A steam oven can accomplish nearly all tasks of a conventional oven or microwave, while preserving more nutrients and expediting the cooking process. It excels in preparing juicy chicken breasts and tender-crisp vegetables, and even enhances the flavor of reheated leftovers.
For those not yet ready to part with a traditional stove, integrating a steam stove with your current oven or stove is an option. A full-fledged steam oven serves as an excellent microwave alternative in the home! And if you're fully embracing the change, many modern steam ovens offer the best of both worlds by allowing you to choose between hot air and steam heating methods.
What exactly is meant by a steam oven?
As their name suggests, steam ovens cook food using steam. In contrast, conventional ovens employ gas or electric heating elements to warm the air, while convection ovens circulate this heated air around the food with fans for faster cooking. The uniqueness of steam ovens lies in their method of heating water instead of air, which produces steam when heated to 212°F. This technique allows for quicker cooking compared to regular ovens, and the humid atmosphere ensures that any food cooked in a steam oven remains juicy and moist.
Fortunately, for the majority of steam ovens, altering your kitchen's plumbing isn't necessary. Many models come with a water tank instead of relying on direct plumbing, making installation convenient. However, it's crucial to remember to refill the tank periodically.
Why Consider Switching to a Steam Oven
Health-focused chefs prefer steam ovens for their capacity to cook without extra oil. In a conventional oven, a protective layer of fat (such as butter or cooking oil) is required to prevent food from drying out in the hot-air atmosphere. Steam ovens overcome this by utilizing superheated steam for cooking, which traps moisture within the food during the cooking process. You may opt to add oil for flavor, but it isn't essential for achieving perfectly cooked dishes.
Moreover, steam plays a crucial role in enhancing the color of vegetables while preserving their nutritional content. Water-soluble vitamins, such as vitamin C and B complex, can be lost when fruits and vegetables are boiled in water. However, steaming vegetables retains these vitamins, ensuring each bite is packed with more nutrition.
We also find steam ovens invaluable for reheating leftovers. They warm food more swiftly than a regular oven, rivaling the speed of a microwave for reheating purposes. The humid environment offers an additional advantage. Leftovers often dry out in the fridge as starches absorb excess moisture. A microwave's dry heat doesn't address this issue, whereas a steam oven infuses extra moisture into the food during reheating, ensuring everything tastes as delicious as when it was first prepared.
Types of Steam Ovens
Full Steam Ovens
Full steam ovens are designed exclusively for steam cooking, lacking any supplementary heating elements. Despite operating at 100% steam, most models offer adjustable steam settings and incorporate various pre-programmed functions tailored for specific dishes, such as melting chocolate, proofing dough, or cooking bacon.
Full steam ovens serve as an excellent alternative to microwaves, yet it may be practical to install one alongside a conventional oven since they require water to generate heat. They are capable of preparing almost any dish that a regular oven can, but they fall short when it comes to baking desserts like cookies, muffins, cakes, or pies. While your baked goods will still taste delightful, they may lack the traditional golden-brown crust achievable in a conventional oven.
Combi Steam & Convection Ovens
When space and budget constraints limit you to a single oven, combination ovens are the optimal choice. These appliances offer the best of both oven and steamer functionalities. Opt for models that offer full versatility, allowing you to cook with hot air only, 100% steam, or a combination of both.
Ovens Featuring Steam Cooking Capabilities
Certain ovens advertise steam cooking capabilities due to a water reservoir tray that introduces moisture and humidity into the baking process. Upon reading the details, you'll discover that many of these ovens cannot cook with 100% steam, thus not qualifying as true steam ovens. While they excel at keeping food moist during roasting, they fail to deliver the advantages of a full steam oven.
The Optimal Foods for Steam Oven Cooking
Steam ovens excel at preparing a wide range of dishes, albeit with certain limitations. These appliances are constrained to heating water to 212°F, preventing them from reaching the high temperatures of conventional ovens. Consequently, achieving oven-roasted Brussels sprouts or a crispy-skinned whole chicken is unfeasible. Similarly, they can't deliver the golden-brown crust of baked goods such as cookies or pies.
Despite these limits, steam ovens shine in cooking nearly every other type of food. Steamed fish, meat, and poultry emerge juicier than their grilled or roasted equivalents, ensuring dry chicken breasts are a thing of the past! Meats cook much faster in a steam oven, potentially cutting the cooking time of a whole turkey by 50%, which simplifies Thanksgiving preparations. However, note that steamed meat may appear less appealing than that cooked in a regular oven (especially poultry with skin). To enhance appearance, consider using the broiler of a conventional oven (or the hot air function of a combi-steam oven) to caramelize the exterior.
Vegetables are a true highlight in a steam oven. Carrots, green beans, asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower, and more are steamed to tender-crisp perfection while preserving their nutrients. Potatoes for mashed potatoes cook much quicker in a steam oven than boiling on the stove, and peeling is unnecessary as the skins slip off easily after steaming.
Steam ovens also excel with other foods. Try hard-boiling eggs, cooking rice, or reheating leftovers. The possibilities are endless!
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