HOW TO STEAM POTATOES IN THE STEAM OVEN? FAQ PAGE How What Why Do How to Steam Potatoes for Salad in the Steam Oven ? Heat the oven in the Steam Mode, place the potatoes in the perforated pan and slide into the oven. Set the timer for 20 minutes and check for doneness, before removing. Set aside to cool them. I always say once you have tasted a potato steamed in the steam oven you will never boil a potato again. There are so many great potato varieties available now and cooking them in steam really brings out the flavor. Remember never to add mayonnaise to hot potatoes, they must cool first, to hasten the cooling process you can spread them onto a rimmed baking sheet. Steaming potatoes in the steam oven. OUR LATEST CONVECTION RECIPES Hot Meatloaf Sandwiches Chocolate Souffle Beef Shank Osso Buco Baked Sesame Crusted Salmon

DO I BAKE MUFFINS IN CONVECTION OR TRADITIONAL BAKE MODE? FAQ PAGE How What Why Do Do I bake muffins in Convection or Traditional Bake mode? It depends on how wet the batter is. Because foods cooked in Convection have more moisture retention, I use Convection for most of my cooking; however, when it comes to baking there are times when traditional Bake actually results in a drier crumb. It all depends on how liquid the batter is. For example, I find I get better results baking Blueberry muffins in Traditional Bake because those blueberries just burst open and give off so much juice during baking, and if I bake them in Convection the muffins have a tendency to fall apart. Carrot Apple Muffins with Pecans and Coconut. OUR LATEST CONVECTION RECIPES Hot Meatloaf Sandwiches Chocolate Souffle Beef Shank Osso Buco Baked Sesame Crusted Salmon

WHAT IS A CONVECTION OVEN? FAQ PAGE How What Why Do What is a Convection Oven? A true convection oven features a fan on the back wall of the oven, covered by a baffle. The fan is encircled by heating elements, and when a convection mode is engaged, the ambient air in the oven is drawn into the baffle and heated. The heated air is forced out by the fan through ports around the baffle. Click here to watch an Introduction to Convection . OUR LATEST CONVECTION RECIPES Hot Meatloaf Sandwiches Chocolate Souffle Beef Shank Osso Buco Baked Sesame Crusted Salmon

A flavorful sirloin roast is the perfect cut of beef for roast beef sandwiches with mounds of thinly sliced medium rare beef, a beef salad with crisp greens, ripe tomatoes or beets and blue cheese, or a sumptuous roast beef dinner. Delicious Sliced Sirloin Roast For Sandwiches It seems that not every butcher or market carries the same cuts of beef, so if you are unable to find a top sirloin roast, other options that work well include an eye of round roast or a sirloin tip roast. These are all flavorful, lean cuts of beef that share one thing in common: cooking them at a low temperature yields the best results. Season The Meat a Few Hours In Advance Is Another Important Tip There are numerous dry rub choices available these days, which makes it easy to season a roast with the flavors you prefer. Rubbing a dry rub into the meat a few hours up to a day in advance will definitely add to the flavor of the meat, but go carefully when adding salt, as some rubs are high in added salt. Because this roast cooks at a low temperature, I like to use a combination of fresh herbs, minced garlic, and olive oil. Since there is no high-heat cooking phase, the herb crust doesn’t burn, and the flavors just dissolve into the meat. The olive oil adds another dimension of flavor and a little good fat. Why Convection is Best for a Juicy Evenly Cooked Beef Roast To help retain the natural juices in meat, it’s important to cook the roast on a rack in a shallow pan. Placing the meat on a rack prevents the pan's heat from leeching moisture from the meat and allows the heated Convection air to circulate evenly around the oven, cooking the meat from the edge to the center. Placed the roast on a rack This roast can be cooked in either the Convection Roast or Convection Bake mode. The important thing is to use a low temperature of 325°. You can even drop to 300° if you have plenty of time. Before you heat the oven, arrange the racks so you can place the pan with the beef roast in the center of the oven. The next thing to consider is timing. If your oven is equipped with a meat probe, using the probe will give you the best results. Remember to insert the probe at an angle and be sure the tip is in the meat, not touching the pan. If your oven has a little metal cap over the probe receptacle, just push that aside with the blunt side of a knife to insert the sensor. Be sure to cover your hand to avoid contacting the hot oven wall. When you close the oven door, you can program it to your preferred internal temperature target. In order for the probe to activate, you may have to touch the probe symbol again or touch start to activate the probe, so be sure to take a quick look at the User Guide to confirm how your oven works. My 3-lb, room-temperature roast took 60 minutes to cook through. If your oven doesn’t have a probe, I recommend testing the internal temperature with an instant-read thermometer after the roast has been in the oven for approximately 50 minutes. That way, you will have a good sense of the progress. Remember, when you choose the target internal temperature, the internal temperature will continue to rise as the beef rests. The circulating heat of Convection will do an amazing job cooking the beef roast; however, some important steps for success are in your hands. Remember to bring the roast to room temperature before cooking and allow for 15 - 20 minutes of resting time before carving. Will There be Pan Juices? Cooking your beef roast, as outlined above, will definitely yield some pan juices. If you would like to increase the pan juices, add ½ - 1 cup of beef stock to the base of the pan. When the beef comes out of the oven and is resting, pour off the juices and skim off the fat. The pan juices can be used to make gravy or to serve with hot roast beef sandwiches. This sirloin roast is so easy and delicious, and the thought of the wonderful sandwiches and salads we enjoyed makes my mouth water. Another mouthwatering, crowd-pleasing meal is Fried Chicken, so be sure to check out my next post, in which I will explain how to achieve fabulous results with Oven Baked Fried Chicken. Larissa, Your Convection Enthusiast

