Community Forums

Bob86ZZ4 · 03-05-2009, 11:14 AM

I'm searching for a new motorhome now. I've seen lots of them seem to be going away from the gas oven and putting in a convection microwave. We like to cook in the oven a lot. We've never cooked with a convection micro. Are these as good at baking things like cookies, cakes, caseroles, etc...? I do like the advantage of quiet and not so much heat dumped into the kitchen as our oven gives out now. No rattling shelfs/racks/panels like our gas oven has you know. Thanks for any advice.

beaverjim · 03-05-2009, 11:32 AM

had a gas oven in a previous mh, dw doesn't miss it at all and she does cook/bake quite a bit. jim

Roam America · 03-05-2009, 11:59 AM

Because a convection oven uses a fan to distribute the heat within the oven, it cooks more evenly than a gas oven. The only thing to remember when cooking with a convection oven is the "25 rule" you follow. That is:

Use recommended cooking temperature and reduce the cooking time by 25%.

or

Use recommended cooking time and reduce the temperature by 25%.

With that in mind the advertising argument is that a convection oven is more efficient.

Personally when time comes to replace our coach our plans are to for-go the gas oven and get either drawers or dishwasher in its place.

Route 66 · 03-05-2009, 12:29 PM

My GE Profile microwave/convection prompts for the recipe temperature and time to be input and it makes all of the adjustments automatically.

It works quite well.

**NLOVNIT** · 03-05-2009, 12:30 PM

We've had 2 rv's with ovens. I only used 1 once & had disasterous results. It took forever to bake a simple cake & the edges were krispy before the middle was done. Ever since, the only thing I've used the oven for is to store the skillets & cookie sheets. More & more rv's are eliminating the ovens & putting in storage drawers. A much better use of the space IMO.

The microwave/convection oven is ideal for all kinds of cooking. I, too, follow K-Star's "25 rule" & have had nothing but great results. Using the "quick bake" option (combo of microwaving & convection) you'll cut your cooking time. Once you get the hang of it, you'll never even miss the propane oven.

Lori-

RVThere · 03-05-2009, 12:49 PM

I just spent $1000 last summer when we bought our new coach to put an regular oven BACK IN for my Italien DW. When cooking for a family of three hungry teenage boys in a motorhome, she needs the flexibility of running the convection micro and the gas stove at the same time. NO ONE is allowed to go hungry in her motor home.

Considering the great food she is able to produce out of both, it was money well spent!

tmar10 · 03-05-2009, 01:20 PM

The DW did not care because I do most of the cooking. Based on my desire for extra storage, we choose to go with the stove top and convection oven with ZERO regrets.

Bob86ZZ4 · 03-05-2009, 03:12 PM

Wow, thank you all for the response. Great, I think we will buy one with the convection then and sounds like we won't regret it.

bdpreece · 03-05-2009, 05:25 PM

Dw wife does not cook that much at home or on the road but we did make a pizza in our convection oven and it even browned the crust.

paz · 03-06-2009, 02:28 AM

We had standard RV ovens in several travel trailers we had prior to our current motorhome, and they were all less than satisfactory. They heated very unevenly, they wouldn't hold a constant temperature, and they cooked very slowly. Our travel trailers were all "weekender" models, so it may be possible the ovens in higher-end RVs are somewhat better; but we are very satisfied with our convection oven.

As has been stated, convection ovens take a little adjustment in cooking times or temperatures; but once you get used to them, they do a good job. Since the convection oven is combined with the microwave, they also save space over a separate microwave and standard oven.

LindaH · 03-06-2009, 05:39 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Bob86ZZ4:
Are these as good at baking things like cookies, cakes, caseroles, etc...?

We have both in our fifth wheel. While we do occasionally use the convection oven, I would never want to give up my regular oven.

Quote:

I do like the advantage of quiet and not so much heat dumped into the kitchen as our oven gives out now.

A microwave/convection oven is not quiet when it's running...you CAN hear it. It also puts out heat into the rig (at least ours is vented to the inside)...perhaps not as much as a gas oven, but still...

Quote:

No rattling shelfs/racks/panels like our gas oven has you know.

Depending on the brand, many of the microwave/convection ovens have a glass turntable that must be secured before traveling.

RustyJC · 03-06-2009, 06:25 AM

We have both the gas oven and the convection oven/microwave. Therefore, Sandy hasn't forced herself to change over to use the convection oven for anything other than an expensive microwave oven. One of the dangers if you have both, I suppose.

Rusty

Gary RVRoamer · 03-06-2009, 06:45 AM

We have had gas oven only, convection only and in the current coach both types. However, this past year we removed the gas oven to get more storage space.

We find the RV model gas ovens to be poor cooking appliances, too small in size and extremely uneven in heating. On the other hand, the two GE Profile convection ovens we have had do a fine job of cooking most anything we have tried and both had more interior space than the gas oven. One was vented outside and one inside and there are advantages and disadvantages to both techniques but neither enough to affect a buying decision, in our opinion.

TXiceman · 03-06-2009, 08:19 AM

Our 95 Avion had a convection microwave and we used it for everything. Only time we ever used the oven was when we were running low on voltage and did not want to trip off with the convection microwave. Used it for cookies, cakes, roasted chicken ... just like a regular oven.

So get the book out and read it. They are not hard to use.

Ken