sure that the models you are researching have the features you are looking for. Intuitive screens can guide you step by step in creating complete meals or perfectly baked cookies. Once you find a favorite cooking method, the oven will save it for the next time!
Before you buy, don’t forget to check into the best way to clean your oven. Does the stove have an eco-friendly way to clean, such as steam, or can you set the temperature high enough to burn off spills? Spills happen, so don’t forget to check on this feature for each oven that you research.
A French door oven is an investment in your home, and even though it comes with a higher price tag than a standard wall oven, the overall benefits and features will ensure that you’ll love it for years to come!
