HOW TO USE AN OTG/OVEN





After buying an otg (oven toaster and grill) the first thing that most beginners want to know is how to use it. As some otg manuals do not come with a recipe book, using an otg for the first time appears difficult. To ease out this problem, I have given a brief introduction on how to use an OTG/ Oven and also a few recipes that you can prepare using your otg/oven. Even though there are several brands available, the basic designs and accessories that come with an otg are similar. Hence you can compare the information given below with your brand of otg.

Since I use a Prestige OTG/Oven, (and am quite happy with it) the information given here is related to it.




(Post update: Recently I bought a Pigeon 20 liter OTG and it works good as well. You can check out the unboxing video below to have a look at the accessories and features and what you can make in it.)



So, If you have questions like How to operate oven for baking cakes, biscuits and bake pizzas? How to use an OTG? How to bake cakes? etc. than you have come to the right place.

The first thing to do after buying your OTG is to read the manual completely. This will give you a brief idea about how to operate it, clean it, the precautions to be followed, the accessories provided, and other basic information.

Introduction to the otg and its accessories

An otg/ oven is usually provided with 3 shelves or racks and 3 knobs to adjust the temperature, heating positions and time. They are

Temperature control knob - To adjust the temperature of the oven. The maximum temperature that can be set is 250 degrees Celsius.

Function knob- There are usually 4 heating rods provided in an otg, two above and two below. (Some small sized otgs have 2 rods). The function knob is used to select one from the 6 heating options. They are upper heating, lower heating, both upper and lower heating, rotisserie with upper heating, rotisserie with lower heating and rotisserie with both upper and lower heating.

Time control knob – The time control knob is used for setting the time. The time can be set according to the dish that you are making. E.g. while cakes take 25 to 35 minutes to bake, cookies can be baked in about 15 to 20 minutes or less. The maximum time that can be set in most ovens is 60 minutes.


The regular accessories provided with an otg are a baking tray, a grill rack, a crumb tray, a tray handle, 4 skewers, a rotisserie spit and a rotisserie handle.

baking tray:



This can be used for cooking or roasting fish, chicken, vegetables, etc and preparing pizzas, pita bread and puffs. You can also use this tray for reheating food. Another vital use of this tray is that you can place it in the bottom rack of the oven when you are grilling chicken or vegetables in the middle rack or while using the rotisserie mode to cook Tikkas and kababs. This will help in preventing juices from the chicken from falling on the heating rods below.



crumb tray:



This is usually placed at the very bottom of the oven to collect any crumbs or pieces that may fall off during a baking or grilling process. It can be removed and cleaned.

Grill rack:


Cake pans, cookie trays, muffin moulds can be placed over the grill rack or large slices of chicken, fish, etc can also be grilled by directly placing them over it. Alternately, the grill rack can be turned upside down so that skewers can be placed over it to grill kababs, chicken, paneer, etc.



Rotisserie spit



The rotisserie spit is a long rod which is used to grill whole chicken or make tikkas and kababs ala Tandoori style. The USP is that it rotates and hence the food is evenly cooked on all sides.



Tray holder

 This is used to remove the hot grill rack and baking tray from the oven.

Skewers

The skewers can be used to prepare kababs, tikkas, grill small pieces of chicken or cubes of paneer and vegetables. During the grilling process, the skewers have to be turned once in a while to ensure uniform cooking.

Rotisserie handle

After using the rotisserie spit for grilling, the hot rod can be removed from the oven using this handle.


With the given accessories, you can make puffs, pizzas, and grill or roast chicken and vegetables but to bake cakes, cookies, etc there are some cake pans and moulds that are necessary to be bought.



1. Cake pans, preferably aluminium cake pans to make cakes and brownies.

2. Loaf pan to make breads

3. An aluminium tray to make cookies. Even though the baking tray can be used for this purpose, an aluminium tray is best suited for baking cookies.

