Automatic oven timer cooking?

[maytagbear]

My wonderful new Whirlpool gas stove, WFG361LVQ1 (for those who might be interested) has a feature I have never had, nor used before.... the delay start-cook-off feature.

If your daily driver stove has it, do you use it? I'd be a bit hesitant to put something in the oven and have it run while I was away from home.

If you use it, what do you cook with it?

Right now (6:00pm Eastern,) I am cooking "manually"-- sausage balls (just like regular meatballs, but made with sausage, not ground beef), and several baking potatoes.

I also have it on for heat. Today, April 5, my furnace malfunctioned, for the first time this heating season, and it's a brisk 41F outside.

I have read the use and care book several times, but I just don't know about this.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[henry200]

My mother made good use of the automatic on/off feature and I've used it on the couple ranges I've had with it. Mom typically used it for roasts. She could put the meat and vegetables in the oven and go on errands, or in later years go to work and supper would be done promptly at 5:00. There is the issue of meat left at room temperature for hours, but we ate countless meals prepared that way when I was growing up and we never had a single bout of food poisoning. I usually put the roast in while the meat is still frozen and then allow for longer cooking time to be sure it gets completely done. I also use a heavy enamel-coated cast iron pot such as Le Creuset and the meat even comes out browned as though you had browned it in a skillet first. Other frozen meals.....lasagna, hotdish etc. work equally well. Cooking in "real time" is still the best, but from long experience the automatic feature has been a great help.

 

[spookiness]

I use mine on occasion

Only to delay the cook time by an hour or so. For food safety issues you wouldn't want something sitting out too long.

For example I will put in a casserole dish or perhaps chicken or something, and time it so that it will be done when you get home. Put in at 6:30, go to gym/shopping/meeting, etc., set to come on at 7:10, get home at 8:00 and its ready or close to ready.

Of course you only want to do this for dishes that you know the precise cooking time for, and after you have had ownership of your oven long enough to learn its hotspots and idiosyncrasies. Its not something I use often, but the controls are intuitive and its easy to do so I do it occasionally.

I have had a GE gas stove for about 10 yrs and I love it.

 

[frigilux]

I use the automatic feature regularly, but as "spookiness" mentioned, you don't want to put a casserole in and let it sit for six hours before it bakes.

I make a big chafer pan (about 13" x 21") of egg bake for the lounge at work the first Monday of each month. I assemble it in the evening, and set my alarm for 2:30 a.m., at which time I transfer it to the oven. The oven turns on at 4:30 and the egg bake is ready to go out the door at 6:30. I've tried putting it straight into the oven from the refrigerator at 4:30, but it's so chilled that it doesn't bake evenly. The sides and bottom are quite dark before the center is set.

The "stop time" feature gets used a lot. If I get distracted, the oven shuts off when the item is done. I don't use it for cakes or other baked goods, obviously, but it's useful for roasts and casseroles. The gradually-cooling oven holds the items warm for quite awhile. I'm notorious for thinking "I'll go work in the garden for a few minutes," then winding up at the neighbor's for coffee & conversation, forgetting there was casserole in the oven.

 

[dirtybuck]

The first time I used this was back in '72 when my family moved into our new house. Very simple and easy to use. Also a big time saver.

 

[appnut]

I think my mom used it once or twice.  Over the past 25 years of home ownership, I've used it maybe once or twice.  Just not comfortable having anything sit around even after being cooked. 

 

[petek]

Remember that Polara range that came out 10 years ago.. the one that kept the oven cold until such time as it turned on to start cooking... Amana made them I think..obviously wasn't too hot a seller or sales were cold LOL

I don't think I've ever used the oven timer. What I do like on my KA is the temperature probe.. now that is handy.. just stick it in the food.. set the temperature the food is supposed to be cooked to and voila... it shuts off and beeps when it reaches the temperature. They don't offer it anymore so I dread when new stove time comes.

 

[DADoES]

 

Whirlpool sold the Polara range.  Can't say if they were maybe sourced from Amana.  There's one been on the floor for years at an appliance store here.  A price tag is on it, so I assume it's still for sale, not just for display interest.  I've had fleeting thoughts of buying it for the novelty, LOL.

 

I've never used timed baking.  Noticed recently when repairing my parents' Whirly wall oven, it apparently has a timed shut-off function (manually start, set how long to bake, it shuts off then), separate from auto-start/auto-off ... and also the usual minute timer.

