Multi-tasking made easy
5/5
I was really curious about the Belling Sandringham because I wanted a cooker that looks good but also works well as I tend to do a lot of cooking and baking. The fact that this cooker is manufactured in the UK is a big plus for me as it means that it helps a tiny bit towards reducing my carbon footprint and supporting "local" manufacturers.
I decided to properly "road test" the oven with some classics: sponge cake and roast potatoes, and the hob with something some struggle with: stir fry and browning meat for a stew. I believe that if a cooker can handle those things, it can handle pretty much everything.
And it didn't disappoint. Where I had severe "hot spots" (cakes would bake more on one side than the other, potatoes would be burnt in one corner of the tray and still pale in the other) in my old oven, the Belling distributes the heat evenly making for great results and perfect roasties - super-crisp on the outside and fluffy on the inside. I'm impressed!
The time it takes to pre-heat is perfectly acceptable whilst the oven is also wonderfully quiet. Apart from the timer alarm. Yes, alarm. Because when at its loudest, it really does sound alarming. But it also means that it can be heard from another room, which is a good thing for anybody who doesn't want to spend the entire baking time in the kitchen or carry some sort of timer around with them.
After all the baking and roasting, it was time to try out the hob for something a little healthier: a stir fry. The five burners mean that I can boil the kettle for that all important cup of tea, make a stir fry, boil some rice (you get the idea) all at the same time without all the pots and pans being too close together. The middle burner generates the kind of heat needed to really quick fry the food without it becoming soggy.
Whilst the 90cm works well for a couple or small family, if you're regularly cooking for a large family, a larger model might be more suitable because there simply is a limit to the size of roasting tin that will fit into this oven.
Overall, I'm really impressed with this cooker: it combines good looks with great usability at a price point that doesn't require a second mortgage. The only downside is that all the fun I'm having cooking and baking means that I now have to go on a diet.
CP2811
Reviewed on:
Product Tester
CP2811
Product Tester
Reviewed on: