Mike Bowlin, on his new DCS

[Jenise]

Copied over from a post in The Basement:

New DCS stove arrived. Re-computing all baking times now in honor of the new oven. Viking left the building !! Too many repairs. Comparison so far: oven seems to be heavy in terms of holding heat longer, 5 burners top all hi BTU, grates lighter and easier to move or clean, convection fan much quieter, oven racks have rollers handy for large pans with liquid, more light in oven, more visability through the door, broiler also has convection feature. So far pleased. Ran up some test foccacia today and it seemed to be pretty good. More reports as time goes on.

Congratulations on the new stove, Mike.

I've heard nothing but good things about DCS. Did you get a grill or flattop with it?

Thanks. No grill or flatop. I have a portable grill that can be used and an Indian tava that I use for chapati, roti, dosai, tortilla, pancakes etc. So far so good. Have not used all the burners yet but the feature of a second firing ring on each burner, called a simmer ring, seems to be very interesting. Think of cooking red gravy for 2 hours on the lowest simmer, seems to be a natural fit. Going up to the blueberry farm on Friday. Robin promises a blueberry pie if she is up to it on that day. Will tell you the results !

Thanks. No grill or flatop. I have a portable grill that can be used and an Indian tava that I use for chapati, roti, dosai, tortilla, pancakes etc. So far so good. Have not used all the burners yet but the feature of a second firing ring on each burner, called a simmer ring, seems to be very interesting. Think of cooking red gravy for 2 hours on the lowest simmer, seems to be a natural fit. Going up to the blueberry farm on Friday. Robin promises a blueberry pie if she is up to it on that day. Will tell you the results !

30" or 36" ? I guess you must cook at least three meals per day to justify the cost. For, I am sure you wouldn't be so self indulgent in these times to spend that much loot on a stove as a status symbol or convenience. Good stove.

What's wrong with self-indulgent? If I could afford a big, easy-to-use stove, I'd go for it in a second. I use my little GE range at home and I can turn out an excellent meal (if I do say so myself!), but when I use the big ol' DCS in The Other Stupid's kitchen, it's sheer pleasure. My food turns out noticeable better (more heat, faster), and it's much easier to deal with multiple pans. The built-in grill and griddle also gives me a lot more versatility.

BTW, Mike, TOS's experience has been mixed. He wouldn't buy another DCS. When it works, it's a wonderful unit, but he's had a series of problems with the electricals. Even now, lighting two of the burners is an adventure.

What's wrong with self-indulgent?

Just one of those days when I had Katrina and Iraq stuck in my craw.

Congrats, Mike! As another data point, one of my pals who cooks quite a lot bought an all-electric DCS a couple of years ago (didn't have a gas line so that wasn't an option). He's been very happy with it.

The new DCS is a 30 inch 5 burner range. Justify ? To whom ? As far as possible repairs in the future. The company that sold me the Viking range on which I spent a fortune on repairs, also so me the DCS with many added no cost warranties from the company owner. So I think this one will be in service here longer and if it breaks they will fix it. The Viking was loosing igniters right and left, just would not keep them in service.

We are going to have fun with this new range and sooner or later I will share some bakes with you.