OTG 101: How to get started on using your oven for the first time?

An oven is the most versatile cooking appliance for the kitchen that you can buy apart from obviously a cooking stove. An oven can cook a wide range of food which is why they are immensely popular, and people prefer buying them. A variation of the oven that is equally popular is an OTG. Many people feel intimidated regarding using these appliances, especially first-time users. So let’s put those apprehensions to the side and get started with knowing how to use an oven.

What is an oven?

An oven is also a type of appliance used for cooking food. Unlike the microwave, an oven uses heat generated by an electric heating element to cook food. It also has a fan that circulates the heat around the cooking compartment to cook the food.

While an oven is assumed for only baking goods, one can use it for cooking a wide range of food — from bread, cakes, and cookies to meat, fish, and poultry.

What is an OTG?

It stands for Oven, Toaster, and Griller. An OTG is typically a small appliance that combines the functions of a toaster and a grill together in an oven. It uses a heating element quite similar to a conventional oven, along with a fan to circulate heat which allows for even cooking.

It comes with plenty of cooking accessories, such as baking trays, wires, and racks. It can be used for baking, grilling, and toasting functions.

How to use an oven?

Using an oven might differ from brand to brand and model to model, as some features aren’t universal to every oven. That said, there are a few things that are integral to using an oven regardless of the model and brand.

1. Read the manual: Before getting started, make sure you give sufficient time to go through the user’s manual to understand the functioning of the oven including the features and how to operate them. It will have some cautions and warnings to keep in mind as well.

2. Clean the oven: Before using the oven to cook anything, clean it properly. You don’t want any kind of dust and other unhygienic stuff to be there when you are cooking. Make sure to use a non-toxic cleaner that is made for cleaning ovens.

3. Preheat the oven: One of the most crucial steps of cooking with an oven is preheating it to the desired temperature before you put anything in. Allow it to preheat for at least 15 minutes. It will ensure that the oven reaches the correct temperature and that your food is cooked evenly.

4. Simple recipe: When using it for the first time, you don’t want to make something elaborate. Just make something simple to get the feel and understand the features and functioning. You can bake a cake or roast some vegetables for starters.

5. Set the timing: Most of the ovens have a timer in the control panel. It might be a dial or a digital button. Set it to your desired time. Turn it on and it will cook for that duration of time. Many have the function of turning it off once the food is cooked.

6. Don’t forget the mitts:Always use oven mitts or potholders to take out food from an oven. They are extremely hot and shouldn’t be touched with bare hands at any cost.

Apart from this, gradually test Pitt each feature by reading the manual and making more complex recipes. Gradually you will be a confident user with no apprehension. Using an OTG is no different than using an oven. In fact, it has fewer features than a traditional oven, so it is way more simple to use. One thing to keep in mind is using the right accessories such as the baking rack/tray for baking and wires to grill stuff. All of these will be mentioned in the user’s manual, so don’t forget to go through them before you use your oven!