A combination microwave oven is a kitchen appliance with a multifunctional character: you can use it as a microwave oven as well as an oven. This means that you can prepare almost all types of meals with a combi microwave. The power of the microwave oven is expressed in watts. The higher the number of watts, the faster your preparations will be ready. Below you can read more details about this device.
An appliance with a microwave and oven function in one
So a combination microwave oven has a microwave and oven function. You can defrost and reheat meals and products, but also bake them. Baking a cake or pizza? Preparing an oven dish? You can do it with a combi microwave. Nowadays, more and more models also have additional functions, such as a grill or steam function.
What functions can combi microwave have?
The functions available to a microwave oven obviously depend on the exact type. The appliance may have the following functions:
- The microwave function: defrosting or heating products or dishes.
- The regular oven function: heat from above and below.
- The crisp function: a microwave function combined with a special plate for crisp heating. You use this for pizzas and quiches, for example.
- The grill function: more heat from above
- The steam function: heat water quickly to boiling point and keep it at that temperature.
Technical operation of the microwave oven
An ordinary microwave oven creates heat by emitting microwaves. When this electromagnetic radiation comes in contact with food, heat is generated. This triggers the heating of the food. A combination microwave oven does not use electromagnetic radiation, but a fan. This sets hot air in motion to bake or roast foods.
What is the difference between microwave and combi oven?
Not infrequently, people confuse the combination microwave with the combination oven. Although the two are very similar, there are differences between them. A combi microwave is best suited for someone who prepares only basic dishes in his or her kitchen. For example, do you like to bake cakes? Then a combi microwave is a less logical choice. On the contrary, a combi oven is capable of cooking cakes and other baked goods perfectly. This is because it has additional heating elements. Incidentally, the combi microwave is also a bit smaller than the microwave, making it a more obvious choice when you have limited space.