Toaster Ovens

Before going to work everyday, you would normally have a nice breakfast consisting of 2 slices of bread spread with either jam or butter. You want to eat something else like toasted bread or sandwiches for a change. Let us guide you along to owning some of the best toaster ovens mean getting varieties in your breakfast menu not to mention the option of getting it at the right taste (or brownness should I say).

 

Toaster Oven Buying Guide

1) Pop-Up Or Conveyor?

For home use, it is recommended to go for pop-up toaster as it’s very compact and takes up little counter space. Conveyor toasters, apart from being bulky, heavy and of course expensive, are meant for high-volume toasting (350 - 800 slices/hr) and usually found in coffee shops.

2) Slices

Basically there are toasters than can handle 2, 4 or 6 slices each time. Your selection partly depends on the number of family members around the house. When time is a factor, go for higher slices model. Recommended option is the 4-slices toaster oven. If you decided to choose the 4-slices model, ensure that it comes with a slot selector that can toasts 2 slices as an option as well.

3) Slot Width

The broader the width of the slot, the more toasting options you have. With broader slots, instead of just bread, you can also toast bagels, sandwiches, muffins etc thereby giving you more breakfast options.

4) Controls : Manual Or Electronic?

We are so used to the manual dial control where you set the toaster to a preset number and the toasted bread ejects out after a certain time. Nowadays there are digital electronic sensors that shuts off the heater after a certain "brownness" to give consistent toasts but these type of toasters are slightly more expensive. Weigh in your options.

5) Crumb Tray

Does the crumb tray at the base of the toaster easier to remove without unscrewing? A good option is one that has tray that can slide in and out for cleaning purposes.

 

Toaster Oven Reviews & Ratings

Being a common feature in the kitchen, it’s safe to assume that some of the best toaster oven manufacturers such as Back To Basics, Black & Decker, Braun, Breville, Cuisinart, DeLonghi, Dualit, Farberware, GE, KitchenAid, Krups, Oster, Proctor-Silex, Rival, Russell Hobbs, T-Fal and Toastmaster have quite a selection for consumers to choose from. Professional reviewers at Consumer Reports, Cook’s Illustrated and Good Housekeeping reviews these toaster ovens based on color range, full & all batches plus ease of use and we’ve included customers satisfaction as another criterion before giving full ratings and come out with a nice list of the best toaster ovens in each category.

Best Toaster Oven (2-Slice)

Toaster Oven Reviews #1: The top choice and best rated is the Proctor-Silex 22450 Cool-Touch 2-Slice Toaster. Style and simplicity meets to produce this great Proctor-Silex toaster oven. Wide slots with automatic adjustments ensures wide variety of breads can be toasted. A useful feature - when toasting is done, bread stays halfway inside until lifted up by the lever to maintain warmness.

Toaster Oven Reviews #2: Another equally highly-rated is the Back to Basics TEM500 Egg-and-Muffin 2-Slice Toaster and Egg Poacher. Want to have toasted bread and eggs for breakfast? Innovative design combines the best in toasting with egg poaching in one simple appliance. Able to warm up sausage or bacon. Not to mention boil up to 4 eggs as well! Truly built for busy professionals, now you can have a complete healthy breakfast in 4 minutes flat.

Best Toaster Oven (4-Slice)

Toaster Oven Reviews #3: The best choice is the Proctor Silex 24450 4-Slice Cool-Touch Toaster. If toasting 2 slices of bread makes you impatient, then opt for this 4-slice Proctor-Siles toaster oven. Features 4 wide slots that is big enough for bagels, bread, buns and muffins at one go. Patented SmartToast technology ensures consistent toasting every time.

Resources: Toaster (Wikipedia)