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Toaster Ovens: 5 Quick Steps to Choosing the Best Toaster Oven

By: Cade Lawson


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Modern toaster ovens have gone past just toasting bread or bagels. They can bake, broil, and even convection cook everything from pizzas, casseroles and other baked goods to a four pound chicken with little effort. Toaster ovens are an inexpensive and convenient cooking choice for today's busy households.

Countertop ovens come in dozens of shapes and sizes and offer a numerous selection of functions. You should think about these factors when choosing the best toaster oven:

Toaster Oven Price Range
You can select a toaster oven to meet any price range and preference. Basic no-frills countertop ovens start as low as $30. Some top-rated ovens are less than $100. Upper-end multi-function toaster ovens usually cost from $150-$300.

Toaster Oven Cooking Methods
If you're mostly going to use your toaster oven for toasting and warming dishes, one of the basic models will most likely suit your needs. If you are looking for a toaster oven to use for baking or broiling, investigate ones that cook using either a convection or infrared (or infrawave) warming option.

Convection toaster ovens have a little fan to disperse hot air throughout the oven. This helps brown food more evenly and can shorten cooking time by up to 30%. Convection toaster ovens are very popular - although they cost a bit more, many chefs prefer the convenience and faster cooking time.

Toaster ovens with infrared (infrawave) heating elements don't require pre-heating, which cuts down on cooking time. Infrared is also helpful in accelerating the toasting process. Black & Decker is the only major toaster oven maker that currently offers the infrared cooking feature.

Toaster Oven Convenience Features
Toaster ovens are controlled by a dial timer or a digital key pad. Most chefs find the digital toaster ovens simpler to use. Digital toaster ovens provide a more accurate setting selection, and frequently feature pre-set functions for frequently cooked foods.

Countertop ovens with non-stick interiors and continual clean features are easy to clean. Be sure to get a removable crumb tray - front-access crumb trays are much easier to use.

Don't Forget Safety
Some toaster ovens have an automatic shut off feature, which will shut the oven off at the end of the cooking cycle. Some will simply ring a bell and continue to cook until it is turned off. The automatic shut off feature is highly recommended!

For homes with small kids, look for cool-touch sides. The toaster oven's sides should not become too hot during use.

Toaster Oven Size
Toaster ovens are normally referred to as 6 slice or 4 slice toaster ovens, which refers to the number of slices of bread that can be toasted at once.

Toaster ovens come in sizes differing from as small as 10x10 inches to as big as 20x16 inches. Basic toaster ovens which are merely used for toasting or re-heating foods are normally smaller in both size and capacity.

If you're going to bake casseroles or roast larger cuts of meat in your countertop oven, you'll require a larger model.

No matter which size you choose, be sure to measure your counter space before ordering your toaster oven!

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

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