Cooking is the most exciting product category in your kitchen. Of this category, wall ovens are the best. The controls and options are better in a wall oven than any other appliance.
You now have more choices than ever before and can cook every conceivable way.
This can also be confusing.
In 2015-2016, one company has redesigned and one has not. Let’s see if both are still worth considering.
First let’s look at the basics of wall ovens.
Wall Oven Basics
Wall ovens today are mostly always electric like KitchenAid and Miele. Gas is very rare and mostly available as smaller retrofits. Wall ovens are available in these sizes: 24”, 27”, 30”, and 36”. The most popular size is 30”, which is what we will be talking about in this article.
It is important to note that wall ovens are manufactured to fit cabinets, so a 30 inch refers to the cabinet, not the appliance.
KitchenAid
KitchenAid is an American owned appliance company started in 1919 and is now owned by the Whirlpool Corporation.
The company was originally started by the Hobart Corporation to make mixers. It has been the premium brand of the Whirlpool company since 1989.
KitchenAid wall ovens are sleek and have the Fit System, which creates a seamless fit when installing their oven inside an existing cabinet cutout. Their glass touch controls feature intuitive controls and a surface that is easy to clean.
They have "Easy Convect" conversion system, which eliminates the guesswork out of convection cooking by converting regular recipes to convection with a touch of a button.
Miele
Miele is the world’s largest family owned appliance manufacturer and based in Germany. Their products are the benchmark for reliability in the appliance industry, because they design and manufacture nearly every component instead of outsourcing like other brands.
Miele's new wall oven has added Steam Assist for finishing foods and has 16 different baking modes just for bread.
(Learn more about new Miele wall ovens in our free guide)
The Products
Miele H6880BP - $5,299
Features:
- 4.0 cubic feet
- M Touch controls
- Self Clean oven
- 19 Operating modes including MoisturePlus
- MasterChef Programs
- MasterChef Plus - 15 automatic bread programs
- Wireless Roast probe
KitchenAid KOSE500ESS - $2,069
Features:
- 5.0 Cubic Feet
- Self Cleaning - True Convection -Cobalt Blue Enamel interior
- 3 Racks - 1 telescopic rack
- 8 Cooking modes
- 4,000 Watt, 8 pass broil element
- Glass Touch controls
- Easy Convect Conversions
Comparison
In many ways, these ovens have become two different categories of good vs. way better. There is nothing wrong with good (by the way, KitchenAid still has the convection conversion, and so regular recipes to convection are simple). Like Miele, it now has twin convection for more even cooking, and the price is less. There are also whole kitchen package deals available with KitchenAid periodically. Read Best KitchenAid Appliance Packages.
Miele, however, is demonstrably better. First it is the least repaired appliance brand at 2.9% service in the first year versus 23% for KitchenAid based on 20,000 service calls we performed last year.
The Miele's controls are better and have a digital interface like your phone. They are simple to operate and include almost every kind of food .You now have the ability to use steam, which is important in finishing crusts in bread or browning cheese on lasagna. The moisture settings are simple to operate, and you have 15 different automatic programs just for bread.
I like both ovens. KitchenAid is a good name and price, whereas Miele has more functionality. You will be able to cook different types of food automatically.
Additional Resources
Want to learn more? Get the Yale Wall Oven Buying Guide with features, specs and detailed profiles of every major brand like Miele, Wolf, Dacor, Jenn-Air, Thermador, Viking and more. Over 130,000 people have read a Yale Guide.
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Pricing on this blog is for reference only and may include time sensitive rebates. We make every attempt to provide accurate pricing at time of publishing. Please call the stores for most accurate price.
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