New Advantium Cooks At the Speed of Light
By Pamela Slover Percival
During the 1970s, American kitchens were revolutionized by the spread of
microwave ovens for home use. Suddenly we had a new and faster
way to cook foods. This month another new cooking technology is being introduced in Texas for home consumers -- the GE Advantium Oven with "Speedcook" technology.
Like the microwave, the Advantium cooks foods quickly. But the
Advantium is able to closely replicate the texture foods have
when cooked in a conventional oven. The main problem with microwave
cooking has been that microwaved foods have different textures and even tastes than those cooked in a conventional oven. For example, there's just no comparison between a chicken roasted in a conventional oven and one that has been "zapped" in the microwave. The oven-roasted chicken is crisp and browned on the outside, while moist, juicy and tender on the inside. A microwaved chicken tends to be rubbery and unbrowned. And baking is nigh onto impossible to accomplish successfully in a microwave.
The new Advantium oven, by comparison, can roast a whole chicken in 25 minutes, and it closely simulates in taste and texture a chicken roasted in a conventional oven. Crescent rolls baked in the Advantium for less than five minutes (no preheating necessary) using refrigerated dough come out brown and crispy on the outside and soft and fluffy inside. Shrimp cooks in 2 minutes and is tender and moist inside, with a crispy crust on the outside. Overall, foods cook four times faster than in a conventional oven, according to General Electric. And in my taste tests of the above dishes, they honestly tasted to me like foods prepared in a conventional home oven.
So how does this new oven work? It cooks with light. It can brown,
crisp, bake and broil using three specially designed, high-intensity
halogen bulbs. The light cooks the top and bottom of the food
simultaneously, quickly searing in the natural juices and flavors. The Advantium also is equipped with microwave technology and
sometimes injects a microwave "boost" to help finish out cooking cycles. To save space in a kitchen, the Advantium can function dually as a simple microwave to accomplish tasks like defrosting and warming.
The people at GE say they've been working on the Advantium technology for about five years, seeking a way to keep up with consumers' fast-paced lives. This oven definitely can help people to cook dinner at home much more quickly. However, there are some pitfalls.
The main drawback is that Texans will have to spend time learning to
use the oven and adjusting recipes. The oven comes programmed
with settings to cook more than 80 dishes. So if you want to bake
crescent rolls, you just turn the dial to "crescent rolls" and the oven sets itself. However, if your favorite recipe or frozen dinner is not programmed into the oven, you have to do some experimenting to figure out the proper settings. For cooks with a large collection of favorite recipes, conversion to Advantium cooking could be a
time-consuming and tedious process. But for people who don't currently do much cooking, the Advantium could be a great incentive for exploring the kitchen. The oven comes with a cookbook containing more than 150 recipes designed just for the Advantium, so novices could learn to cook at the "speed of light." GE representatives also are lobbying to get food manufacturers and distributors to add "Speedcook" times and directions to products like frozen pizzas and other pre-packaged foods, just as microwave cooking times and directions have been added to products over the years.
Another initial disadvantage to the Advantium oven is its price -- it retails for about $1300 to $1400, compared to less than $200
for some basic microwaves. It also is currently only available for
built-in installation above your cooktop, range or countertop, and must have a designated 240-volt grounded electrical outlet.
However, the Advantium does come with a 10-year parts and labor
warranty on its specially designed 1500-watt halogen bulbs. It also
switches to a microwave oven with the press of a button, so if you're in the market for a new microwave, you could get two ovens in one.
Advantium ovens are currently available only at retailers who agree
to conduct special, in-store demonstrations to help consumers learn how the ovens work. For the location of Advantium retailers in
Texas cities, visit the Advantium web site at www.geadvantium.com and type in your zip code, or phone the GE Answer Center at 1-800-626-2000.
Classic Carrot Cake
From the Advantium Cookbook
- 1-1/2 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 3 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups shredded carrots
- 1/3 cup finely chopped pecans
In a large mixing bowl, combine sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla;
beat with an electric mixer at medium speed for 1 minute. Combine flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add to sugar mixture. Beat on low speed for 1 minute. Stir in carrots and pecans. Spread mixture evenly in a greased 17- x 11-inch baking dish. Place dish on turntable. Cook for 13 to 15 minutes at U=4 L=6 M=4 (Special Advantium oven cooking settings) or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. Makes 12 servings
Classic Lasagna
From the Advantium Cookbook
- 1/2 pound bulk sausage
- 1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 cups spaghetti sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
- 6 lasagna noodles, cooked and drained
- 1-1/4 cups shredded mozzarella
Cook sausage, mushrooms, onion and garlic until sausage is
browned; drain. Add spaghetti sauce and sugar; blend well. In a small bowl, combine egg, ricotta cheese and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese; blend well and set aside.
Arrange 3 lasagna noodles in a greased 8-inch square baking dish, trimming to fit. Spread with half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Spoon half of sauce over cheese. Sprinkle with half of mozzarella cheese. Repeat layer of noodles, ricotta cheese mixture and sauce.
Place dish on turntable. Cook for 17 to 19 minutes at U=5 L=6 M=5 (special Advantium oven settings) or until bubbly. Top with remaining Parmesan and mozzarella cheeses during last 5 minutes of cooking time. Let stand for 10 minutes. Makes 6 servings.
end article
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