We've had our Gagg Combi-steam for almost 2 years & love it. I have not found a cookbook besides what comes with it, but we've done a bit of experimenting. There are others who have made yogurt & all kinds of things. What are you interested in doing?

I was wondering if there is any benefit in turning off the steam to brown meats or get the tops of casseroles brown at the end of the cooking time.

I'd like to know if I can take my Mom's flan recipe, that is made with a double boiler, in the steam oven. What setting is best for that? should it be covered?

I could experiment, but it would be good to benefit from the experience of others.

One of the neat features of the Gagg Combi-steam is the ability to choose steam other than 100% & to set temperature independently. I have never covered anything, as that is meant to produce steam in a conventional oven or eliminate evaporation. However, you do want lower or eliminate steam settings for foods that should roast or not get wet.

Did you get a "whiz wheel" cooking guide with your Combi? If you twirl thru the different kinds of foods, it has suggestions for temperature and percent of steam along with time, pan type, & rack position.

100% steam is mostly meant for a temperature of 210-220°F and is the wettest combo. In addition to steaming veggies, I use this setting for rice, hard boiled eggs, & as a first step to prep baby back ribs for BBQ. I use 100% steam to poach chicken breasts to cut up & freeze for adding to recipes or soups later on. I also steam ground beef to divide & freeze for adding to recipes; I put the beef in the perforated pan & the solid pan underneath to catch drippings & have the bonus of not having to drain the fat from the cooked beef. (This can also be done in a pasta cooker with insert on a cooktop.)

To roast a whole chicken, try 360°F & 80% steam for 50 minutes. For tenderloin, Gagg suggests 370°F & 80% steam for 45 minutes. Gagg doesn't list flan but does list custard at 220°F at 30% steam for 55 minutes. Gagg suggests casseroles at 350°F & 100% steam, which should brown them, but you could lower or zero the steam for the last 5-10 minutes if more browning is needed. Pastries can use a step 1 & 2 method with 100% steam to start & step 2 with zero steam; the 370° temperature stays the same. You can introduce steam in baking, french bread for example, by pressing the steam button 3 times at the beginning of baking & 5 minutes later in addition to setting 30% steam & 380° for 35-40 minutes. I often gently reheat plates or bowls of food at 30% steam & 250°F for 12 minutes; the 30% steam will not get the food wet or dry it out. You will not see the steam at the lower settings but it's there.

Check out the Gaggenau site itself - there are a few recipes there, including one for cappuccino creme caramel, which describes how to do a baked pudding without the necessity of a water bath. The custard is done at 220 F, preheated, with 30% steam, uncovered. (Most of the recipes, with an exception or two, are in the back of the cookbook that came with my oven - "Experience Gourmet Spa Cuisine"?) Did you get that? It also has a useful cooking guide in the front for various food items, with temp and steam settings, what type of pan or rack to use, and cooking times. Definitely try to get a copy from Gaggenau if you don't have it.

There's also a new section at the website called Holiday recipes, which are also for the combi steam oven. Those are new and not in the cookbook.

A cooking/baking guide in the form of a "wheel" came with my oven and I've found that's been a good go-to in terms of figuring out to adapt an existing recipe.

I'm happy to say that cooking at 400 at 100% steam (not zero steam!) does produce wonderful browned baby back ribs, for example. So, for the most part cooking at high heat results in a browned surface without the inner meat getting dried out. Also, preheating really helps - didn't realize that for a while.

If you read the recipes now that you've had the oven for a while, they'll make more sense in terms of how to use the it.

Let us know how the flan turns out!

Here is a link that might be useful: Gaggenau Combi Steam Oven Recipes

Thanks for your responses Gismo and Deegee.

Yes I do have the wheel and the cookbook. They have been very helpful. I've been able to make quite a few things and most of them have come out very well.

I wonder if anyone has any tricks for keeping the perforated pans from making a big mess. If I have the solid pan below during cooking, what do you do to keep it from dripping all over the floor when you pull the perforated pan out?

My mom is coming up from Florida this week. We'll try her flan recipe in the steam oven, and let you know how it turns out.

Try sliding the perforated pan onto a half sheet pan to catch the drips. I've also discovered that a half sheet pan fits into the steam oven by sliding on top of the pan/rack guides.

If you are not using the solid pan for food, you can place the perforated pan into it & slide them together into a rack guide.

I like using silicone mitts to take out the hot pans, since they don't absorb water.

if anyone is interested, i have pdf versions of the gaggenau combi cookbook for north america, as well as a European version with different recipes in it.

is there a place to post pdf files here?

Dear foodie3, you could probably use some filehosting service, e.g. ifile.it, to share the books. I am very much interested in them.

http://www.mediafire.com/?sharekey=682ebdb4b7d9c57dc2b435915e8821d7e04e75f6e8ebb871

heres the link, let me know if it does not work.

Many thanks, the books are wonderful!

Does anybody knows where the steam button is on the Gagg steamoven?