Conference turris::cooks

    Well, when I moved into my new house I considered putting one in...
    heres the scoop....Well, I dont know if they sell extra burners..
    I dont believe they do...so what you have is two burners, then the
    other side has the accessories....french frier, rotissery, etc....so
    you wind up with only TWO burners to cook on.....now, if cooking
    happens to be one of your hobbies, or you just plain like to cook
    a lot, then FORGET it....there are times when four burners arent
    even enough for what I do.....
    
    So I opted for a conventional stove....if you have an island and
    want a Jenn Air as a SECOND stove, then it would probably work out
    fine.....
    
    Also, food tastes best cooked on gas (broiled) versus electric...
    plus have you priced them?  A good gas or electric will be in the
    3-500 range....the Jenn Air starts around 1000...
    
    I would say if you dont cook much go with the Jenn Air.....
    
    Hope this helps
    
    Rick
    

    They do sell the extra burners so you can have a 4 burner stove.
    I have one of the before mentioned  two burner grill type jenn-air
    units.
    
    Have been looking into new stoves, jenn-air sells a cook top that
    has 4 burners and the grill unit so potentially you could have a
    6 burner stove if needed.
    
    Having no experience with the full stove I will tell you about my
    grill.  The built in exhaust fan is fantastic, totally eliminates
    the need for the one over my stove.  I have a griddle attachment
    which is great for cooking pancakes, bacon and the like.  The grease
    goes out a hole in the side into a mason jar, very easy to clean.
    I also have a rotissiere which is great.  I thought using the rotis
    in the house would make "much greasy mess" but have not had a problem
    with that.  Another thing to bear in mind is that the grill is on
    view in your kitchen most of the time so there is a need to keep
    it a bit cleaner than the one out in your yard and barbeque sauce
    does make quite a mess on the grates.
    
    As I said earlier, when buying a new stove, if possible I plan to
    buy the large cooktop and build the oven in someplace.
    
    Judie
    
    
    

    The house we just bought came with a Jenn-Aire cook-top.  I believe
    there are different versions, because I can remove the burners on
    either side, but the one they have next door has the 2 burners
    permanently attached, and they can only use the accessories on one
    side.  I have 2 sets of dual burners, so I can have all four burners
    on the stove at once.  I also have the griddle which is great for
    french toast and omelettes.  We have the grills, too, but I haven't
    used those yet, and neither did the people we bought the house from,
    so I can't tell you how they are.  I know Jenn-Aire also sells a
    wok attachment, but it's really expensive, so I just use my regular
    wok on the stove.  You should go to an appliance store and see what
    the different models are and what accessories there are.  That will
    give you an idea on flexibility and cost.  They're certainly not
    cheap!
    
    Cathy

    I agree with .2: We have an older unit with two fixed burners on
    one side and a pull out unit of two burners on the other side. 
    You replace the pull-out unit with the burners for the grill ond/or
    griddle.  The only drawback we have had is that on the older models
    the exhaust fan and the grease collection jar take up space that
    would otherwise be a larger oven.  From what I have seen, the newer
    models have a larger oven.
    
    I also agree that using a lot of sauces etc when using the grill
    means that you have to do some cleaning, but I can't tell you how
    many times we have used the grill when it starts to rain!!  We really
    enjoy the Jenn-Air.
    
    -Ted-

I recently move into a new house.  One of the features is a Jenn-Aire oven
and counter-top grill combination.  I love the grill, because my husband 
doesn't like things grilled over charcoal, but loves thing grilled inside.
I was afraid that cleaning the grill would be a real problem, but have
found that a little shot of Pam on the grills before I begin and sliding
the grills into the sink to soak while were eating really makes the clean-up
a snap.  I don't find that only having two elements has hampered my cooking,
in a pinch I pop the extra dish into the microwave.

I have a question, the oven has a convection setting and a bake setting and
I'm not sure when to use one or the other??  Any good rules of thumb??

Anne Kaiser

>I have a question, the oven has a convection setting and a bake setting and
>I'm not sure when to use one or the other??  Any good rules of thumb??

Convection anything you want a nice crust on...breads, rolls, even a 
nice rare roast with custy outside.  Convection also works with
smaller turkeys and chickens when roasting..make sure they are thoroughly
defrosted before cooking...  Bake cakes, cookies, etc.

one note: convections cooks faster so watch your times.

    According to recent magazines, the Jenn-Aires are now available
    in Gas Models.  
    
    My parents have an Electric Model and are very pleased with it,
    although most of the time they just leave standard burners in the
    stove.  The big plus with the J-A is that you don't need the exhaust
    hood.
    
