Convection Toaster Ovens – How They Work
With a convection toaster oven you have a single appliance that can bake, broil, roast, toast, or simply thaw and reheat leftovers. And it does all these more efficiently than your conventional built-in or freestanding oven saving you time as well as electric or other fuel costs.
This is made possible by a simple application of a phenomenon found in nature –convection. Convection refers to the transfer of heat in a fluid by the circulation of currents from one area to another. In convection toaster ovens, the fluid is the air inside and the currents are circulated by a fan. With this, heat is transferred and evenly distributed in the air within the oven.
No heat is trapped at the upper sections of the oven as is common with conventional ovens because hot air is more buoyant than cold air. The fan forces the hot air to circulate evenly in the oven, enveloping the food and negating its layer of chill, resulting to an even cooking. It is usually installed in the rear although some commercial versions have fans on their sides.
The hot air inside is generated by heating elements. Their number varies with the different models with some having as many as five. At the very least, though, there should be one at the top of the cooking chamber and another at the bottom. Those that have more usually have one installed near the fan.
Some convection toaster ovens have fans that blow air from inside the cooking chamber outside. Others use the reverse, that is, blow air from outside into the chamber. Both have the effect of circulating air inside but blowing air from inside is often believed to be better as it eliminates the possibility of picking up dust or dirt from outside and blowing it onto the food. Also, bringing in outside air can result in lowered temperatures in the cooking chamber. Blowing inside air outside, however, requires filters in front of the fan to prevent food particles and grease from flying outside and spattering your walls. It also means that the area around the oven is hot.