Buying a smart oven? One cookbook author shares her tips

How do smart ovens work?

Smart ovens are high-tech, multi-function ovens — meaning they’re smart appliances that can cook in several different modes through simple navigation (usually a push of a button), helping take some of the guesswork out of cooking. Some are essentially enhanced versions of countertop convection ovens and toasters, though their size tends to outgrow those. The idea is that these countertop ovens can replace many of the devices you’re currently using — able to perform wide-ranging cooking tasks from broiling to air frying and baking — saving you money, time and counter space. That makes them ideal considerations for anyone with a smaller kitchen, tighter schedule or yearning for simplicity when cooking.

“You can cook all the same things you would in a regular oven, but a convection oven does it faster, generally cutting 25 percent off the cooking time,” cookbook author Robin Donovan told NBC News, adding that “these ovens are appealing because most people want to be able to cook in less time.”

They’re able to switch between modes by adjusting heating elements (e.g. by turning on different burners) and air circulation within, said Donovan, who recently wrote “The Complete Convection Oven Cookbook.” What’s more, they’re often quicker to preheat, she noted.

Many smart ovens also come equipped with smart home features, allowing you to control cooking from your smartphone or smart assistant and access their recipes (which are automatically programmed to the oven), thermometers, and sometimes cameras to watch the cooking.

What can you make in a smart oven?

The better question might be what can’t a smart oven cook? What your oven can cook depends on the specific model you buy (and where it falls in the numeric bucket: 5-in-1, 7-in-1, 12-in-1). Here are some of the things you can do across the gamut of smart ovens:

Bake a whole pizza
Rotisserie a whole chicken — or a small turkey
Roast chicken breasts or thighs
Air fry chicken wings
Cook up jerky or bacon
Dry fruit
Bake cupcakes, pies and muffins
Cook sheet pan meals
Bake casseroles and frittatas
Roast vegetables
Toast bread and bagels

How to shop for a smart oven

Not all smart ovens are alike, and some have more bells and whistles than the others.

Smart oven sizes

What your countertop probably doesn’t need is another appliance taking up valuable space. While you may be using this as a replacement for various other appliances (possibly getting rid of an old toaster, for example), you may also need one that’s compact itself.

“The smaller the oven, the faster it heats up and the less electricity it uses,” Donovan added. “So, if you’re searching for something quick and efficient, go for something smaller.” On the other hand, if you’re using it to cook a turkey or pizza, you’ll want one with a larger capacity.

Number of cooking modes

This refers to the number of cooking functions the machine offers. It’s often designated with a number, like “5-in-1” (there are five cooking modes), 7-in-1, or 12-in-1 — with numbers in between. What’s right for you depends on what your go-to cooking style is and what types of food you think you’ll be using the smart oven for most often.

There’s no rule about what standard settings are offered, but for perspective, Tovala’s Gen 2 Smart Steam Oven, a 5-in-1 model, offers steaming, baking, broiling, reheating, and toasting modes. Moving to a COSORI’s 12-in-1 Oven Air Fryer Combo adds other enhanced preset modes like roasting, air frying and pizza making. The number of presets the model offers doesn’t necessarily determine the price.

Automatic cooking processes

Some companies have their own recipes programmed into the smart oven itself. All you have to do is put the food together, pop it in the smart oven, and get it cooking. Similarly, these may also have specific cook programs, which let you designate that you’ve put in a rib-eye or a chicken breast, and then it will get to work to heat the food to perfection. The June Life Oven, for example, will automatically change its functions and temperatures depending on what food or meal you instruct it to cook. For instance, the company says, if you put the oven on steak mode, the oven will automatically switch between roast, broil, and bake for the perfect cook.

Internal thermometer and automation

There’s no wondering if your chicken will be cooked through with a built-in smart food thermometer that can detect the temperature of foods, as well as the internal temperature of the oven and make adjustments accordingly to cook time. Moreover, this sous vide-like capability might allow the smart oven to stop cooking altogether once a certain temperature is reached.

Best smart ovens to shop in 2020 at every price point

The price of smart ovens is all over the place: Expect to spend around several hundred dollars. The more features you’re after — like food temperature sensors and automatic cooking — the greater the price, in general.

The good news is that high-quality, multi-function smart ovens are available in a variety of prices.

1. June Life Oven plus Gourmet Package

This smart oven is programmed with more than 200 automatic cook programs and is designed to recognize the food inside of it and detects its temperature. You can also control it from your phone using the June app. You can purchase the oven alone or grab the gourmet package, giving you a roasting rack, two pans, three air baskets, a wire shelf and crumb tray, as well as a three-year subscription to June’s recipes. Size-wise, this smart oven can handle a 10-pound turkey or 12-inch pizza.

2. COSORI 12-in-1 Oven Air Fryer Combo

COSORI’s air fryer combo oven gives you a dozen cooking presets for pizza, roasting, air frying, toasting, broiling, baking cookies, rotisserie cooking, dehydrating, fermenting and keeping food warm. It’s large enough to fit a 13-inch pizza, a five-pound whole chicken, or a dozen cupcakes. A nonstick interior should mean easier cleanups.

3. Ninja Foodi 8-in-1 Countertop Convection Oven

An 8-in-1 oven means eight separate functions: air fry, roast, broil, bake, toast, bagel, dehydrate and warm. The flatter cooking area is wide enough to allow for a 13-inch pizza, a 13 inches by 13 inches sheet pan, or six chicken breasts. This oven is designed to preheat in 60 seconds its lower profile should allow for easier storage.

4. GoWISE USA Electric Air Fryer Oven

Air fry, bake, roast and rotisserie in this oven. Despite its smaller size, it actually boasts 12.7 quarts-worth of cooking space, along with three rack levels. Fifteen cooking presets are complemented by 10 included accessories: rotisserie clips, an oven rack, drip pan, mesh basket and mesh trays. It comes in black, silver, white and red.

5. Tovala Gen 2 Smart Steam Oven

This countertop oven can be set to five modes: steam, bake, broil, reheat and toast. But the best part is the extreme ease of cooking. Like the June smart oven, an app allows you to control the oven and set recipes to work. It also lets you scan groceries — like frozen foods, for example — and the oven will cook them according to package directions. Tovala also has their own line of mail-order meals (of course), which you can order separately.

6. Breville The Smart Oven Pro

The 10-in-1 oven lets you toast, bagel, bake, bake, broil, roast, slow cook, make pizza, and bake cookies. You can adjust its cooking to handle frozen food with a push of a button. It comes up to temp quickly, slashing preparation time.