As a culinary educator in the appliance industry, I began cooking with a convection steam oven 24 years ago, when Gaggenau introduced the first steam oven for residential use in the United States. Steam ovens were originally created for use in high-end restaurants, and the recipe guidance that came with the oven tended towards gourmet meals that one would expect to find in a high-end restaurant.  However, in order to get clients excited about purchasing new appliances and interested in the steam oven, I had to learn how having one would benefit them. So my journey began, roasting all types of meats and vegetables, baking breads and delicate custards, and steaming grains, vegetables, and shellfish. I also learned to perfect the technique of Low-Temperature cooking for lean, tender cuts of meat and canning in the steam oven. In other words, I had lots of practice. Working directly with many clients over the years gave me a unique insight into the questions, challenges, and learning curve we all go through when learning how to use a new appliance. This is why I created the Convection Kitchen website and YouTube channel: to provide an educational resource  with proven recipes to help people learn about cooking with convection and convection steam ovens. Steam and convection ovens feature a variety of cooking modes designed to help us achieve success with different types of cooking. Unless we understand these modes, adapting our recipes to benefit from cooking in these ovens is challenging. Understanding the tools you are cooking with is crucial because recipes do not reference the tools you cook with, making it easier to troubleshoot disappointing cooking results. Many visitors come to Convection Kitchen because they are looking for information on how to cook a specific type of meat, fish, or poultry in a steam oven. This is why we have a selection of how-to Recipes , such as Roast Chicken , Roast Turkey , Prime Rib , Beef Filet , Trip Tip , and Lobster Tails , that will help you understand how to cook the basics in a Steam oven. Once you understand the basics, you can vary the recipe ingredients as well as the cooking mode to your preference.   The different modes in a steam oven allow you to prepare food in various ways. For example, bone-in chicken can be steamed; chicken pieces can be roasted at a moderately high temperature or slowly roasted at a low temperature; and, of course, you can roast a whole chicken or cook an entire meal with chicken and side dishes. This is why our recipes are broken down into categories as well as types of food and meal types.  In the Steam mode, the oven defaults to 212 F (100 C), the temperature at which water boils. In this mode, you can poach or boil eggs, cook oatmeal and grains, flan or custard, steam vegetables, seafood, bone-in-chicken, and your favorite dim sum or tamales. Some of these items don't require an actual recipe, and it's just a matter of determining the timing. For others, such as custard or flan, it's a matter of understanding that you can omit the step that calls for baking the custard in a water bath. When it comes to steaming fish or shellfish, this method is similar to poaching, but you can also roast or broil fish and shellfish. So, when reading a recipe, it's important to understand the method outlined in order to choose the correct cooking mode.  When it comes to roasting in the steam oven, our recipes will help you achieve success with roasting all types of meat, fish, poultry, and, of course, vegetables by providing specific temperatures, timing, cooking mode, and the best types of pan to use. Steam ovens have smaller cavities than standard ovens, so the details in these recipes are crucial to their success. Despite the smaller cavity, you may be surprised to know that you can cook a 10 - 14 lb turkey in a steam oven, depending on the model, and it will only take approximately one ¼ hours.  Steam ovens don't have a bake element (bottom heat), but the combination of heat and steam makes them ideal for baking bread, pastry, and casseroles. Even when using a different recipe, the guidelines our recipes provide will help you easily adapt that recipe in terms of temperature, mode, and timing to bake in the steam oven. Some steam ovens have a Low-Temperature Cooking mode. This mode is similar to Sous Vide cooking in that the food is cooked at a very low temperature. This mode is only for cooking lean, tender cuts of meat, fish, and poultry, and unlike the Sous Vide mode, the food does not have to be vacuum sealed in a bag or container.  This cooking method takes some time, and the food needs to be finished over high heat before serving, but the results are sublime. You will never overcook an expensive cut of meat when you use this method, and you will find many recipes featuring this method on our website because we are great fans. As steam ovens became more popular, manufacturers began to add Automatic Programs to help people overcome the initial learning curve.  These programs are beneficial; after all, it only takes cooking a few meals successfully to convert people to the joys of cooking with steam.  On the other hand, to get the most out of cooking with a steam oven, taking the time to understand how to cook without those programs will be most rewarding. Learning to use a steam oven effectively takes a little practice. Still, because our recipes are tailored to the steam oven's different functions, you will easily adapt your cooking and reap the rewards of this fantastic combination of Convection and Steam. Larissa, Your Convection, Steam Enthusiast