    Larry
    

	I have been cooking on my fiances Jenn-air whenever I'm at his 
	house. I will be using the Jenn-air full time very soon. I want
	to read the user's manual but we can't find it....could someone 
	out there lend me their copy so that I can copy it? I'll send it
	right back. PROMISE! 

	Thanks in Advance,
	Rachelle
	Mailstop : ZK02-1/N71	

    I, too, need a copy of a Jenn-Air instruction manual -- we just moved
    into a condo in which the previous owner had a Jenn-Air installed as
    an upgrade, but alas, there is no manual to be found.  Could someone
    send me a copy or lend me one to copy?  I'd really appreciate it!
    (Rachelle, maybe I could get a copy from you if you get one to copy?)

							-- Nina
							   ZKO2-2/N53
							   DTN 381-2316
							   (also reachable at
							   DSSDEV::EPPES)

    First, to those of you with no instruction manual, I'll be glad
    to photostat mine and send it out.
    Second, if you haven't already finished your house construction
    and haven't been able to completely make up your mind on the
    Jenn-air, maybe this will help you with your decision.
    I recently built a new home.  I had the drop-in range/oven unit
    installed in an island, then I got real crazy and had the model
    W225 (convection oven/microwave oven) installed as a wall unit.
    That makes it real nice.  Two regular ovens and a microwave.
    The wall oven is larger than the drop-in oven.  However, neither
    oven is large enough to accommodate a restaurant size lasagna pan.
    Oh well, just have to make smaller batches of lasagna.
    
    As far as the drop-in range goes, I have four burners.  All four
    come out, allowing the b-b-que set up on either side of the exhaust.
    Just having the "luxury" of the Jenn-air makes ANY cleanup worth
    it.  I'd do it again.  Not sure if you other Jenn-air fans could
    testify to this but, I noticed that the electric burners seem
    more sensitive than your average electric range, (ala NON-Jenn-air).
    Maybe its just wishful thinking...

    Thank you all for the helpful information. I did get the drop in
    J-A. I do love it! I got two sets of burners, but one set is in
    the box in the closet, I keep the grill on it. The clean up of the
    grill is a little bit of work, but the deal in my house is, I do
    the cooking, hubby does the cleaning up!
    
    Now I have another question...I got the European style burners,
    and I find that when I use pans that are wider than the burner,
    the top of the burner gets real dirty, is there a way to avoid this?
    I have been cleaning them with a sponge, and am a little afraid
    to use anything abrasive on them. I've noticed the metal ring on
    the side seems to get dirty too. I will have to get out my manual
    and re-read on cleaning them I guess!
    
    I too have a manual, and will gladly copy it for you two that need
    them if you haven't gotten them yet.
    
    Sorry for taking so long in thanking you all for your replies, but
    I've been very busy, even here at work, let alone trying to sell
    our old house, get our new one built and moved into! But now it's
    all done!
    
    The stove will have its big test this week, I'm having Thanksgiving
    at my house!
    
    Thanks again, and let me know if you want copies of the manual...I
    use mine whenever I use the stove, still not that sure of things!
    
    Betsy

    Re .11
    
    I found the cleaning instructions for my Jenn-Aire in the manual
    that comes with it.  They recommend a soft abrasive like SoftScrub
    or a powder form like Zud.  I have tried both, and prefer using
    Zud.  It comes in a can like Ajax and you can find it anywhere (I
    know Spag's has it in the kitchen stuff).  The only thing you have
    to be careful about is that you rub in the direction of the grain
    so that it doesn't scratch or streak.  I find that it works well
    especially on the discoloration caused when I use my wok and the
    heat gets concentrated around the burner.
    
    Give it a try.
    Cathy

    I love my Jenn-Aire too but HATE cleaning it (seems to require
    alot more elbow-grease to clean than the old GE it replaced).
    I've heard that Jenn-Aire came out with their own cleaner which
    a friend told me works real well on cleaning the bluish discoloring
    from too high heat settings or over-sized pots.  I haven't tried
    it yet (apparently it's only available from Jenn-Aire dealers) -
    has anyone tried it?  So far the best thing I've tried is Noxon.
    
    Evelyn

A house we are looking into buying has an electric Jenn-Aire.  It has three 
pieces, one griddle/grill, one 4 burner top, and an oven. I have never used
one of these, and, don't perticularly care that much about electric cooking.  

Can someone out there comment on the pros/cons of these pieces?  Just how
good is the grill/griddle piece...

						.dave.

ps - can the be CONVERTED to gas, or must they be replaces with the new has units.

    I have a Jenn-Aire cook top.  No oven with mine.  I love it.  The fan
    is so strong we can't light the fireplace if it is going.
    
