Features
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Thermostat — a device for adjusting and maintaining the required temperature in the oven. The presence of a thermostat relieves the user of the need to look after the cooking process. Instead, it is enough to set the thermostat to the desired temperature, and the stove will automatically maintain it.
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Timer. Countdown device: the user sets a certain time, after which an audible signal sounds. The specific functionality of the timer can be different — from the simplest rotary knob with an adjustment accuracy of +/-3 minutes to an electronic unit with a display that can count the time to the second and even turn off the stove at the end of the countdown (see "Auto switch-off"). However, this feature greatly simplifies the life of the user. It is more convenient to set the timer and wait for the signal than to keep track of time by the clock.
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Convection. The convection function provides additional hot air circulation and evenly distributes heat throughout the entire volume of the oven. It is useful for baking.
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Rotisserie fork. It is used for cooking several dishes, particularly shish kebab: products are strung on a rotisserie fork and rotated on it. It ensures consistent heating and baking. Often, the rotisserie fork is combined with a grill (see below), although this is not necessary. Also, this device can be
...equipped with a drive from an electric motor for automatic rotation.
— Grill(electric or gas). In this case, the grill is an open heater installed in the oven chamber and designed to cook food due to thermal radiation; it can be used alone or in combination with other oven modes. The grill allows you to fry various foods effectively: for example, you can use it cooking meat with a characteristic crust, brown croutons, fry vegetables, etc. It is healthier than traditional frying.
As for the types of grills, electric grills are the most popular nowadays — they are simple in design, provide even heating, allow you to accurately adjust the mode and use many additional functions (up to automatic cooking programs). Such grills can be found even in gas ovens. But gas devices are used much less frequently: they are considered more economical but more complex in design and less convenient to adjust than electric ones.
— Steam cooking. The ability to use the oven for steam cooking. Cooking is carried out in the main chamber of the oven, and the steam comes from a special reservoir into which water is poured in advance. This method is considered more healthy than traditional cooking or, moreover, frying; often, it turns out to be optimal for people with dietary restrictions.
— Oven lighting. It is a lamp for lighting the interior of the oven. By turning on such a lamp, you can see the oven insides without opening it and without releasing heat. Yes, even with the lid open, the oven lighting can come in handy — for example, when removing products from a baking sheet (patties, pieces of cookies, etc.) or when cleaning the oven. Note that for the lighting to work, a mains connection is required, even if we are talking about a gas stove.Number of cooking modes
It is the number of cooking modes provided in the design of the oven. This item shows the typical cooking modes — for example, “heating”, “heating + convection”, etc. Accordingly, this parameter is highly dependent on additional equipment. However, even in similar models, the number of modes may be different. In general, the more there are, the more opportunities for cooking, and the easier it will be to choose the optimal mode for a specific situation.
Burner power
Rated burner power. This parameter allows you to estimate how much electricity the burner will spend when operating at maximum heating intensity. At the same time, the heat transfer power of different burners can be different, and the actual heating efficiency will also greatly depend on the specs of the dishes. As a result, it hardly makes sense to evaluate the operating capabilities of the stove by the power of the burners. It is quite possible to proceed from the fact that the burner will be enough for a dish of the same diameter.
Burner diameter
The heating power, the performance of the device and the speed of cooking depend on the diameter of the burners. The larger the burner, the more heat dissipation it has. Also, the diameter of the burner allows you to determine what sizes of dishes are suitable for use on the hob. Indeed, for induction models, this value is critical for high-quality heating. Burners can have the following diameter:
- small — about 145 mm, power within 1200 W;
- medium — about 180 mm, power within 1700 W;
- large — about 220 mm and more, power within 2000 W.
Some hobs use dual-circuit burners that allow you to adjust the diameter of the heating zone. If it is indicated that the diameter of the burner is 180, 200, 220 mm, then the heating zone on a particular burner can be narrowed and/or expanded, depending on the size of the dishes used.
Automatic switch-off
The type of automatic switch-off provided in the design of the stove.
Auto-off can be provided
for the hob(hob),
for the oven, or for both at once, regardless of whether the hob and oven are gas or electric. This function is implemented through a timer, after which the device turns off.
Energy class
The energy class describes the overall efficiency of the cooker in terms of energy consumption. Note that we are not talking about actual consumption (see "Connected load" for details), but about the efficiency of the stove, about the efficiency of using the energy that it consumes.
This indicator is especially important for models with at least one electric burner or electric oven/grill. But, if we are talking about a purely gas stove, you can not pay much attention to the energy consumption class. Electricity in such models is spent only on additional functions like auto-ignition or oven lighting,
Initially, the classes were marked in Latin letters from
A(the most economical) and then alphabetically in order of decreasing efficiency — B, C, D ... Later, improved classes
A+,
A++ appeared; the more pluses, the higher the efficiency. Today, energy consumption in class A can be called medium, and in a lower class — high. The maximum indicator found in modern stoves is A++; if we are talking about a model with an electric burner, such a stove is usually expensive, but it pays off by saving electricity during use.