AIBU to be horrified by this?

[Ovenoff]

Friend has just revealed that when she makes a stew/curry/casserole, anything that can be put in the oven for a few hours and cook on low heat, she would do that and go out for a few hours.

I can’t imagine doing that, anything could happen. What if you got caught up, run over/injured honestly anything could happen and nobody would know you have the oven on 😳.

Back in the day, I couldn't afford to have central heating installed, so I used to use my oven to heat my kitchen all through the winter. So the only result in your hypothesis, OP, would be burnt food and a high gas bill.

Think most modern ovens have timers now?

I wouldn't do it in case I got caught in traffic or something and it burnt. Did it once and was fairly anxious. I have a slowcooker I do this with though. Not something to get worked up over.

Preparing a casserole now to cook overnight in the slow cooker. Fingers crossed all will be good

I always do. Plenty of liquid and leave it all say. I thought that was the point of a casserole

My upstairs neighbour's did this at my old place. Thier oven caught fire, spread rapidly around thier kitchen and came down into our kitchen. I came home to a flat full of smoke damage, a layer of black over everything and a big hole in the kitchen ceiling. So no i wouldn't do it.

I do this often!

Wouldn’t worry me at all! Slow cook things like this usually cook on a lowish heat, so even if it’s in for longer than expected all it’s going to do is dry out.

I used to regularly do this before I got a slow cooker. I’m not in the least horrified.

OP you are being weirdly unreasonable!! Plenty of ppl do this, I do it with my oven or slow cooker on a timer!

No wonder my food never tastes that great then @JesusInTheCabbageVan if being run over is a requirement. I’ll see what cars are around the next time I go out with the oven on.

I know modern ovens are better but when I was younger parents left it on when we went out came back to fire engines. House completely destroyed. We couldn't live there for months while it was being rebuilt .

I personally wouldn’t. I’ve had my oven catch fire before and it was scary enough when I was there to stop it.

I’d be more worried in case I got knocked over and had raggedy knickers on...

Loving how a perfectly normal thing done by thousands of MNers is "horrifying" to another!

Always makes me wonder what a really terrible thing would be classed as, when the bar for being horrified is so low!

If you got run over you wouldn't give two shits about what's in your oven.

I can see your point, but I’m guilty of putting the oven on and going mucking the horses out or taking the dogs out for half an hour.

My friend’s kitchen went up in smoke when the washing machine broke and smouldered. Nearly killed their dogs. I never put that or the dishwasher on when I’m out now.

2020 I got hit by a bin lorry a couple of weeks ago - the lamb shoulder I had in the oven was just falling off the bone.

Jesus I better get shopping for Wednesday’s culinary delight then!

Vauxhall Astra earlier today didn't produce nearly as good results, mind you.

I don't think an oven is the same as a slow cooker.

I often set the oven timer to start the roast dinner whilst we are in Church. I never thought of it as being more dangerous than leaving a slow cooker on.

Leaving a washing machine on is much more dangerous than an oven.

I do this frequently but I've also got an oven with a timer function so it would automatically switch off if I'm late or dead.

Yanbu. Personally i wouldnt unless there was a timer