Microwave or Convection Microwave

Sebtown wrote:
Previous owner of my unit tossed the microwave and replaced it with a high end toaster oven of almost equal size. We can bake chicken or cookies but we can't pop corn! We don't miss having a microwave as we rarely use the one at home and have never used the convection oven function.

Many people do not use a microwave for more than defrosting or heating something. Many do not use convection in a microwave OR conventional stove oven because they do not understand how it operates and are unsure of the temperature settings. Cook a roast in a conventional oven, well set on a rack and do the same with a convection setting/stove. The roast will be more evenly cooked and faster in a convection oven.

CA Traveler wrote:

Rocky2 wrote:
Is there a difference in the amount of battery power used cooking the same thing microwave vs. convection? Just thought of that when running either off the inverter.

I'd vote for convection using the most power because:
1. The MW will immediately cycle on and off unless on full power.
2. Convection has a warm up period
3. Convection cooking takes longer

Sorry to disagree. Convection does not have a warm up period. Convection cooking does not take longer as it takes less time and uses a lower temperature. Never wait for an oven to warm up. That is the routine for a standard oven. I have been cooking for 30 years and there is nothing to replace a convection oven in an RV or any kitchen for time saving and efficiency.

AL

I love my convection oven. I cook both outdoors when weather nice and indoors too. I make great roasted potatoes and the instructions make it simple.I would never use a regular microwave without convection. I had one in a previous C class and threw it out.

That is great!

deltamaster wrote:
Have you ever cooked on the heat of the vehicle engine?

Years ago I read where a guy created an "Oven" on the exhaust of his vehicle. Would set things up before a trip and then when he got there it would be ready to eat. It was designed to never be in contact with the exhaust gasses but the heat from the exhaust system.

Have never cooked anything but we do this while driving off road with the Jeep. Have warmed up left over pizza by wrapping it in tin foil and laying it near the manifold (but not touching it). Then after about 45 min or so stop and have a nice lunch.

Davydd wrote:
--deleted material for space--
Gene,

On the popcorn it could be operator error. Our combo works as either a microwave or a convection oven. As a microwave it functioned just as expected. It took us some time to figure out the convection oven part. We didn't even use the convection oven feature the first year we had it in our B. Punching a touch pad in long complicated sequences (it seemed) to get it to work was over our head at first. :)

At home we have a regular double oven and a microwave/convection oven. Our touch pad failed so we are replacing the microwave/convection oven with just a microwave. At home we never had a need to use the convection oven part.

Thanks for your thoughts.
It was evening and we were watching TV and had an appetite for popcorn. Tried putting the bag in the combo oven and set it for 2-1/2 minutes. After about 2 minutes the paper started smoking and the kernels turned black. Thinking I had a bad or possibly dried out bag, I tried the 2nd one and the same thing happened. This time I let it run for the entire 2-1/2 minutes and the paper started to smolder and looked as though it was read to burst into flame.
The RV is in winter storage and I do not know the brand of Microwave/Convection. There is no obvious buttons to toggle between microwave or convection. It is a case of not wanting to read the directions because then I would be admitting I can’t even pop popcorn. :D

Previous owner of my unit tossed the microwave and replaced it with a high end toaster oven of almost equal size. We can bake chicken or cookies but we can't pop corn! We don't miss having a microwave as we rarely use the one at home and have never used the convection oven function.

Rocky2 wrote:
Is there a difference in the amount of battery power used cooking the same thing microwave vs. convection? Just thought of that when running either off the inverter.

I'd vote for convection using the most power because:
1. The MW will immediately cycle on and off unless on full power.
2. Convection has a warm up period
3. Convection cooking takes longer

Rocky2 wrote:
Is there a difference in the amount of battery power used cooking the same thing microwave vs. convection? Just thought of that when running either off the inverter.

I don't have any information at hand but it should be easy to figure out. You need two things. How many amp hours it takes in each mode with the heat setting you need and how long you have to cook in each mode. Figure it out for each and compare.

It is a good question. I hadn't thought about it because I didn't think I would cook the same things. Take for instance, I would not pop popcorn in the convection mode and I would not bake bread in the microwave mode. Heating a frozen pizza choice would be the way it came out best in my mind. So far at home that has been in the oven and not the microwave. But then a leftover slice in the refrigerator from the night before might get microwaved. :)

Thanks, everyone, for your input.
Looks like we will replace the convection/microwave with a like unit.
Just have to take measurements and shop.
Thanks again, Barry