4. Muffin and tart moulds

The heating mode to be set and the placement of the tray

Before baking or grilling anything, preheating the oven is a must. The oven has to be preheated for at least 10 minutes.



Even though any of the three racks can be used, I always prefer to use the central rack of the otg with both the upper and lower rods ON as it provides uniform temperature and aids in even cooking. Placing the tray in the lower rack might result in burnt up cakes if you do not adjust the correct time and temperature while placing it on top will result in a roasted effect on top with the inner side not being cooked. Hence for beginners it is better if you play it safe as you do not want a disaster in your first experience with baking.

Temperature to be set while baking/grilling

The temperature depends on the size of the oven and brand; it is only with practice that we can gauge the correct temp of our oven. It took me several burnt cakes and biscuits to come up with this list. It works best for my Prestige Otg and might work for yours as well.

Cakes: between 150 to 180 degrees C depending on the recipe
Cookies/ Biscuits: Generally 180 degrees C
Pizza: 200 degree C
Grilling/ Roasting: 200 to 250 degrees C depending on oven and recipe

For baking, roasting and grilling I mostly use the central rack of my oven and use both the upper and lower rods to get uniform temperature. Only for a few recipes, I use the lower rods. And when making cheese toast, where we need to melt the cheese on top, we can use the upper rods.

General Tips:
  • Follow the recipe accurately.
  • Take care while setting up the time and temperature for the oven as it varies from oven to oven.
  • Always keep a close watch when you are making any dish for the first time.
  • Always use a thick hand glove and do not touch the surface of the oven as you can easily get burns if you do not handle your trays and cake pans with caution.
For more tips related to baking cakes visit the cake baking tips page...

This is just a brief outline, more information on how to use an OTG oven will be added soon. I have tried my best to give clear information based on my baking experience, but I am not an expert in this. Hence it is advised to always use your discretion while following the information provided here and while trying out any of the recipes mentioned below.

Click on the links to get the recipes of cakes and bakes that can be prepared using an OTG

For more recipes of cakes, biscuits, cookies, pizzas, etc that can be cooked in an Otg, visit OTG recipes page.



87 comments:

  1. Lovely post,Amina..Though we don't require it here as we have the conventional oven in every apartment,once am back to India,this will surely be required!!

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  2. wow very useful post dear..thnks for sharing!

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  3. Wat a useful post, definitely helpful for many of us.

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  4. such an informative post...im sure itl be of immense help to others who own an otg

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  5. very nice and informative post

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  6. very informative post for beginners ....

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  7. Very good information....Thnx for sharing...

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  8. Informative and very useful post. Thanks for sharing.

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  9. dear amina, thank you for giving simple instructions.i can now be more confident.

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  10. dear Amima

    Thanks very much for such a useful post for which you have taken time and effort to click related pictures too. Just need a feedback, how do you find prestige otg and how many litres is the one that is shown on the screen. What is the model number of this otg ?

    Regards
    Vidhya

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for your comment... Prestige products are found throughout the country, alternately you can visit their website ttkprestige... There are totally 3 sizes of otg available in this brand, 9 ltr, 19 ltr, and 28 ltrs... Regarding the otg shown in the picture, it is 19 litres and the model no. is POTG 19 PCR....

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    2. Dear Amina,

      I am a first time baker and also completely new to OTG. the info you have posted is so useful to people like us staying in small cities. Just happy and delighted to share that I baked my first bread in my OTG and its come out just perfect.. Thanks to you again..

      Regards

      Rashmi

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    3. Hi Rashmi.. I am very happy that it came out perfect... :)

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  11. with so many accessories, i was really wondering how to use. but your post really helped me a lot. thanks a lot.

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  12. Hi Amina,thank u for this post.the tog manual

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  13. Hi Amina,the post was very useful to me as the otg manual was not informative enough.ur clear and simple explanation has got me started!thank u

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  14. Hi Amina, wonderful post it is very useful for all those are looking to buy an OTG.

