Consumer Reports – September 2019

To as te r O ve n

Earning a Very Good rating in

our reheating and baking tests,

this 1,800-watt Breville turns out

just-right sugar cookies and corn

muffins. It also makes a perfect

slice of toast in 3 minutes,

though it fits only four slices.

BREVILLE BOV650XL

$180

78

This 1,500-watt Black+Decker

has a convection feature,

which speeds up cooking and

browns food. It’s impressive at

baking and reheating, evenly

reheating a serving of lasagna

in 15 minutes.

BLACK+DECKER 8-SLICE DIGITAL

EXTRA WIDE TO3290XSD

$100

72

This 1,800-watt Breville offers a

temperature range of 80° F to

480° F, eight rack positions, and

features such as convection,

air-fry, and dehydrate. It’s

impressive at baking and

reheating, and is among the

models rated easiest to use.

BREVILLE SMART OVEN AIR
CONVECTION BOV900BSSUSC
$400
71
Handy if you’re cooking a small portion
or your full-sized oven is maxed out.

Heats up faster than a regular oven.

Browns foods nicely and gives pizza
a crispy crust (unlike in a microwave).

Could be a space hogger. And you’ll

need one with a depth of at least

12 inches if you want to make pizza.

May require its own electrical outlet.

The Breville Smart Oven, at right, comes

with that recommendation.

Allow sufficient space
between racks for the heat to
circulate evenly.

Use a light-colored pan when
roasting vegetables to prevent
their natural sugars from
burning. That's because a dark

pan accelerates the transfer

of heat and can brown food

too fast.

Use a pan with low sides

when using the convection

feature to give the hot air

ample room to circulate.

When using multiple racks,

switch pans to a different

rack and rotate halfway

through cooking so everything

cooks uniformly.

When possible, position food

near the center of a rack to

produce the best

cooking results.

Clean the exterior and

interior after every use.

Crumbs and grease can build

up inside and cause smoke

or even a fire.

WHAT TO COOK:

PIZZA / BACON / BURGERS /

FISH / GRILLED CHEESE /

VEGGIES / COOKIES

WHAT IT CAN DO:

REHEAT / BAKE / BROIL /

TOAST / AIR-FRY

Succulent

Shrimp

A plate of garlic

shrimp can be

prepared in

under 5 minutes.

TIPS FROM OUR EXPERTS

PROS CONS

Don’t mistake this appliance for a simple toaster. These mini-ovens do everything

their bigger siblings can. Newer models even have features such as air-frying,

convection cooking, and slow-cooking.

40 CR.ORG SEPTEMBER 2019