Appliances
Dual-fuel stoves
Introduction
Do extra-wide dual-fuel stoves cook as well as they look?
Dual-fuel stoves are the model of choice for serious home cooks. With their responsive gas cooktops and multi-function electric ovens, they can offer the best of both worlds in one appliance.
We tested 4 models and find out whether they're a better option than combining a separate oven and cooktop.
Models we tested
This report contains test results and recommendations for the following dual-fuel stoves:
About our test
We use the same cooking tests for all stoves.
Oven
We bake scones to test how well the ovens do at high temperatures over a short time, and meringues to test them at low temperatures for a long period.
We cook a custard tart to test how the oven responds to a change from a high to moderate temperatures.
We make a freshly prepared pizza and cook it at a very high temperature for a short period to assess the oven’s ability to crisp and brown the base and evenly cook the toppings.
And we roast a whole chicken to assess how each oven copes with a non-uniform food.
Grill
We make toast and grill sausages to assess speed and evenness of grilling.
Cooktop
First we make white sauce on the simmer-burner to test the cooktop’s ability to perform at a low temperature for a long time.
Next we cook rice on the medium-sized burner. This tests the "turn down" capacity of the element and whether the burner can maintain a suitable level of heat at the lowest temperature setting.
We cook a beef and vegetable stir-fry on the wok burner or the largest element to assess its ability to deliver continuous high heat.
Our final test is chocolate-melting. Chocolate is sensitive to high temperatures: it must be melted on a very low temperature to avoid burning.
Ease of use
We look at the user-friendliness of the controls and displays, and at how easy it is to use the cooktop elements, grill trays and oven shelves. We also evaluate the tedious stuff – cleaning each stove (inside and out).
Checklist
If you are considering buying a dual-fuel stove, here's what to look for:
Stove
- Adjustable legs - these let you adjust the stove's height so it matches your benchtop. They also let you level it.
Cooktop
- Continuous hobs - this design allows pans to be moved around the burners without being lifted.
- Accurate low-temperature setting - this gives you more control over the flame at low levels, and greater accuracy (try it out in the shop if you can).
- One-piece burners - they're easier to clean and maintain.
Oven
- A counter-balanced oven door - this should be light and easy to open, and should stay open in any position.
- A large oven-window - it should be big enough for a clear view inside.
Inside the oven
- Usable inside space - check this by taking along your largest baking or roasting dish (or the measurements and a tape) to see if it'll fit.
- Interior light - make sure the bulb is easy to replace.
- Shelves - these should have stops to prevent them being pulled out accidentally and they shouldn't tilt down when pulled out with the weight of a heavy dish on them.
- A good range of shelf positions and three or more shelves - for flexibility.
- Moulded runners - they're easier to clean than metal pull-out ones.
- Under-oven storage - useful for large trays and racks.
Grill
- Several grill-tray heights - at least two.
- A sensible and safe grill tray - the tray should come out far enough to let you deal easily with food at the back of it, and should have a "stop" mechanism to prevent it from accidentally being pulled right out.
- A smokeless grill tray is good.
- A safe grill-element - make sure the element has a shield or is set high into the oven ceiling, so that your fingers can't accidentally touch it.
For more information about buying a stove, see our Oven buying guide.
Who do they suit?
Serious cooks may have these stoves high on their wish list, but they're not for everyone.
Pros
- All the models we looked at had 5 or more burners (including a wok burner). Some also include a fish burner in the centre of the cooktop – which can be used for cooking a whole fish or for char-grilling on a cast-iron grill plate that you place on top.
- The gas/electric combo gives you a cooktop with instant and easily controlled heat, plus the versatility of a multifunction oven.
- The ovens have at least 4 shelf positions and you can fit in extra-wide baking and roasting dishes. The extra space means you can cook a number of dishes simultaneously, saving you time and making it easy to cook for more people.
Cons
- They take up considerable kitchen space. As well, their trays and racks are heavy (particularly with a large roasting tray on top) and the size of the racks makes them hard to clean in a domestic sink.
- These stoves require professional installation, because they have to be wired into the mains as well as plumbed into the gas supply (reticulated or LPG). This adds to your overall costs.
You may want to consider a stove like this when completely redesigning your kitchen, but not as an upgrade to your current layout. If you just want to switch to dual-fuel cooking, there are several manufacturers offering 60cm-wide 4-burner dual-fuel models that would fit in place of an existing stove.
What these ovens can do
Conventional baking
This is standard convection baking using the top and bottom elements. It tends to be slightly hotter towards the top, allowing food to brown. It's good for cooking foods such as cakes, roasts and casseroles.
Fan-forced
Heat comes from an element at the rear of the oven, and a fan in the centre of the element circulates the heat. The oven heats relatively quickly and efficiently. Heat is distributed evenly – making it good for multi-shelf cooking. It's similar to conventional bake but heats faster and more evenly.
Classic ("base") baking
Heat comes from the bottom element only. It's particularly recommended for getting crispy bases.
Fan-assisted
This uses the top and bottom elements of the oven, with a fan circulating the heat. "Fan-assisted" helps distribute the hot air evenly, so it's useful when you're cooking on more than one shelf.
Grill
This may use a special grill element, or just the conventional top element. It's good for finishing off dishes that have cheese toppings, and for other "browning" tasks.
Grill with fan
Can be used to cook chicken and other roasts or larger cuts of meat.
Check our test results to see which models in our test were best – and worst – at different tasks.