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  15. Thanks Amina, buying an OTG tommorrow , your post helped a lot

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  16. hi amina,even i bought prestige otg can u tell me how should i set function knob for baking cakes.am waiting so that someone can answer.vino

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    1. you can turn the function (selector power) knob to the right as shown in the image that i have added under the The heating mode to be set and the placement of the tray. This will set ON both the upper and lower rods of the OTG which is ideal for baking cakes....

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  17. Very useful post Amina. thanks a lot......

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  18. Hi Amina, a doubt. Is there a pause button to stop cooking in between while we have to turn the kabas n such items? Also how to set the OTG to grill/bake mode? i am planning to buy the same model. pls help - Navya

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    Replies
    1. There is no pause button in an otg... you can just open the door, turn the kababs using tongs and close it again and continue cooking.. And unlike a microwave, there is no grill or bake mode in an otg... For grilling,grill rack and skewers have to be used and the temp and time have to be set according to the instructions in the recipe. And for baking cakes aluminium pans are used and for puffs, etc the black baking tray is to be used and temp and time have to be set accordingly..

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  19. Hi Amina, thanks for such a useful post. i have a doubt regarding POTG. can we line the baking tray with aluminum foil, before baking chicken? is it safe to do so ? pls advice .

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    1. You can line the aluminium baking tray with aluminium foil for baking chicken. (I am not very sure about lining the black baking tray) Make sure you add a few drops of water to the pan before placing the foil. This will help the foil to stick to the pan. And lightly grease the foil with oil before placing the chicken.

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    2. update: You can line the black baking tray with aluminium foil and use it to roast the chicken. More details are available in this post.
      Baked chicken/ Roast chicken

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  20. Thank You Amina, for such a beneficial post. Can I share my doubt with you pls . While baking/grilling non veg or mushrooms on the grill rack, wont the liquid/oil ooze out from them? is the crumble tray sufficient to hold it? wont that flow from the crumb tray and be messy? can we keep the baking tray just below the grill rack to collect the oozing liquids? is it safe to do so? Pls Help

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    Replies
    1. While grilling the juices from the chicken or mushrooms would indeed ooze out and hence it is better to use a greased black baking tray. Place the grill rack in the central shelf and the black baking tray in the lower shelf. The oozing liquids from the shelf will be collected in the baking tray and your oven and heating rods will not get messy...

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  21. Hi Amina. need to clear a doubt. can we use vazhayila/plaintain leaf in oven? is it safe? i wanted to bake a chicken covering it with plantain leaves. Pls help - Navya

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    Replies
    1. plantain leaves are generally used while steaming chicken or fish... i am not very sure about using it in an oven... For baking chicken, i think an aluminium foil is a better option...

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  22. Many thanks for this Amina. The booklet accompanying the purchase of a Prestige OTG gives hardly any detailed information. Well done!

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  23. Could you please tell me how to remove the black and burnt splotches of drippings that have fallen on my crumb tray while grilling? I tired using normal dish washing detergent and scrubbers, but the black stains are not going :(

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  24. Lovely job!! Am sure to return to your blog every now n then! very useful n liked the detailing! kudos :) keep up the good work and keep posting more.

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  25. Hi Amina,thanku for the useful post.It will be a big help for beginers like me.

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  26. Thnks Amina!! I didn't really know how to use it but with the help of ur article, I can use my OTG effectively now...
    Thnks Alott!!
    :)
    Keep It Up!! :)

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  27. Hi Amina Di, I bought a prestige otg could you tell me how to grill chicken in it.

