We know that many of the technologies in use today may be a little unfamiliar. Below we have listed some of the most frequently used terms in use for cooking appliances and an explanation of what they mean.
Catalytic liners
These microporous panels absorb fat splatters while the oven is cooking. If the surface stops cleaning itself efficiently, it can be regenerated by heating the empty oven for between 30 minutes and an hour.
Catalytic liners will protect only those areas they cover (often the more difficult to access areas), the rest of the oven cavity needs to be cleaned by more traditional methods.
If they're properly cared for, the liners should last a long time - but they may eventually need replacing.
Combi Oven
As the name suggests, a combi oven is a combination of two types of oven - an electric oven (bake and grill) combined with a microwave. A microwave combi can do anything a conventional microwave can do but also offers the ability to use the baking or grilling functions and microwave energy simultaneously.
Fan Assisted Oven
A fan assisted oven uses a fan to distribute heat produced by the upper and lower elements. This will provide for more uniform cooking results particularly when cooking on 2 levels simultaneously.
Fan Forced Oven
A fan-forced oven has the ability to use a fan to blow hot air around the oven. The fan has an element surrounding it to produce the heat rather than circulating the heat produced by upper and lower elements (as with fan assisted cooking). Fan-forced ovens distribute the heat evenly throughout the oven, making baking easier and more uniform particularly when cooking on multiple levels simultaneously.
Flame Failure
A gas safety system which prevents un-ignited gas from entering your home. A small heat sensitive probe rests within the flame and this is linked to a stop valve in the oven or hobs gas supply. If the probe senses no heat (such as when a pot boils over extinguishing the flame) the valve will be closed immediately.
Induction Hob/Induction cooking
Induction hobs are faster and more energy-efficient than traditional hobs. Additionally, unlike traditional methods, the pot is heated directly to the desired temperature rather than heating the hob surface, making cooking much safer. Unlike a traditional hob, the maximum temperature or the hob surface is that of the pot, which is much less capable of causing serious injury than the high temperatures attained by flames and red-hot electric heating elements. Also, the induction cooker does not warm the air around it as other cookers do, resulting in added energy efficiency.
Since heat is being generated from an electric current induced by an electric coil, the hob can detect when cookware is removed or its contents boil dry by monitoring the voltage drop caused by resistance to the current. This creates possible additional functions, such as keeping a pot at minimal boil or automatically turning off when the cookware is removed.
This form of cooking has an edge over conventional gas flame and electric cookers as it provides rapid heating, vastly improved energy efficiency (approximate efficiency of 90% compared to a typical 40% for a gas cooker), greater heat consistency, plus the same or greater degree of controllability as gas.
Compatible cookware must contain iron including cast iron and stainless steel pans, and can easily be checked for induction-compatibility using a magnet.
Multi Function Oven
By far the most popular choice in ovens, multi-function ovens offer a combination of oven elements, an in-oven grill and a fan. This allows the user a choice of cooking functions to suit the dish.
Pyrolytic cleaning
Ovens with pyrolytic cleaning have a special setting: which heats the oven up to around 500°C, converting food residues into ash that you then wipe away.
For safety reasons, the door automatically locks during the pyrolytic clean and is released only when the oven gets down to a safer temperature.Shelf runners, racks/trays and other accessories need to be removed as they may be damaged during cleaning.
Pyrolytic cleaning is free of chemicals, cost effective (approx $1.20 per clean) and it does a thorough cleaning job particularly in hard-to-reach places. Often a pyrolytic oven will also be more energy efficient for normal cooking due to the additional insulating material fitted.