Do you have a convection microwave? We are writing an article about the pros and cons of convection microwave ovens and would love to know:
Or if you have any tips or other thoughts you’d like to share, leave a comment below.
I had one, but was not very happy with it! It just didn’t do it for me. It also had a grill function which I only used a few times. It was just easier to use the larger oven and grill in my stove. When it died I replaced it with a basic microwave only model and I don’t regret it.
We bought a large Sharp combi unit in 1995 and gave it to Lifeline when we sold our previous residence in 2014.
We roasted chickens in it many times but found that it never got the skin nicely browned and crispy like the wall oven or the BBQ. It was always somewhat soft and anemic looking.
When we bought our current home in 2015, we bought a small LG combi unit but have wehave never actually used the convection function. We use it for heating and steaming food and drinks.
For smaller items, we simply use our el cheapo air fryer which produces perfectly crisp and browned foods in no time.
I would not buy a combi model to use mainly as an oven, as wall ovens, air fryers, and BBQ’s provide much superior results.
I am on my third combined convection/microwave oven, over many years. They have varied from an expensive Sharp model to a cheap K Mart model. Whilst it does not replace my standard oven, it is great for small quantities, eg crisping up a frozen bread rolls, melting cheese on toast, cooking a small casserole. The convection/microwave combination is great for sponge cakes - cooking in less time, giving a light and airy sponge and also browning. It heats up quicker than my large oven and uses less electricity. My last oven had three differing-height racks. As my present one only came with one rack, I saved the highest from my old oven which is great for grilling. The original Sharp oven came with a recipe book, which I still use today. I wouldn’t be without my convection/microwave.
Mine has two but I must confess I havent been very adventurous. I’ve discovered that the convection does a fair simulation of air frying frozen chips, and I like the combination of the convection and grill for cooking chicken pieces. Next will be roast vegies I think. Still new to convection, and mine also has a flat bed which I LOVE.
I bought a top of the range $600 micro convection oven that had (supposedly) all the bells and whistles and returned it because it wouldn’t grill cheese on toast.
Welcome to the community @Goldie28.
Grilled cheese on toast! I prefer mine with large slices of tomato, some thinly sliced onion and black pepper. It helps to dull the guilt trip of all that cheese. 
I have a big Sharp convection oven. It cost a lot of money, and I have had it for a long time, and it has been very good. There is one problem if you are roasting in it, you need to wait until the fan stops working before doing any microwaving in it or it blows.
I had one a few years back but I was never happy with it. I gave it to a friend who uses it in their caravan and they rave about how effective it is for them.
Like Fred123, this house sported a large Sharp combination convection and microwave oven back in the early 1990s.
When it karked it a decade or so later, I replaced it with a Whirlpool Talent, hands down the best microwave I have ever used, and a pretty good combination unit as well.
It’s best feature was the door, which opened downwards forming a robust shelf onto which you could slide out the heaviest of casseroles for stirring et cetera.
It’s second-best feature was its ability to turn pies (and similar pastries) bought from a local baker and kept in the freezer into something so perfectly cooked you would imagine it had just come fresh from the award-winning pastrycook’s own oven (with the use of the Dynamic
Crisp Plate provided).
Early last year the Talent wouldn’t perform – perhaps it caught Covid-19 – and I discovered it was no longer being made, although Ariston had taken over the Whirlpool factory and was producing a similar unit under their own brand.
Similar, but far from the same. For starters it doesn’t have a clock, and the clock on its two predecessors was the only timepiece in the kitchen after the clock on the main oven ceased to function.
And then there was the interior light which went dark after a few months’ use – I have recounted elsewhere on these boards the tale of seeking to have the globe replaced by the local agent.
Nonetheless it has continued to be a good replacement for the standard oven, even though it was never intended to fulfil that function, and one of these years I will get around to installing the wall oven into the half of my kitchen that has been a bomb crater for the last two years (for reasons I won’t bore you with).
My favourite thing to cook in it would have to be braising the variety of grated vegetables from my garden that end up forming the bulk of my legendary vegetarian Bolognese pasta sauce – once again this makes use of the Dynamic Crisp Plate provided. It’s as quick as the frypan but doesn’t require regular stirring (and there is no danger of a moment’s inattention leading to a batch of gratings getting stuck and burnt), and the griller element “browns” beautifully.