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    1. you can grill chicken by placing it directly over the grill rack. And make sure to place an aluminium or baking tray lined with aluminium foil below to prevent the juices from the chicken from falling on the rods below... you can set the temperature at 200 degree C and keep both the upper and lower rods on... the chicken cooks fast so keep a watch over it... the timing would vary depending on the size of the chicken pieces and your oven... you can also check out these links for more info...

      http://aminacreations.blogspot.in/2013/01/baked-chicken-roast-chicken.html

      http://aminacreations.blogspot.in/2010/10/grilled-fish.html

      http://aminacreations.blogspot.in/2010/10/tandoori-chicken.html

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  28. This information will increase more and more people to know about all this electric appliances.Very Nice Post.it is very nice blog and this is very useful for me thanks.

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  29. hi ..amina... quite useful info indeed

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  30. very much informative. Thank u madam.

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  31. Quite a Wonderful Explanation!!thanks a lot.

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  32. Wowww....wonderful post dear this was wat i was looking for
    Now i can confidently use my otg

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  33. Hi amina
    Really wobderful post
    I need to know if this prestige otg with 19 Lt is it suffiently big enough for baking a medium size cake and for a family of 4

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  34. Thanks for the wonderful post! I was struggling to find out answers to my queries. After reading this, didn't have to look further :)

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    1. Thanks Meghana... Words of appreciation from my readers always motivates me...

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  35. Thanks Amina! I was planning to buy the POTG 28 one!

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  36. The grill rack given is just plain without the position to place skewers and skewers were not given.planned to buy them separately but Hw to use them for tikka and kababs?

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    Replies
    1. Hello... thanks for your comment... you can use skewers to make tikka and kababs... please check out this link for the same...

      http://aminacreations.blogspot.in/2010/10/tandoori-chicken.html

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  37. hello... can you please tell me how can i reheat my food and which utensil i should use for reheat?

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    Replies
    1. A post on this will be published soon...

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    2. Hi Shilpa...

      Check out this link...

      http://aminacreations.blogspot.in/2015/03/how-to-reheat-food-in-otg.html

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    3. hi amina... i bought an otg same model as yours and am totally worried how to use it. but ur post was so helpful to me... thanks alot for the information...pls let me know what vessel to be used to reheat rice items in an otg?

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    4. Hi Visishta thanks for your comment

      Whenever using an otg, it is always necessary that you use vessels that are specially made for the otg. Cake pans, loaf pans, trays and moulds all made of aluminium can be used in an otg. And borosil bakeware too can be used in an otg.

      For reheating rice items you can either use an aluminium cake pan or a borosil dish

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  38. hi, thanks for the post. i will try solving my cake burn problem in otg now. today itself the otg repairer had repaired it. so seriously baking something in it now.

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  39. Hi Amina,

    I had purchased OTG using your recommendations, however not sure which moulds to purchase.

    Can you please give me some links for Moulds.

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  40. Hi amina I bought an optima otg and m confuse how to deal with upper n lower rods
    How to bake a cake in otg .do we need to on both rods and cake should be placed in middle
    Tell me when to use upper middle n lower section n how to use those upper n lower heating rods
    Plz help

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    Replies
    1. Hi... for making cakes always use the middle rack of the oven. For some cakes i have suggested using both upper and lower rods and for some I have suggested using only the lower rods... Do follow the recipe... I hope your cake would come out well...
      Regarding as to when which rack can be used, the middle rack can be used for baking cakes, cookies, pizzas, etc. The lower and upper racks are rarely used, they can be used for grilling or toasting.

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  41. Dear Amina Khaleel

    very useful tips thanks
    which type of vessel we can use in an OTG???

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  42. Thanks for useful instruction amina!!!

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  43. hi amina mam,
    since this post dates long ago, i take it as an oppurtunity to ask you about the oven"s life and sevice details... kindly reply as even i m planning to get an otg of same model,,, or any other advice also...
    thanks in advance...

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    Replies
    1. Hello

      Thanks for the comment... I have had no problems with my prestige otg and I am really happy with it. I cannot comment on the service as I am yet to use it. My otg looks and works like a new one and some of my friends and relatives too have bought it after having a look at it.

