Microwave oven vs...

I was wondering if anyone had opinions/experience with steam ovens.

Our microwave died about 6-8wks ago and we have been getting along fine without it. About the only thing I used it for in the past was to reheat leftovers or quick hot water for a cup of tea etc. Regular oven or toaster oven, or stove top has been working fine for leftovers etc. A few friends are staunchly anti microwave oven-concerns over cancer etc.

Just wondering if anyone uses a steam oven instead. Other than the significant uptick in cost are there any other issues?

thanks

-paul

Went without for about 3 or 4 years a while back. Eventually put a new one in as a part of a remodel. We may use it regularly, but would do fine without it. About the only thing it does better than any other appliance is make pepperoni chips.

Wish I could help with the steam oven issue.

Can’t answer your question about steam ovens, but need to respond to this. The only way to say it politely is that your friends are just dumb. As a Ph.D. physical chemist who understands these things, all a microwave oven does is heat your food a little differently than a stove top or regular oven. Microwaves cause the molecules to jostle around, create friction, and heat up. They don’t interact with the electronic structure of molecules or atoms (except through the normal cooking/heating process). They don’t change the chemistry of what they heat any differently than a gas or electric oven. So if you like the convenience of microwaves, use it. If you want something else because you think it works better, use that. But don’t avoid a microwave oven because you think it causes cancer. It doesn’t.

I had a steam oven 7 or 8 years ago. I loved it. It made the best toast I have ever had – seriously. Also great with chicken, other meats, veggies, etc. BUT, I am not sure I understand the comparison. One of the advantages of a microwave is speed in heating things. I don’t remember the steam oven being fast – but I really miss it and wish I had it back!

It is the packaged food that goes into the microwave for warming/heating that gives you the cancer.

If microwave oven gave you cancer I’d be long since dead.

^^this^^

We haven’t had a microwave since we purchased our current house and I don’t miss it unless I’m looking for a quick way to melt butter. Being an 80s/90s child, I’ve always associated microwaves with crappy, pre-packaged foods like Hot Pockets. Or my Mom’s favorite way to prepare asparagus: buy the thickest stocks you can find (already full disqualification there), place in microwave safe dish, cover in plastic, microwave, remove once warm and promptly smother in mayo…

I’ve installed a couple of steam ovens on projects recently. To me there a fancy, over-priced appliance that I have no desire to put in my own kitchen. Then again, I’m “thrifty” and will probably die an early death from not caring about nutritional implications of using a microwave.

In any case they don’t seem like an alternative to a microwave. They will heat something faster than a regular oven but nowhere as fast as a microwave. I installed plumbed-in versions in both cases. With all the required plumbing they are $4500 endeavors, or $6000+ for top-shelf Gaggenau.

Now something like a Turbochef oven, I’m intrigued by.

We have a little of everything at our house and I’m not proud of it. Too many gadgets. But the microwave gets a fair amount of use reheating food and even coffee and tea when we let it sit too long. Also use it to cook sweet potatoes quickly. Then there is the steamer, the convection over, the sous vide, the slow cooker, the pressure cooker and the beat goes on.

Do your friends also not vaccinate?

Correct. Putting leftovers on a plate and warming them is totally safe. Melting plastic packaging into your food is where the there could be a risk. I am guessing very few of us do the lean cuisine thing (or whatever brand is out there these days).


Naturally, looking it up, even those containers sound like they are safe…

…but I’d still minimize my use of them, who knows what the next study will say. :wink:


Another one

The bottom line

Here are some things to keep in mind when using the microwave:

If you’re concerned about plastic wraps or containers in the microwave, transfer food to glass or ceramic containers labeled for use in microwave ovens.
Don’t let plastic wrap touch food during microwaving because it may melt. Wax paper, kitchen parchment paper, white paper towels, or a domed container that fits over a plate or bowl are better alternatives.
Most takeout containers, water bottles, and plastic tubs or jars made to hold margarine, yogurt, whipped topping, and foods such as cream cheese, mayonnaise, and mustard are not microwave-safe.
Microwavable takeout dinner trays are formulated for one-time use only and will say so on the package.
Old, scratched, or cracked containers, or those that have been microwaved many times, may leach out more plasticizers.
Don’t microwave plastic storage bags or plastic bags from the grocery store.
Before microwaving food, be sure to vent the container: leave the lid ajar, or lift the edge of the cover.

Steam oven, is that what’s sometimes called a combi-oven?

Yes – steam over, steam convection oven, combi oven, all terms for the same wonderful tool. Comparison with a microwave makes no sense as they are for totally different things.

You can do a search on this forum for what I’ve said in the past, but the upshot is that we love ours, use it all the time, would never want to be without it. There are other ways of doing the things a combi does, but there are not better ways, in my opinion, or even comparable ways in many cases. There’s a good reason why nearly all the high-end restaurant kitchens I’ve toured use them.

How in the heck do you reheat your coffee without a microwave?

I’m sorry, I don’t understand the concept of reheating coffee.

Bravo.

I use a microwave for lots of things, always involving reheating food or thawing frozen food when I forget to take it out of the freezer on time. Very good for family where both adults work long hours and do not want takeout four nights a week. Cook up a storm on the weekend and eat during the week.

I have also found a good use for it in cooking. I make myself an egg white omelet most mornings. I can make one with zero oil (reduce calories since my doctor yelled at me for re-finding weight I had lost) by putting the egg whites plus fixings in a bowl and zapping them in a microwave. Stir every 30 seconds for about 2 minutes. Gourmet quality? NO. Satisfactory at 6 am when in a hurry to get to the gym? Yes.

I could live without a microwave but it’s incredibly useful for so many small things that I would never want to.

boiling water, softening butter, melting butter, melting chocolate, softening ice cream, reheating leftovers

and yes, the people who are worried about cancer due to “microwave radiation” do not have any understanding of what microwave ovens actually do. A good friend of mine won’t eat any food that has been in a microwave. I only roll my eyes inside but they do roll :slight_smile:

You haven’t seen the beer stein I drink it from.

I’ve never owned a microwave and my life has actually been pretty ok without one. I do use the one at work all the time, though, since we only get 1/2 hour for lunch and if we want a hot meal or even just something warmed up it’s microwave or nothing.