Cuisinart TOB-175BC Convection Toaster Oven/Broiler, Brushed Chrome

The convection option on the oven (which uses a fan to circulate heat for even temperatures and moist results) is great for everything from roast meats to chocolate cake. Conventional baking on this model works just like a full-sized oven, while the broiling feature lets you broil steaks and fish or brown the tops of casseroles. The oven is preprogrammed for simple toasting but accommodates customized settings for lighter or darker results, bagels or English muffins, or four to six slices at a time. The clean, strong structure of the oven is complemented by an easy-to-use control panel, with a clock that doubles as a function display. Helpful extras include a dual-position oven rack, a removable crumb tray, a "Temp Ready" indicator, a detailed instruction/recipe booklet, and comfortable side handles. --Emily Bedard

My first thought when I received this in the mail and unpacked it was 'Wow, what a beautiful appliance!' Because it is. It's shiny chrome with a black front, a heavy-duty glass door, and digital display. All the buttons are soft-touch, and it feels like it's made well.

But then, what else do you expect from Cuisinart?

My second thought was 'Wow, this thing is big!' It's much larger than your average toaster oven. In fact, the tray and broiling pan that came with it is twice the size of my old toaster oven. The manufacturer website says that the pan is large enough to hold a nine-inch pie plate, and I believe it. It definitely is. You can actually seriously cook with this thing, for more than one or maybe two people if you're lucky.

I've used it twice so far, once to broil a burger, the other to broil/bake some chicken. And I've already noticed a difference. It's wonderfully silent and it cooks very fast. But it also gets very hot. I never knew that my old toaster oven wasn't broiling at the right temperature until I had the fat that drained from the burger popping and spitting at me.

It has a convection feature which I haven't yet used, but that's only because I haven't tried to bake in it yet. It is also capable of toasting 6 slices of toast at once, and has a memory feature so you can remember how your toast was last done. It will also reheat toast or keep it warm for you.

The oven comes with a small manual with some recipes that look excellent in it. It also gives you the opportunity to take advantage of the three rack positions you can use by showing where you'd use them. The manual also has several helpful hints for using the various features, such as recommendations for darkness settings on various types of toast.

Advantages: Beautiful to look it, easy to use, definitely on with the temperatures, convection oven capabilities, programmable toasting
Disadvantages: the top of it gets hot, so don't leave anything on top of it, and it's expensive.

I'd definitely recommend it, especially if, like me, you're looking to build a functional kitchen with quality appliances, the sort that's a joy to cook in rather than a chore.


Please Read Before Buying This Oven   November 20, 2005
R. Crane (Washington, DC United States)
122 out of 156 found this review helpful

I was captivated by the many glowing reviews about this oven and thought when purchasing it that surely this would be a winner. Caveat Emptor, this can be a LEMON. I often depend on reviews in determining what to buy online and most of the time they are quite accurate. I thought that perhaps something might be wrong with the way I was using it until, wading through all the reviews, I found other people whose complaints mirrored my own.

For example when toasting, no matter where the rack is located, or at what setting, the bread gets burned--charcoaled--in the same places, at the back and on the top. Uneatable.

When baking macaroni and cheese at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, half the dish was done properly, and half was absolutely cold.

When broiling, the food gets burned so rapidly, even while being watched, it is ruined.

I know that most people are raving about this oven, but you too could be the unwitting buyer like me, and others whose reviews are buried farther down, and get one that behaves as ruinously as ours. The point is, there are too many instances of poor performance recorded here to ignore.



Flawless   May 11, 2002
Marguerite M. Hopkins (Hampstead, N.C. United States)
107 out of 111 found this review helpful

We received the above model this past week and although I have tried I cannot find anything I donot like about it. I have made succulent chicken with the convection oven. Used the defrost/toast for frozen toast which came out to perfection on it's preset for two slices. My husband cooked french fries on the bake cycle which saved us from having to use our wall oven.
We are looking forward to using it often this summer. I would have appreciated more recipies in the accompanying instruction bookelet for convection cooking.


Read this before you buy   February 26, 2004
John F. Boschetti (Philadelphia)
75 out of 100 found this review helpful

The oven is well made but their are a few thing it does not do for the price.

1. The top of this oven gets extremely hot. Not just hot to the touch. People used to a microwave will be very suprised by this.
A little insulation would have gone a long way here. This is a serious safety consideration.

2. This item keeps cooking after the beeps. Auto shutoff occurs after 4 hours. Microwave users beware. If you dont respond to the beeps your food is "TOAST". This could be a fire hazzard unless you are real carefull.

3. Their is no light inside to help determine when your food is done.

4. The LCD display is not backlit. Not good for the baby boomer generation.

In summery: This item is designed to overcook the food you can`t see and burn you at the same time.