    I use the griddle for pancakes all the time and like that a lot.  I
    don't use the grill attachment since we grill outside a lot.  I did try
    it once and thought it was a LOT of pieces to clean.  It works OK tho.
    
    I don't understand your description of the stove.  Mine has two - two
    burner tops and I can convert either two burner top to the griddle or
    the grill.  The fan is in the middle and goes on automatically when you
    use the grill or griddle attachments but not when you are just using 
    the regular burners.
    
    I'm used to electric since we moved to MA as  we don't have gas on
    the street.  You just have to learn to anticipate changing the degree
    of heat.  Your pans won't get as dirty as with gas.  
    
    Mary Lou                                                         
    
    

    I doubt that you can "convert" a stove from electricity to gas, as you
    well know, gas need pipes to conduct the gas, burners with little holes
    from which the gas scapes and to change all that and install a new
    system into an old stove would surely cost MORE than buying a new
    stove, Besides, a gas stove has to be instected and approved, including
    installation, before it can be used...
    The house we bought had an electric stove, and since I don't like them,
    I simply removed it and bought one to fit my taste and had it
    installed, nothing to it.

  Right, there's no way to convert it. Even though Jenn-Aire makes gas
  cooktop modules, they're not interchangeable with the electric ones.

  The Jenn-Aire electric cooktop is one of the best around, so if you're
  willing to try to get used to electric cooking, you may come to
  appreciate it. It will take some practise and patience, but it's worth
  a try, since you'd save some money.

  You probably already know (or can figure out) the pros and cons of gas
  vs electric burners, but one advantage to electric which many people
  don't know is that electric burners have higher heat output than
  standard gas burners. This is useful for boiling lots of water and for
  certain kinds of high-temperature frying.

your unit allows you to buy a rotary unit for spit roasting over the grill...
BUY IT!  I have never tasted better, more tender roast beef that the eye of
round roast i cooked on my friend's stove.  It is worth it to clean up all
the pieces, and the meat/chicken is wonderful off this thing.

I do agree, however, if you have gas lines into the house, it would be worth
it to me to replace the electric unit with gas.  I prefer gas cooking.  Period.

		D-stuck-out-here-in-electric-land-california

    We have a Jenn-Aire unit that came with the house.  It is a very high
    quality item.
    
    Make sure you buy the optional wood cutting board cover for the grill.
    It is very solid and very handy. We use it as the main cutting board in
    our kitchen.   
    
    Two negatives you should consider:
    
    1. The exhaust is powerful because it has to be. An overhead hood with
    an exhaust fan works much better at capturing smoke and steam.
    
    2. As mentioned, the grill has a lot of parts to clean.  We seem to use
    it only in the winter when we can't cook outside. The inconvenience
    leads us to avoid using it very much. It does seem to work better than the
    oven broiler unit.

    We had a Jenn Aire in our old house.  When we built the new house, we
    installed a Jenn Aire with two grills in addition to a gas cook top. 
    We love it.  We have all of the accessories and find ourselves using
    the rotisserie frequently.  The only drawback is cleaning the grills. 
    Even if you coat them before cooking, and even though there is a jar to
    catch the grease, it is still a pain.  It is especially great to be
    able to barbecue food during the winter without going outside.  I have
    had no personal experience with the oven, but people I know who have
    them have no complaints.

        
    
                I am in the process if finishing my new home and have 
    installed a oven unit in a 7' island. It came with a the grill and
    a two burner unit. When I bought it they were having a $100 rebate
    program so I used it to buy the other burner unit. I have yet to
    use the grill as I havn't hooked up my duct work to the outside. 
    My only complaint is the size of the oven, it doesn't seem to be 
    the standard size. I was hope in using the grill alot this winter
    but by the sounds of things maybe I won't be!

re .7 (and the others) so you mean these things are actually vented to the outside,
rather than screen to filter the air ( or something like that ) ???

That's good to know ( and look for to be sure they installed it right! )!!

Thanks for th information.

						.dave.

ps - someday I'll still convert it to a big industrial one - the kind you can drive
a truck into without hurting, and the kind that you can sand-blast to clean without
hurting...

           
              Mine has a 5" round duct that goes from a seperate 110 volt
    squirrel cage type blower that sits on the floor under the oven. There
    is a flex tube that runs from the oven to the squirrel and the 5" duct
    goes from the blower to the outside.

    I don't think that the Jenn-Aire is hard to clean.  I just run
    everything that comes off through the dish washer.  Then I steel wool
    it.  The griddle goes in the dish washer too.  Don't let a fear of
    cleanup stop you from using it.  The electric griddle is better than a
    gas griddle.  I have a Vulcan restaurant range with a griddle.  I never
    use it.  It is too difficult to control the heat.  All I use it for is
    to keep a warming pan - which is almost never.