 

I've used the temp probe once or twice on my GE Profile.  Interestingly, far as I can tell, there is no auto-preheat when using the probe.

 

[tomturbomatic]

One January night in the 1980s, John and I were going to move some appliances from a barn we were renting. I put dinner in the lower oven of my GE Americana and set it for Time Bake and (CORRECTLY!)set the shut off time. Did that every prove to be providential and a rare bit of good judgement. We got to the barn and loaded up the pickup, but in leaving, we ran across a VERY thawed spot in the pasture and with all of that weight, the rear of the truck sank. Nothing would help. I remember waiting on the road to hail down the tow truck to pull us out. Our feet were very cold. Thank heavens it was not windy. We finally got back to my house. Dinner was still warm thanks to all of that heavy insulation for self-cleaning, but if I had counted on getting back to turn off the oven, the fire department would have been called by my neighbors.

Because they used oven function selector switches, GE and Hotpoint offered the time bake option for both ovens on their true double oven ranges. One exception was a 30" Hotpoint Hallmark that was basically the high oven over the cooktop range that, instead of sitting on a base cabinet, sat on a separate oven with its own controls.

The range manuals used to give quite detailed instructions about having the food well chilled before putting it in the oven and how many hours it could safely sit before cooking started, but electric ovens were pretty well insulated for holding the food before and after cooking. Westinghouse came out with a Roastguard feature in the 50s that lowered the oven temp as the internal temperature of the meat, as registered by the roast probe, rose. It prevented overcooking if the roast was not removed from the oven after it was finished. A similar process had to be used for the Cook and Hold program with electric stoves because the insulation would keep the oven temperature far above holding temperatures for a long time after the cooking was completed.

Automatic shut off is something I really use with one of my induction units. Once a pan reaches the point where the heat is turned down to complete the cooking, like with rice or vegetables, for instance, the timer can be set and it will count down the remaining time and shut off.

 

[washerboy]

it was great

I don't have that feature on my 1941 Roper; but several years back when I had 6 people in the home I did have a gas wall oven that had the clock set feture. It was great. I could take a casserole dish out of the freezer, pop it in the oven, set the clock and by the time I got home in the evenings supper was ready. I would have been a little uncomfortable about putting an unfrozen meat dish in, having it set in the oven most of the day then bake; although truth be told it would have been okay..but then again it was back in the day when we were supposed to wash every thing with antibacterial soap. I do miss having that feature.

 

[verizonbear]

wish I still had it on my current rental

In my loft in Albuquerque I had the delay start on both the microwave and range. If I was leaving something in the range for signifigant amount of time I would place in there frozen to avoid any microbial suprises. It worked great with Lasanga, would make sauce and noodles the night before, assemble and freeze. Take it out the the next morning before heading into work. Set the timer to go on about 2 hours before I came home, cook for 60 minutes then shut off. I would have herb bread mix in the bread machine and it would smell awesome then I go home and the lasanga would be perfectly cooked and set.

 

[mixfinder]

Sabbath Mode

Modern ranges can be programmed for Sabbath mode to accept the food before sunset on Friday and hold it until time of service on the Sabbath.  It will cook and then hold forever.  I have used timed auto cook features on every range I own.  It is most helpful when going to church or entertaining out of town guests allowing you to preset dinner and have it hot and ready to serve when you get home from a day of touring. Several models of Frigidaire with Meal-Minder have a code for the food you're cooking and then the range decides how long and what temperature, turning the oven down to keep warm indefinitely. Its disconcerting because as soon as you activate the control a motor turns the dial to the temperature it will cook.  You can also incorporate the probe on auto cook which starts cooking at the preset time you choose and shuts down the oven when the food reaches it's optimum temperature.  (It usually takes a combination of factors to create a food borne toxin or illness.  The majority of food borne illness complaints to the Center for Disease control turn out to be fecal related.  Produce shopping after all the strangers maul the produce on display and having your kids a a daycare where germs and bacteria are shared during diapering are high on the list for illness many people perceive to be food borne. Having made it 60 years and seeing how my parents treat their food we must build up immunity to risky food handling)

 

[tomturbomatic]

The original need for a Sabbath mode in modern ranges was that the computerized oven controls would shut off after a maximum of 12 hours, I believe, of operation and this mode overrode the 12 hour limit.

 

[mixfinder]

Flamer

Lawrence I am more than happy for you that have you appliances you like, that cooking easy and more fun.  What led you to the Whirlpool choice and what is the best thing you've cooked with it so far?

