What type of cooker?

[Cat71]

I'm currently using a very old bottled gas cooker which has two modes-off or burn. The whole neighbourhood knows when I'm cooking which just strengthens the French theory that the English can't cook!

Therefore, a new cooker is a must. Most cookers I've seen are a mixture of gas and electric. I've been used to an aga so gas and electric are a bit of a novelty to me. I do a lot of cooking and don't want to make a mistake choosing the wrong type.

Having now had experience of bottled gas I'm not very impressed. I'm assuming the gas/electric combination is to cut the cost of electricity bills.

Can anyone advise?

Thanks,

Catherine

[Teamedup]

The best advice I ever got when I first got here was to buy a good cooker, which I did. A DeDietrich with two gas and two electric rings and an electric fan oven. It was expensive and I wore the poor thing out over the 20 years it lasted. Didn't replace it with another expensive one as we are leaving, and the Ariston I replaced it with a mid priced model is not a patch on it, none of the gas rings will go low enough to 'just' simmer and neither will the electric rings either. The oven, for all it is also a fan oven, doesn't distribute the heat so well and I always have to turn things half way through cooking.

[Patf]

There has been a lot of discussion in the past (now disappeared) on the problem of gas ovens burning the food on the base because the burners are on the floor of the oven. We have had both gas and electric and the electric is much better in spite of not being expensive.

We have a gas hotplate which is ok but poor quality enamel on the centre of the burners.  Pat.

[Will]

In our previous French house we had a wood-burning Rayburn, mainly for the central heating. It wasn't brilliant at that - it depending on having top-quality wood, cut to exactly the right size; it worked better with coke-type fuel but this was both rare and expensive. Had we stayed there I'd have had it converted to oil (we bought one with future conversion in mind, it isn't possible with all models). But despite its heating shortcomings it was brilliant for cooking and I'd love another. In summer or for quick things we used a Zanussi bottled gas hob, which was OK but not as controllable as I'd like, and Neff electric oven, bought second-hand in UK, which was excellent.

In that kitchen's previous format we had a cheapish dual-fuel cooker made by Fagor which worked very well indeed, though the grill was never the same again after an English 'builder' inadvertently connected it to the wrong part of a three-phase electrical supply.

The reason for so many dual-fuel cookers in France seems to be that the French prefer an electric oven, but an all-electric cooker puts too much load on the electrical supply, and most houses don't have a separate cooker circuit for some reason.

Our current kitchen has a Scholtes bottled gas hob, which is very good (perfectly controllable), and an Ariston oven which cooks well, though I'd like something better one day.

[Cat71]

Thanks for that info. We have got a De Dietrich wood burner which is actually a cooker. In fact we've got 2, one each end of the house. I've been used to a range cooker but as yet have to test out the DD.

We've just spent 2 days moving our woodpile which we bought from the previous owners. The logs are huge and will need cutting so I take note of your comments about the size of logs!

It's also comforting to hear that a gas hob doesn't always burn! I think my old bottled gas cooker will end up at the dechetterie soon

 

Catherine

[zeb]

Hi Catherine - we've got a DD which we inherited with the house 3 years ago. We keep threatening to change it for a normal woodburning stove and one day we will but.......each winter I love it more!!

Unfortunately it doesn't look trendy or cool like an AGA or Rayburn - it just looks like a 70s French cuisiniere which it is, but it's great for cooking stews and simmering things. I have a kettle on the top for the whole winter, soups on top and casseroles and rice puddings in the oven. If you need a high heat you have to roar the fire so I don't often do that as kitchen gets too hot.

After a couple of years I have learnt how to keep it in overnight. - fill it up with the largest old logs you can find, shut it right down and chuck on a few sticks in the morning with the door and damper wide open!!

 Don't forget logs have to be 33cms (old and dry) - oak and charm are best but everything gets chucked into our fire!! Gives out a wonderful heat and I much prefer it in the kitchen to the central heating. We've also got an inox Italian range-type cooker which runs on bottled gas - huge oven and great to use now that I've learnt how(!) Must say the kitchen does look a bit strange with two cookers but people with AGAs must surely have something for summer use!!

Anyway best wishes and bon chance.......helen

 

 

[Iceni]

Di takes cooking seriously (as seriously as I take eating) and would not consider a gas oven - burns stuff. We have a Blue Sky (Carrefour) with 4 gas burners (1 a double wok type) and an electric oven - separate controls for top/bottom/side heat plus fan assisted. Only 60cm wide so will not take a whole pig but big enough for our needs. Gas bottles cost around €21 to fill and last 3 months ish. For the times when a small oven is adequate we have a combination oven/microwave.

This solution works for us, the same setup that we had in UK except of course here there is no "town" gas.

John