REVIEW: Bosch CSG656RS1 built-in combination steam oven

BOSCH CSG656RS1 45CM STAINLESS STEEL BUILT-IN COMBINATION STEAM OVEN
$3,799, from major electrical stores and www.bosch-home.com.sg/store

WHAT IT IS
A 47-litre built-in oven with 14 heating modes and four steam modes. Its height is 45cm, shorter than the usual 60cm oven, and can fit a small chicken. I liked how easy it was to load and unload food onto the lowest rack, which can be locked in place when fully extended.

HOW WELL IT WORKED
Ease of use
You need time to fiddle around with this high-tech appliance to see what wonders it can do. The instruction booklet was indispensable - I referred to it quite a bit to understand what some of the options meant.

The most useful functions
1 Assist
This function takes the guesswork out of cooking times. Just choose the kind of food from its menu – whether it's chicken or Danish pastries – and the oven will cook it at the most ideal preset timing. On the Pizza mode, the cheese on my frozen pizza was nicely melted while the base and crust were evenly crisped – something I can't achieve in my own oven.

Tip: if you're planning to use the oven continuously for different dishes, start with one requiring a lower temperature or you'll need to wait for the oven to cool.

2 Steam
My chawanmushi turned out smooth and silky. The steamed fish I made also had hardly any water pooling underneath.  

3 Meat Probe
Plug one end of the meat thermometer into a small socket in the oven and the other end into the thickest part of your meat or fish. The oven stops automatically when the core temperature reaches what you have preset (generally 55-99 deg C; the instruction manual lists recommended temperatures). My chicken thighs turned out tender and juicy on the inside, and crispy and golden on the outside.

VERDICT
An impressive, well-rounded oven that bakes and steams superbly. And it comes complete with modes that make it easy to use for both beginner and seasoned cooks. – Lim Tsiao Hui, consumer & lifestyle editor

This article was originally published in Simply Her July 2015.