Why Should I Buy a Combi Oven?

Combi, convection, and toaster, oh my! When choosing an oven, buyers have a slew of options, each with unique features and applications.

If you're looking for a multi-functional oven that allows you to save valuable space in your kitchen, a combi oven may be the right choice for your commercial kitchen.

As its name suggests, a combi oven combines three cooking methods, steam, heat, or a combination of both, in one piece of equipment. It can bake, steam, smoke, sous vide, roast, fry, or rethermalize foods. It is a space-saving alternative to using a steamer and a convection oven.

An oven that saves time, money, and space may seem too good to be true, but the combi oven checks off all of those boxes.

Why Would I Choose a Combi Oven?

A combi oven is perfect for any commercial kitchen, but it particularly shines in small spaces because of its ability to replace several pieces of equipment without sacrificing any functionality.

The three cooking options a combi oven performs are:

• Convection Cooking: As in a convection oven, this option cooks by forcing hot air around the oven to create a dry heat that removes moisture while cooking your food items. This option is ideal for baking pies, roasting potatoes, and dehydrating meats.
• Steam Cooking: A moist heat keeps your food juicy and perfectly steamed. Cook items like poached or sous vide eggs, rice, fish, and cheesecakes.
• Combination Cooking: This mode marries hot air and steam cooking to brown foods while retaining moisture. Use this method for roasting meats, poultry, and fish as well as baking pasta dishes and sautéing items.

Technology-rich features like multi-stage cooking cycles (making it easy to cook different food items that would typically require multiple steps), programmable memory (allowing you to use pre-programmed recipes as well as your own unique recipes to ensure consistent results), touch screens (dial options are also available), and the ability to pause cooking once a desired internal temperature is reached make combi ovens a powerful addition to any commercial kitchen.

Here at Culitrade, our mission is to help foodservice operators run their businesses their way. True to that pledge, we offer various combi oven options to ensure you will find a unit that provides all of the features you need to efficiently run your kitchen!

The Great Debate: Electric vs. Gas

Electric options are a great choice when the elevation is high, and cost is a factor, as these ovens typically start at a lower price point.

Gas options can be nearly 50% more efficient than electric models, making them a popular choice. An open burner model will directly transfer energy, increasing the temperature inside the unit quickly.

Additional Considerations

Once Once you've decided if an electric or gas model is right for you, here are some other options to consider when selecting your unit.

• Programmability: The ability to cook items using pre-programmed and your own unique recipes makes cooking easy, regardless of the operator's experience level.
• Boiler or Boilerless: Steam generator combi ovens have a tank that boils water and produces steam that enters the cooking chamber, while boilerless options in water onto the heating element. Boilerless options are often preferred when a unit will be using hard water. Additionally, boilerless options typically require less regular maintenance.
• Size: A quaint coffee shop with limited needs will enjoy a compact option, while a commercial kitchen with high output needs can opt for a large combi with multiple shelves. Will a mini oven, a tabletop option, or a floor model be best for you?
• Touch Screen or Dial Control: This choice often boils down to personal preference and customization needs. With a touch screen option, you're able to quickly adjust the settings on your oven, allowing for visuals that make the unit easy to operate, even for those with little knowledge of the unit.

Regardless of which options you choose, be sure to carefully read the manufacturer's user manual before operating your combi oven.

It is important to understand how to operate, clean, and maintain your unit and share the information with the team members you foresee using the oven. Consider creating a checklist for regular cleaning and maintenance tasks to ensure your combi oven is properly cared for to ensure a long service life.