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  44. Hi Amina , thanks for sharing the usage of otg in so much detail. I was searching for the same .it is very well explained by you. Can you also share that how we can bake paranthas
    In otg ?

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  45. Hi Amina,

    Thanks for sharing this information. I have started using Prestige OTG now a days and I am always using function knob to heat both lower/upper rods(for cakes, cookies, pizzas). When we use lower rods alone? And When we are using rotisserie with both upper and lower heating?

    My oven always takes time than recipe says. For eg:if recipe says 110C 40 minutes, cake didn't bake in my oven at that time. I am not sure how can I adjust that temp/timing correctly

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  46. Hi Amina,

    Thanks for this wonderful post. My OTG didn't come with a detailed manual, but your instructions made up for it :)

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  47. Hi ..... I recently picked 28 liter mr ...... Now it does not have the nob for which rods to be used ...
    But has nob which says bake toast rotisserie broil and keep warm .... And the manual says use bake mode to bake cakes or cupcakes
    It does not have fan mode too ..... Now ever since i got this Otg and tried baking the top of cakes or cupcakes crack and burn ..... Even tried at lower temperatures...... Now when I put the Otg on bake mode only the bottom rods r heated up ..... And top gets heated up occasionally when I open the door to check whether the cake is don't ..... Getting frustrated..... Kindly help

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  48. Hi Amina
    Thanks for your info. Recently, i have brought my otg based on this and am going to try out different recipes. Very useful. Thanks once again.

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  49. Hello Amina,
    You are doing a great job!I have bought an Bajaj OTG. For grilling should i keep the skewers on top or middle rack and the heat knob should be selected for top or both top & bottom. In the recipe book which i got along with my manual says the position and heat knob should be top. It would be great if you could clear my doubt. Pls help me. Thanks a lot.

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  50. Hello Sri Devi..
    Thanks for your comment... For grilling You can place the skewers in the upper rack and place the heat knob on the top position as your manual says

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  51. My otg oven has temprature mark as 100 next 150 and next 200 and so on. How can i set to 180 to bake cakes...

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  52. hy.my oven has temprature mark 150 then 200 how can i set to 180 for baking

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  53. Hai amina
    Thanks for sharing usage of OTG.
    I bought a prime otg 52 liters.and confused with the knobs !! While bakin I don't know if you have to use the first knob !! First knob is for roasting , fan option !! Should we use the first knob when I bake cake

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  54. Does prestige oth have the keep warm function???

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  55. Thank You Amina!!..Well Explained !!

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  56. Hi amina ...thank u so much for the post can u pls show me or explain me the xact position of skewer rods i mean any perfect place to keep in grill tray or ?? Its not mentioned in manual too tia 😃

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    Replies
    1. Hi... I usually place the grill tray in the middle of the oven with skewers placed on top and both upper and lower rods switched On.. You can check out the image just below the grill tray section in this post for better understanding the position of the skewers. Hope this helps :)

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  57. Hi amina thank u for the post .can u pls tel me indetail position of skewer rods whr to place ...its not clear in manual ...tia 😃

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    Replies
    1. Hi Smily... I usually place the grill tray in the middle of the oven with skewers placed on top and both upper and lower rods switched On.. You can check out the image just below the grill tray section in this post for better understanding the position of the skewers. Hope this helps :)

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  58. very nice Amina .............beautifully explained

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  59. Thanks amina...its really super

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  60. Hi Amina, very useful post.Thank you.
    I have a doubt. I bought a prestige otg 28 litres and when I select both top and bottom heating, to bake a cake, the top of cake gets burnt. Which option should I select? Please reply.

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    Replies
    1. Hi... Thanks for your comments...
      The temperature and time settings differ from oven to oven. Since you have a bigger oven, the top part of the cake might have got burnt... further where did you place the cake pan in the middle shelf or upper shelf?
      You can try reducing the temperature while baking or use only the lower rods...
      Hope this helps :) Stay connected...

      Delete

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