    I have the gas Jenn-aire with a grill.  Cleanup is easy.  A soak and
    scrub will do fine when I don't have the time or room to run a
    dishwasher load.  One key to great non-stick easy cleanup cooking is to
    brush the grills with oil just before cooking (after heating them up). 
    Or spray with pam (before you heat them...unless you have real good
    fire insurance!).  I just put a tablespoon of vegetable oil on a paper
    towel, and wipe when hot, but I like to live dangerously.
    
    When I have grilled a particularly drippy item, I clean the bottom by
    removing the grills and jets when cool.  Then I put a couplle of layers
    of paper towels on the bottom, and spray them with window cleaner until
    very wet.  After about a half an hour, the grime just wipes off easily.
    
    The important part is not to let the crud build up from one use to the
    next (like I do in my oven).

  I've always heard fantastic things about Jenn-Air ovens.  Our current oven
  bakes food unevenly (burnt on one side, uncooked on the other) so it sounds
  like installing a Jenn-Air convection oven during our kitchen remodeling
  will be a god-send to our cooking.

  My problem is that Consumer Reports has never rated ANY of Jenn-Air's
  products!! I believe Jenn-Air is a national brand, but they skipped them all,
  even when testing electric ranges and ovens!

  The hearsay I've heard is that Jenn-Air makes higher-end products, which is
  reinforced when I see real estate ads that boast "a Jenn-Air kitchen." From
  the word of mouth I've heard about their ovens, I can expect to be
  comfortable with the quality and performance of their oven upon purchasing
  one.

  However, I haven't heard a word either way about the Jenn-Air refrigerators
  and dishwashers.  The complete lack of any information at all (besides the
  biased dealer) makes me nervous when considering to install a complete
  Jenn-Air package in our new kitchen (oven, refrigerator, and dishwasher).
  It's not like I can wash dishes for a week and return the dishwasher upon
  finding it leaves food particles on the glasses (the problem with our current
  GE model).

  So is there any word on Jenn-Air refrigerators and dishwashers amoung the
  cooks here? Does anyone have one? Has anyone heard anything (either good or
  bad) about them? Do you recommend another brand of refrigerator or dishwasher
  over Jenn-Air? Our push for getting all Jenn-Air appliances is the price
  break you get when you order an entire package, in addition to a rebate that
  ends this weekend. We want their oven, not sure on the rest...

  We have to make a decision by the end of the week - any help would be greatly
  appreciated.

  -Erik (yet again disappointed with Consumer Reports)

    I have two of the three in my kitchen. The oven was there when I bought
    the house, and I added the refrigerator when I needed a larger model.
    
    In all honesty, I wouldn't buy another Jenn-Air product. It's not that
    I'm aggressively unhappy with them, but neither appliance has performed
    up to my expectations. Okay, the range is electric, and I absolutely
    HATE to cook on electric burners; the ideal combination is a gas cook
    top and an electric oven. I'll go with a Viking next time.
    
    The 'frig is okay, but it's not the quality I would have expected for
    the money and the reputation Jenn-Air commands. I've had more than one
    problem with the icemaker, and finally just gave up on getting it to
    work properly. I pulled it out and use plastic trays now. I'll go with
    KitchenAid as my first choice for all kitchen appliances, major and
    minor (with the exception of the stove as noted above). The mixer that
    I've had for several years now is excellent; it's one of the few
    appliances I've seen since the 1960s that's made of metal and not
    plastic.
    
    Good luck with your choices; I know that Viking just released a 30"
    version of their product (even comes in colors now instead of just
    chrome/steel) to meet consumer (vs commercial) demand.
    
    	/Harry

I have a Jenn Air stove that came with our house when we bought it.

The convection oven works reasonably well. The venting system is ok, but
not great. Like .1, I'd install a gas cooktop if I had it to do over, with
a real overhead hood.

bob

    Eric,
       Can't comment on the Jenn-Air oven. My brother has the gas cooktop
    and we were surprised to find that the grill units MELTED when we had
    them over the highest flame for more than a few minutes (We were trying
    to roast peppers). It cost $100 to replace the grills, so needless to
    say, we weren't impressed.
    
    We also have a KitchenAid refrigerator, just purchased in Nov. Its a
    side-by-side with ice maker/cold water dispenser in the door. We really
    like it so far. Makes great ice (cubes or crushed) and has s lot of
    room for a side-by-side. You may want to look into a whole line of
    Kitchen Aid products as .-1 recommended.
    
    Debbie
     

Bear in mind that KitchenAid refrigerators and ovens are, pretty much,
rebadged Whirlpools.  You may be able to find a Whirlpool with similar
features for less money.

				Steve