Best Todo Ovens

Received a near new salamander grill gifted from our adult children so full disclosure this review is not "out of the box". Nonetheless the TODO… Read more

seems of solid construction (bar the grill tray), the brushed steel exterior is suitably "stainless" with no corrosion spots & the whole appliance is quite heavy for its size.

First the positives. Fairly simple to operate with a touch panel front for either preset cooking modes or to manually set temperature & time preferences. Preheat to selected temp is reasonably quick (faster than say benchtop type toaster or combi ovens) & whilst we haven't tested temp precision with IR or digital probe our personal observation is the radiant heat easily outclasses the typical domestic oven grill & within bull's roar of commercial salamanders that we've encountered. Have only tested the TODO at 600c we can't yet attest to what it's like at full blast 800c however the external surfaces remained relatively cool to touch & didn't present an burn risk to this (experienced) user. Fixed surfaces are a simple wipe down & removable racks put thru dishwasher for ease of clean up. Digital temp & time LED display is bright with large numerals letting you know the cooking status in real time.

Next the downsides. Cooking cavity is much taller than wide which is inefficient space utilisation for cooking with overhead radiant heat & better suited for vertical grilling. Unless you plan to grill the top of a vertical food tower the height of the cavity is wasted space & just makes for a bulky appliance. Grill rack 30 x 19cm is of fairly substantial thickness, perforated to drain away cooking juices however optimal usable area is only 14 x 12cm directly under the heating element. Food outside of this smaller area receives oblique radiant heat so not cooked or browned at same rate as directly under the source. You either have to monitor & rotate the food to ensure even grilling or limit the size of food being cooked. Whilst the grill rack is substantial the same can't be said for the grill tray. Tray is pressed from much lighter gauge material, warps quickly under intense heat & once warped can't be twisted back to shape without engineering workshop skills. Suggest the grill tray only be used to catch drips near bottom of the cavity.

Summary: it's an inexpensive (throwaway) gadget for intense grilling of small portions (eg: creme brulee, eye of loin) for one or two persons but not for large meals or a dinner party. Most likely a rebadged ODM appliance made in a large asian country & imported by a small Australian business that slaps on an anglicised label. Not that there's anything wrong with that business model (many larger brands do exactly that (eg: Kmart = Anko, Aldi = Stirling) however researching the TODO turns up scant resources should we ever require parts, documentation or repair support. It's a one trick pony for low volume, small portions & relatively heavy bulky to setup or put away. Does what it does better than the typical oven grill in most homes but not exceptional enuff to be a regular use appliance.