 

[maytagbear]

Good question, Kelly!

Many reasons for my choosing a Whirlpool stove (and Whirlpool bottom freezer refrigerator!)

The nearest "mom and pop" appliance dealer sells a lot of Whirlpool. Got better prices than Lowe's or BestBuy, and supported a locally owned business! This company has a discount for cash, and includes delivery, set-up, and haul away. Whirlpool ranges and fridges do pretty well in the CR reader reliability surveys. Plus, there is our own Whirlpool employee, "Magic Clean."

I have great memories of our 1964 Whirlpool Imperial washer, and my landlord put in a Whirlpool gas water heater a few years ago......

This stove has all the features I wanted (power burner, simmer burner, self-cleaning oven,) and none that I did not want, like a warming drawer or second oven.

Best thing I've cooked on it so far? A tie between a perfectly pan-broiled pork chop, and a beef and vegetable stirfry. The 13,500Btu power burner is wonderful. I am going to bake this weekend. I am almost out of bread, and I want to see how my lemon-ginger pound cake turns out. I have some very fresh and beautiful lemons from a Bay Area back yard......

My old stove's oven thermostat was very accurate, but the cooktop was beyond bad.

As for the bottom freezer fridge, I'm not going vegetarian, but I AM eating more fruit and vegetables, and it's so nice to have the fresh food compartment at eye level. (EB9SHKXVO) It's nearly silent!

Thank you for asking!

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[tomturbomatic]

During WWII, manufacturers did not have appliances to sell, but to keep their names and products in front of the public, the ran "institutional" ads that showed a connection between their products and the war effort. One ad I remember featured a young mother coming home with her children in the late afternoon. The angle of the story was that she had spent all afternoon rolling bandages for the Red Cross yet, because she had put dinner in her GE clock-controlled oven before she left the house, she was able to serve her family a hot dinner even though she had not been home in the afternoon to prepare it.

 

[vacbear58]

Baking in American Ovens

Can I ask you guys for some tips about baking in American style ovens as I am being sorely tempted by the auction in the link, which is Canadian in origin.

I will kick off by saying that the traditional style of UK oven I was used to had elements on either side of the oven rather than top and bottom, although nowadays, they follow the European convention of top and bottom although the bottom element is never exposed.

For the last 25 years I have used ovens with a fan and element in the back, chosen for the ability to have more or less the same temperature on every shelf. I have only used my current Neff oven (which has a choice of either fan or top/bottom heat) for baking with top/bottom heat once and on that occasion the cakes I was making (cooked on a flat sheet rather like cookies) came out burned on the bottom. Is there any way to avoid this? Or can you really only bake on one shelf rather than multiple shelves?

Thanks

Al

Pardon our interruption...

 

[jamiel]

That is a kewl oven. Must have come from Canada since Moffat is not a US name...Electrolux's plant for North American built-in cooking is in Quebec.

Anyway, that looks to be a early-to-mid 60s unit. Probably made in dozens of different brands. It appears to be one made to replace a gas oven (with the storage drawer instead of the broiler).

North American ovens use largely bottom heat for baking (some have a little top heat), but GE (biggest electric brand) doesn't. You typically pre-heat until the oven reaches temperature, then in the food goes. There is often (but not always) a little more browning on the bottom than the top shelf, but not too tough to learn. Remember that the oven cavity is much larger than you're accustomed to, so the shelves are bigger (more flat space).

Apparently the UK side/back heat ovens are unique in Europe...everywhere else has the hidden elements with a fan

 

[tomturbomatic]

If you are baking without convection, it is extremely important to leave air space on all sides of the pan or cookie sheet you place into the oven. If it is a large pan or cookie sheet, it is best to only have one in the oven. Your cake possibly burned on the bottom because air could not circulate around it. With radiant or non-convection baking, you can bake with items like 8 or 9 inch layer cake pans or 8 to 10 inch pie pans on more than one shelf provided that they are staggered so that no pan is directly under a pan on the rack above it.

Actually, most good electric ovens use both elements when set to BAKE or RADIANT BAKE, the terminology dependent on the style and age of the oven. The lower element uses the full 220 or 230 volts and the top or broil element operates at half the voltage to give one fourth the full wattage to provide nice browning. This has proved so successful that some models of gas ovens introduced a small electric element around the perimeter at the top of the oven to provide radiant top heat for better baking results.

I can't advise you about the oven you want. I know nothing about the manufacturer or the oven's reputation, but maybe a Canadian member will be able to help with that.