Microwave Toaster Oven
Microwaves are a kitchen worker’s dream come true. You don’t have to spend long hours cooking delicacies one by one and the cleaning the mess in the whole kitchen.
With the microwaves, almost everything can be cooked in much less time than conventional stoves.
With increasing popularity and ease of use, microwaves have become stove substitutes in many houses. With the stove functionality mastered, many companies have tried to conquer the next frontier in microwave cooking -using it to replace the oven. Yes, it is not a typo. There are microwaves available in the market that can be used to bake cakes!
Most microwave toaster ovens come with the digital presets that are tailored to let you bake, reheat or cook stuff perfectly.
Like any new item, it may not be as simple as pressing a button and getting the best cake or dish out of the microwave. But with a couple of attempts you should find more uses for you over cum toaster than you initially imagined.
These are not just ovens, though; they perform the regular microwave functions too. But sometimes you can use their extra power to do many more things like defrost frozen food, thaw meat, etc
With a Microwave toaster oven, the next time you decide to bake a cake, you don’t have to mess with the oven. Slide in the batter into the microwave and watch it bake. You can also control the level of browning you want and make that perfect cake.
Advantages
This microwave doubles as an oven! That’s probably the best advantage you can get out of it.
With this appliance in your house, you don’t have to bother with the electric oven that you probably have or are contemplating to purchase. Save money, save space
With the dual functionality, you get multiple uses for this device – many that the manufacturer suggest and a few more that you may just figure out as you get more comfortable using it.
Disadvantages
Given the additional functionality, these microwaves are more expensive that your regular ones.
As they are used to bake dishes, they reach higher temperatures, hence you need to be careful while using it as an oven. The basic microwave safety may not be enough. Since you are using it as an oven, you must adhere to same level of safety with this device too.
Product Summary
Microwave ovens are great additions to your kitchen. With dual functionality and compact size you can save on both costs (of a new electric oven) as well as space. Besides, with microwave technology, you are looking at times savings too.
These ovens are bigger and costlier than the traditional microwaves. So if you are not a regular baker, spending that extra dollar on this oven functionality may not be that useful. However, given the ease of baking, you probably may take to baking with one of these appliances in your house.
Hence, when you approach you next microwave purchase, think about the pros and cons and weigh them with your needs. If you think you are better served by a microwave toaster oven, go ahead and buy it.
Popular Model of Microwave Toaster Oven
Below are some of the common microwave toaster oven available online along with their prices and reviews from other users that have used it.
Amana Toaster Oven Microwave AMC5108AA
This is a three-in-one toaster microwave oven that can cook as well as bake your dishes. What’s more you ca also use it to toast your food. This is a counter top microwave nearly 14” high, 21” wide and 20” deep. This 1000W, 1 cu. ft microwave is an ideal addition to your kitchen.
Amana - The Microwave : As a microwave, this model is quite versatile and as good – if not better – than the regular microwaves that you may encounter. With decent power (1000W), Touchmatic control system and 10 power levels you are looking at a wide range of usage right from thawing frozen dinner to cooking food.
Among the programmed functions you have Popcorn, Pizza, Potato, Handy Helper, Multi option Kids meals, Multi option Snack bar, Easy Clean and weight options. These programmable pads allow you a lot of flexibility in you cooking, which in turn increases your range of cooking too!
Amana – The Toaster / Oven : The Amana Toaster have a 7-level toaster rack with options to Broil, top brown and bake your bread / cake. This makes it a great choice even for your baking needs.top brown and bake your bread / cake. This makes it a great choice even for your baking needs. It also have a preheat option that added even more dishes you can cook / bake in it – like pizzas.
Sanyo EM-Z2100GS Microwave Oven - Browner - Toasting Oven
The Sanyo EM-Z2100GS Microwave Oven - Browner - Toasting Oven is another oven that falls in the same category as the Amana 3-in-1 toaster. This unit has 900W power for the regular microwave functions which boosts to 1000W for the baking and grilling functions. In terms of dimensions, at 20” X 14” X 18” and 0.8 cu ft, this is a smaller unit than the Amana microwave toaster oven.
With 5 power levels and 8 touch keys, this is relatively less versatile than the Amana microwave. However it does have interesting features like child lock, defrost settings, etc. Unlike the Amana, this model uses a digital rotary dial to set the time. This can be convenient for those that hate punching in the numbers.
Microwave Oven Sharp Toaster R-55
Microwave oven sharp toaster is a great choice for those who are looking for a regular microwave with some baking capabilities. Read our review on specific model Sharp Warm and Toasty Microwave R-55
Which to Pick?
Amana AMC5108AA is a great microwave toaster oven that can work well in your kitchen. With the wide range of power levels, presets, keys, etc you are looking at a very good microwave oven.
Sanyo EM-Z2100GS, on the other hand, is a relatively smaller version with similar capabilities. However, it does not match Amana in terms of the functionality.
If you have decent counter space and want a wide range of presets to work with, the Amana AMC5108AA microwave is a great unit for you.
If you lack the few extra inches of counter space to fit in an Amana, the Sanyo EM-Z2100GS is a good pick for you. Though, it has fewer features and presets, with experimentation and experience, you should be able to get most of the Amana’s functionalities from the Sanyo too.
It must be noted though, that with multiple functionalists combined, both models have compromised on each of the core functions. So you are not going to get the perfect microwave, or perfect toaster or the perfect oven from this unit. You will get a great combo though!
Microwave Oven Toaster Combination
The microwave toaster ovens are great for regular microwaving as well as for baking purposes. But as noted earlier, the oven functionality suits only those cooks or homemakers who prefer to bake their own cakes, cookies and buns.
In today’s fast paced world, not everyone can spare time for that. Though the actual baking process is simplified and takes a fraction of the time, the initial preparation time cannot be reduced. Hence, a section of the population may not find this idea of of microwave over toaster very convincing.
For such individuals, the industry is experimenting with another concept along similar lines - the microwave oven toaster combination. This one is a microwave oven with a toaster meshed into each other.
These have a separate toaster unit within the same microwave enclosure. So if you are not the self baking types and prefer to get your breads and cakes from the local bakery, you can use the toaster to toast your bread for breakfast.
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