What Is a Steam Oven?

Steam ovens harness the power of super heated steam to quickly cook foods without drying them out. Use a steam over to create healthy flavorful meals using less fat and retaining more of your food's natural taste and nutrients. Add this to my Recipe Box.

Function

Steam ovens surround your food in a cloud of hot steam pressure to quickly bring them to heat; the process also prevents moisture loss. Water is heated and turned into vapor inside the oven's sealed cooking chamber to evenly bring food up to temperature.

Benefits

Cooking with hot steam adds no extra calories and increases nutrient retention in your cooked foods. Steam ovens do not require that you oil your foods to keep them from sticking or burning.

Types

Steam ovens are available in both home use and industrial sizes. Built-in models are made for the home kitchen with small, two-level cooking chambers. Huge walk-in steam ovens are used in large scale food manufacturing companies to cook great quantities of food in a controlled atmosphere.

Useful Tips

Most steam ovens will allow you to adjust the humidity level inside the cooking chamber to create the right environment for the individual foods you are cooking. Read your model's specific instructions on how to set the humidity level to adjust the amount of wet steam in your unit.

Fun Fact

New steam ovens on the market offer conventional dry baking. Users also have the ability to defrost, warm up leftovers and even simulate a high heat grill to finish meats.