What to Do..... Gas Oven or Electric Oven? Please Share!

Gas cooktop all the way. BUT electric oven. Electric is more efficient for heating an oven, and it holds a more consistent temp. You used to be able to get stand alone dual fuel ranges, but you can't anymore. But I think you should go with gas cooktop and electric oven.

I have a gas cook top and love cooking with gas! Several years ago I wanted to put in a gas oven but was told by several sales people that the heat in a gas oven is uneven. They recommended going with an electric oven.

I plan to research ovens on the Internet and with Consumer Reports and America's Test Kitchen, who also prints the magazine Cook's Illustrated when I get closer to buying.

My first choice for an oven is actually a convection oven. It bakes/roasts in half the time. Because there is a fan the heat is evenly distributed. I used a commercial convection oven for several months and was very positively impressed.

Hi J.-
The only difference I have noticed between gas and electric is 1, the cost, and 2, the control. Bypass the cost- you have laid it out for yourself. Control is key. For baking and such, the oven is set at a certain temperature and stays there. Gas or electric make no difference in that area other than the type of heat and how fast they heat up. An electric will tell you when it has arrived at that temperature, and the gas you just have to check or keep a thermometer inside. As for the range top, gas allows you to go from boil to simmer with the turn of the nob, where electric does not. I think an electric top makes you have to be more diligent about the temperature because you cannot switch the fire/heat so quickly when cooking. I prefer a gas stove and oven. But some people like the electric. I just like to have more control over the fire on top, and the broiler, so gas is best for me. Also think about what it will cost you if you have to get your electric verses gas oven fixed if something goes out. I still think gas is cheaper all around and works great.
Do what you like best.
-E.

I think it's' more about preference and what you're used to than anything else. Everyone seems to love what they learned to cook on...but every restaurant kitchen I've ever been in DID have gas, so I don't really know. I prefer gas, and when faced with using electric always seem to under or overcook everything I attempt to make.

I switched to an electric stove a couple of years ago, and I really don't see a difference in baking.You do get oven heat top and bottom with electric, so maybe for cookies it would work better, but I definitely prefer gas for stovetop cooking. I like to adjust the heat visually, and I don't like the way the electric adjusts. Not much help, huh.

I have a gas oven/stove and would never go back to electric! The cooktop is more even and I can control the heat much better. As for baking, I'm not the one to ask. Roasting is again more even and predictable with the gas, at least for me!

I've always had gas until I moved into this house and I now have electric.
So far as ovens go, I think heat is heat. It needs to be well insulated so it will heat evenly. The newer ovens should be pretty consistant in performance, but you can go to consumer reports to check.
But so far as stove top - I hate electric. I don't feel I have the same control. It's either scorching, screaming, red hot or barely warm. No in between. Can't cook with a wok on electric. I like to char poblano peppers, eggplant, etc on the gas flame, cant do that with electric. And finally, worst of all....can't cook a tortilla on electric stove top!! I feel like I have 4 hotplates. Not cool.

Holy cow, gas is SO much better than electric! My kingdom for a gas stove top!

since no one else has mentioned this yet....I love my gas stove because when the power goes out I can still cook!!! We just bought a new one that has a non-electric pilot (the old one had an electric pilot - hated it!!) so now when the power is out I can use the oven, too, and not just the burners. in the winter that means a lot!!

I grew up with electric, never had a problem with it. Everyone told me that gas was so much better. So, when we bought a house and remodeled it, we got gas. I HATE IT! IDK if there is something wrong with our stove, but it takes forever for water to boil. And cleaning is such a pain in the butt!!! Every single night when I cook dinner I am swearing under my breath because I hate it so much.

I have had both gas and electric ovens. While I prefer electric OVENS over gas, my current oven is gas and I have no problems with under/over baking things and I love to bake. Cakes, cookies, pies, etc., all seem to come out the same as if I used my electric that I had. If I were remodeling and the cost was about the same, I would change from gas to electric oven and keep my gas cooktop just because that is what I prefer, but the choice is yours. My current gas oven is only 3 years old and it works great! Because switching to electric for an oven right now is not possible for me, the only 2 things that I wish that I had was a convection oven and a 2nd oven. Good luck with your decision and enjoy your new kitchen. I think whatever you choose will be better than an ancient oven that doesn't work well.

I love gas, but also for re-sale purposes with your home, I think it would be best to keep the stove and stove-top the same. I personally would find it weird when looking at a house to think that I had to cook with an electric stove, but had a gas stove-top.

I just visited my online Consumer Reports to see if I could give you a simple answer. Not. So, I urge you to consider getting a month by month subscription which, last I checked, was only $4 something per month. A few considerations: I hate electric cook tops because they don't increase or decrease heat as fast as I can with gas. I don't know which is better (even heat) for the oven. The new talk is about induction cooktops which can get water to boiling several minutes faster and doesn't burn your hands if you touch it.

To motivate you to go there and read up, their Best Buy pics say that you can buy a really great range for far less than the expensive Viking.

Use your membership to the fullest. I look up stuff for my extended family. These reviews are more scientific than asking people how much they "like" one over the other because frankly, most of us don't know if our oven is better than another if we have limited cooking or something else to compare it to by its side.

I have a duel fuel situation, with an electric oven. I do believe it works better for baking, and I bake A LOT. If you don't bake cakes and breads all the time, then don't worry about it.

Most ovens have the convection function to help with even cooking as well, so the new gas ovens are much better than the older one.s

I've never had a gas oven or stove.
From what I hear, some people prefer gas stoves/cooktops because the heat is instant on/off. With electric stove you have to wait a short while for a burner to heat up but I love the easy clean flat top models. These tend to work best with pots that have absolutely flat bottoms. I have one older pot that tends to rock slightly as the water come to a boil in it, but it doesn't bother me.
My mother had a gas stove years ago, and she liked it, but she said after a few years you tend to notice a very slight sooty build up on the kitchen walls.
For ovens, I just don't know about pros and cons.

When I moved in to my current home, all of my appliances were electric except my water heater and furnace. I found that in the summer (we live in Southern California and use the furnace a maximum of 3 months a year) we paid the minimum gas bill for 4 to 6 months per year. I wasted money because I didn't meet the minimum gas usage.

I bought and installed a 5 burner gas stove top. I absolutely love it. I enjoy cooking and have even won a couple of awards for cooking. I traded in my double electric oven for a double gas oven. I love it too. I have saved $20 to $30 per month on my electricty bill during the summer and am just barely paying the minimum Gas bill. Switching to gas has made my cooking better/easier and I have saved around $100 per year in utilities. Gas comes on quicker to temperature and my double gas ovens beep when they get to temperature.

Gas coming on quicker and shuting off quicker means you don't have to use the A/C to cool the house more because electric burners retain heat after they have been turned off and disapate that heat into the house.

I'd go to gas again in a heart beat if I had the choice to do it again. The only thing I'd change would to order larger gas ovens, which I will when I remodel our kitchen. My current gas ovens will each do two trays of cookies at one time (or two trays of fish sticks or french fries, etc.).

Good luck to you and yours. I hope you enjoy your new kitchen.

I have had electric for the last fifteen years because that is what the house came with. I however would gladly get my gas stove back if I could!

Gas cooktop, electric oven (with convection option if available). And with Viking, you're kinda paying a premium for the name. There are ovens out there that perform as well or better and cost less. I'd do a bit more research on oven manufacturers. Have fun with your kitchen remodel!!