Frugal Home Ways to Save with Oven Cooking

Save Energy with a Convection Oven

Frugal Home Convection ovens help to save energy because they circulate the hot air. Instead of surrounding the food, hot air cooks it faster at lower temperatures. We recently upgraded our stove to a convection oven, and first of all I can tell a huge difference in the cook time. I love the convection oven we have.

Next, our energy bill has lowered by almost $20.00 per month. Oven cooking in connection with lower thermostat settings has helped us out a lot this winter. Our bill was not astronomical at all.

Heat Things Up in the Kitchen

No doubt we all know that oven cooking in the summer is a bad idea. Why? Because it heats up the kitchen. I use my crockpot more in the summer due to oven cooking heating up the kitchen. Using that philosophy in the winter, wouldn’t it make sense to cook with the oven in the winter to help with heat, then use the crockpot or grill in the summer? I remember as a child we did not have air conditioning and the kitchen would be blazing hot.

Holding a freezer meal day once a month could also institute turning the dial down on the thermostat. All of the cooking and movement in the kitchen for the day will definitely heat things up.

Utilizing the heat from the kitchen is an easy way to save on the heat bill, and at the same time have some hot meals ready for the family to eat.

Gas Oven vs. Electric Oven for Cooking in a Frugal Home

Gas ovens cost less to operate. Cooking with a gas stove is more energy efficient and in turn will encourage more cooking. Electric ovens are going to hold heat longer. Since they do hold heat longer than the gas stove does, when cooking, this will help to hold heat in the oven, and out.

Oven preference depends on the need. When I was shopping for an oven, my first and foremost desire was to cook more food at once. We did have an electric stove. I liked the electric stove and felt it was safer for the kids to use.

When choosing which type of oven we prefer, saving money on the heat bill isn’t top priority. But, the savings that will come after the stove is in use daily will develop. A modern stove that assists with cooking more, delicious meals is more enjoyable to cook on.

Frugal Home Thoughts on Saving Heat Energy

There are several ways to save on heat for the winter. Ultimately, choosing the right oven will help keep the frugal home warmer when being used. One, having a planned day to cook freezer meals will save time, energy and the heat bill will go down for that day.

Cooking on a daily basis each day at the same time would also help to institute a lower thermostat setting daily. Oven cooking benefits the frugal home family in more ways than saving on heat and energy. Frugal home families will be able to enjoy more table time and deep discussions. All the while sitting comfortably in the warm kitchen with the smells of food wafting about them.

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