Convection and Steam ovens are remarkable tools because they offer many options that simplify meal preparation. All it takes to benefit from those tools is some planning. One of the more remarkable aspects of convection is the ability to cook multiple foods at once with no transfer of flavor. That means that any time your oven is on unless you are cooking a specialty item that requires precise temperatures, you should be able to cook several different foods simultaneously. Since it’s the season for warming winter soups, let's look at how using your Convection or Steam oven can simplify the process and help you create flavorful soups. Roasting Vegetables in Convection the Key to Delicious Soup There are several reasons why roasting vegetables for soup makes sense. When vegetables are roasted, their natural sugars caramelize to develop better flavor. Vegetables roasted in Convection retain more moisture, which translates to better flavor. Most of us don’t have a large soup pot to accommodate a large quantity of vegetables, so roasting vegetables for soup makes more sense. Best of all, it’s easy to roast a tray of vegetables for soup while cooking other foods. Making the soup base on the cooktop is relatively easy. Slowly cook the foundation ingredients, such as onions, leeks, garlic, carrots, and celery. Add the stock and simmer for approximately 20 minutes before adding the roasted vegetables. Soups containing pumpkin, butternut squash, cauliflower, mushrooms, tomatoes, broccoli, corn, and zucchini can be pureed. Still, various roasted cubed vegetables can be added to broth soups or soups featuring beans or lentils. Best Convection Oven Mode for Crisp Roasted Vegetables The Convection Roast or Convection Bake mode will work for oven-roasting vegetables. If you roast the vegetables on rack position 1 or 2, counting up from the bottom of the oven, they will be close to the bottom heating element and should caramelize well. If you need more crisping, move the tray closer to the top heating element for the final 10 minutes of cooking. The ideal cooking temperature and timing will, of course, depend on your oven. For example, 375F in my 24” oven is very powerful, but larger 30” ovens may provide better results at 400F. I also notice that a high temperature can cause burning on the edges when I roast vegetables in my gas oven. Understanding the rack position and temperature that will work best in your oven is critical to successful cooking. Don’t follow a recipe blindly; observe how your oven cooks to achieve the best results. Some vegetables such as fresh corn, peppers or tomatoes, add a lot of flavor to soup if they are cooked in the Convection Broil mode to gain a nice char. Coarsely chopped and added into the soup these vegetables will add wonderful bursts of flavor. Another vital aspect of roasting vegetables is using the right amount of oil. If the vegetables are tossed in too much oil they become limp, not enough and they will be dry. Start with a light coating of oil and adjust as needed. Steaming Vegetables for Soup Roasted vegetables give soup a lot of flavor, but certain soups are delicious made with steamed vegetables. When you are in the mood for a soup with fresh, bright flavors, steamed peas, broccoli, asparagus, spinach, and potatoes are a good choice for a lighter soup. While roasting or steaming vegetables can enhance soup, the key to good soup is. Yes, it takes planning, but it is easy and good stock. Roasting bones for stock or simmering a chicken carcass are easy to do, yes it takes planning, but it is easy and your soup will be so much more delicious made with homemade stock. So next time you bake a casserole, bake some potatoes or roast a chicken, consider starting a soup base on the cooktop and roasting some vegetables for another easy, delicious convection meal. Thanksgiving is such an important feast, but it can cause tremendous stress when orchestrating the cooking of so much food. In my next post, I will address the best type of pan to roast your turkey or turkey breast this Thanksgiving and remind you of the many helpful videos and recipes I have created to help you understand how Convection can ease the stress of cooking. Larissa, Your Convection Enthusiast