As did the Sharp?
Not the Sharp model we had; its door swung conventionally to the side.
We have had 2 Large Sharp Carousel convection microwaves. Could not do without it. They last about 10 - 15 years and lightning strike seems to shorten their usefulness. We also have a 900mm Asco oven. We cook a boiled fruitcake on a combination bake/microwave in the Sharp with great results. I use the convection Sharp to bake vegies while the Asco is doing a slow lamb at 100C. The Sharp is also used as a pure Microwave for frozen and fresh vegies. I have baked Chicken quarters in the Sharp with mushrooms and garlic. Or even a 2kg chicken.
The Sharp is perfect for reheating pies when I use the pre-programmed “reheat Pies” that combines convection and microwave. The Sharp does a similar thing when reheating casserole. When I have the extended famiy over baking chickens, lamb and pork plus vegies I have had the Asco, Webber kettle, Sharp and the BBQ all going. I am a trained chief. I will buy another when this one fails because I/we could not manage without it.
We have had 2 Panasonic combinations microwaves, the first being bought in the 1986. For 16 years it was the only oven we had and used it for everything, from reheating a cup of tea to cooking roast chicken and lamb using the combination function. Not only was it faster than a conventional oven, but it produced a much juicier roast.
It was replaced in 2006 when we moved to cooler climes. The newer one broke down recently, when the magnetron blew up. It was easy to install a new magnetron and it is as good as new. In the last 10 years we have had a decent conventional fan forced oven (Simpson) but the microwave gets used every day, where we may use the Simpson once or twice a week. Being smaller than the Simpson, it heats up much quicker and uses less power, so it is great for refreshing bread and heating up plates - something we never had to do in the tropics.
Btw, there are two large donut magnets in the magnetron which are great for displaying the the repelling power of magnetism to young (and not so young kids) when you thread the magnets onto a broom handle so that the top magnet floats in the air.
I have a Sharp convection microwave. It gets used mostly as a plain microwave but I like that I can use it as a small oven which doesn’t heat up the kitchen as much as the regular oven.
I use it a lot for baking cakes and making cheese on toast. It also has a setting for cooking pizza which works really well.
If you really want a second convection oven I would recommend a Cuisinart Combination Steam/ Convection oven. It is the size of a toaster oven but can toast, bake, grill, dehydrate, steam, and proof bread. It also has settings for combination steam/ convection and steam/grill. I use it every day and I would replace it in a heart beat if it gave up the ghost.
I have had a sharp convection microwave for approx 14 years now. I have had one problem with it but now realise what makes the problem occur. When I use the convection oven I need to wait until the fan stops before using the microwave. I don’t know if a ( DynamicCrisp Plateis available or not.), so can’t comment on that.
I have had three microwave/convection ovens over the years. The first was a Phillips (a long time ago), then I went to just a microwave for a few years. My next convection one was a Kogan, which only came with a glass plate. The glass plates are not designed to be used in the convection oven, and I ended up cracking one when I used the combined microwave/convection mode. Kogan couldn’t supply a replacement plate 
. I now have a Belling bought five years ago for $299. It also only has a glass plate, but I still have wire racks from the Phillips oven. I use it frequently for anything that won’t fit in my small air fryer, but isn’t worth using the large oven for. I therefore have ovens that are perfect for all my needs.
I bought my first Panasonic convection microwave [probably the one with 44 litre capacity and 38 cm turntable] at about the same time. It lasted for years. Then the globe blew. And you can’t replace the globe. So, I bought another Panasonic but they didn’t have any convection microwave models available, so it was microwave only. Then the globe blew… and it wasn’t replaceable. So, I use my original convection microwave but without the internal light.
I suspect they are, but not without having to remove panels on the oven for access. A local service centre may do this at an acceptable cost relative to the value of a new oven. The assumption is there is such a business convenient. Our local electrician does appliance repairs on a drop off pick up basis for a reasonable charge. YMMV.
I’ve been able to purchase a replacement globe for a Panasonic as well as the turntable motor from a Capital City supplier.
Ebay or one example from a local online warehouse.
An internet search using your oven model number should find a number of suppliers. Sometimes the owners manuals include a part number for basic spares such as lamps.
