How to Cook With a Steam Oven
Using a steam oven to prepare your food offers many benefits, including shorter cooking times and a higher moisture content in your food, which leads to improved texture, flavor and presentation. A steam oven also allows you to prepare recipes in a more healthy way, because the cooking process does not draw natural moisture out of the food that must be added back by artificial means, such as with fatty oils and butter. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
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1
Set the oven temperature according to the recipe or type of food you are preparing. To convert a conventional recipe, consult your oven manual. A general rule is to bake for less time at a reduced temperature. For example, a traditional recipe that calls for baking at 350 degrees for 55 minutes would likely cook in a steam oven at 325 degrees for 45 minutes.
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2
Adjust the oven racks to desired level.
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3
Set the correct steam option based on the recipe you are using and the options available on your steam oven. Some ovens offer only a full-steam option, in which steam fills the entire oven; others have a nozzle that directs steam into the cavity of food, such as a whole chicken, while others shoot steam into a pan that comes with the oven, called direct heating.
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4
Program the oven to release the amount of steam your recipe requires. Most steam ovens offer a humidity range between 20 percent and 100 percent. Consult your manual for the proper range.
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Place the food in the oven and remove after the amount of time instructed by the recipe or by the guidelines mentioned in Step 1.
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Tips & Warnings
Steam ovens are easy to clean. Simply choose the "Cleaning" option that softens stuck on food with steam, then wipe with a cloth.
Watch food closely when using a steam oven the first few times. Cooking times can be half of that with conventional ovens. Also, note that a steam oven can't brown or crisp food because it cooks with moisture.
