inheriting an Aga

[highlandcoo]

I'm moving house in a couple of months and doing just that. I would never have planned to buy an Aga otherwise - I have a Lacanche just now and am very happy with it - however it comes with the house so I think I need to give it a go.

Anticipating that it might take me a while to get to grips with it, I've just bought an air fryer, so that I have something easy to use in the short term.

It's quite an old house and the kitchen is off the hall with no door in between so hopefully the Aga will keep the space cosy.

Any tips about Agas gratefully received 😊

Have a quick google. Last winter there were stories in newspapers of people paying to have agas taken away as so fuel hungry. Not sure if this was apocryphal or based on facts but probably worth investigating?
And congratulations on new house!

Agas are a lifestyle! Massively different way of cooking in my experience. I can’t handle it - no temperature control! My mum’s used to it as she grew up with the monster.

Great for warming bums on, and heating the kitchen - especially in summer 🥵
Using the top ‘rings’ is, imho, a waste of time and energy. Get a separate hob too if you can.

Cost to run, I think depends on the fuel. Hers was originally coal, then converted to oil, and is now gas. It goes out a couple of times a year, and needs a specialist to relight it. (That may be because she’s disabled, tho).

Get the Aga Cookbook. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-Aga-Cookbook-Mary-Berry/dp/1472222644

Personally, I wouldn’t choose one, but if it’s there, you may as well make use of it!

We bought a property 4yrs ago with 1 in it. Ours is gas and gas prices were half what they are now. I wouldn't have kept it if it was oil or electric. What type is yours? We were renovating, so lived in a static van for 2 yrs. I found the gas oven in the caravan much harder to get used to than the aga.

I watched you tube videos which helped, but it didn't take long to get used to it. The main difference is trying to use the inside of the aga more than the cook top. I love the fact it cooks from all sides, so you could technically cook a pie without blind baking the pastry. It makes great slow cooker stews in the bottom oven and fantastic Yorkshires in the top oven.

You can buy pots/pans accessories from these shops:
https://www.blakeandbull.co.uk/?srsltid=AfmBOopJ8eeGpcs5isz2gKMox9XROyVAnLJj6x71Bo9Rz3FNlLzbKbFg

https://www.agacookshop.co.uk/

I did buy a great deal of pots/pans much cheaper from ebay, especially in Spring/Summer when people are turning theirs off. We also have an electric oven, so turn the aga off for over half of the year.

The hardest thing at the beginning was finding an aga technician person to service it. There is a list on the aga website- BUT, it was vastly inaccurate. As said, ours is gas, so we needed a gas certified aga person, yet many in the book didn't do gas, no longer did agas, didn't cover our area etc- despite the listings saying they did! I rang 8 people before finding one!

We love it.

I love my inherited Aga.

Tips: get an Aga cookbook, I like the Mary Berry one. Also learn to use the hobs less and the ovens more. Oh, and don’t dry anything on the super hot hob cover, it’ll burn!

I like it as it’s so simple: on mine the ovens are just very hot, hot, medium hot (we use it for simmer and slow cooking) and warming. Hobs are super hot and hot. It’s always on so no rushing to warm it up. Everything tastes delicious.

I’m not a precise cook, if you are precise it might be a struggle.

I'd remove it asap. Or at least install an induction hob and airfrier to do real cooking.

So many different opinions! Thanks everyone. I'm going to give it a go over the rest of the winter/spring and see where I'm up to after a few months. And monitor the fuel consumption too!

I'm not sure whether it's gas or electric .. I suspect gas. When we viewed the house I didn't think to ask - bit daft but there was a lot to take in - and have requested more information from the estate agents; just waiting to hear. It won't be a deal-breaker. If I hate it or it costs a ridiculous amount to run, I'll replace it with a Lacanche. Despite having never particularly wanted one, I'm quite intrigued to try it out.

Thanks for the Mary Berry cookbook recommendation; that does look very helpful.

I don't think I'm a precise cook I am a precise baker though .. so that might be a challenge!

Yeah, it’s the baking that needs precision @highlandcoo Mum's cakes are renowned - as doorstops!

Ah, that's not good @PlatinumBrunette ! If I can't get the hang of baking in it (everyone in the family gets a chocolate cake on their birthday every year - it's the law) it'll be history very quickly.

Apologies that my posts are SO long, but its all the info I wished I'd known when I inherited my aga. I too have a Mary Berry aga cookbook which I found in a charity shop, but there are lots on ebay too. TBH, I rarely use it now though.
The previous owner might leave some of the accessories for you. A toaster rack, trays that fit the runners, kettle etc. Our aga gas man gave us some.

These covers help protect the lid from splatters https://bakeoglide.kitchen/products/splash-shield

I'm not sure this is the correct size, but there is a circular, non stick Bake-0-glide which we put on the hot plate to make toast. There is also a metal device which you put the toast in, but we found the bake-o-glide stuff better at protecting the hot plate and less crumbs than the toaster rack https://bakeoglide.kitchen/products/bake-o-glide-microwave-liner

I highly recommend hob covers, also called chefs pads. They protect the tops from scratches, means you can get a hot pan out of the oven and sit it on top and also reduces heat loss. I have a festive design for Christmas, which were on sale in Jan, but day to day just have an all black set. They get drips and pan marks on them, so avoid anything cream/white because they become filthy very quickly! https://www.blakeandbull.co.uk/collections/hob-covers-chefs-pads-other-textiles/products/hob-cover-oak-and-bumble

I bought a 2nd rail and a rack which sits over the aga to dry clothes. I've never use our heat pump clothes dryer in 2yrs.

You'll also need a kettle. Get one with a thick base and a whistle. Our aga guy said he sometimes gets calls from people thinking their aga isn't working, because the kettle was taking too long to heat. He said that cheaper kettles, with a very thin base, can warp, so only a small part is in contact with the hotplate.

Our gas usage does go up when we turn it on, but it does replace so many items.
-toaster
-kettle
-slow cooked
-clothes drying
-drying herbs and dehydrating fruit/veg
-You can apparently press clothes across it, but I've never tried

Super useful post @JC03745 ( and not too long ) Thank you!

It could be mum’s cooking… it was never good (I’d never tell her that! 😂)
Plus, it’s a super-old Aga, about 70 years old, so maybe the new ones are better.
Just have backup options, such as your ninja, an electric kettle, microwave.

I do have very fond memories of toast made on the top, just after watching her doing the morning coal-routine.

I love our AGA, but it's been turned off for over 2 years because we simply can't afford the oil.

In terms of day to day cooking, it's super easy - no preheating required! Be aware that if the top lids are open, the oven will cool down quickly, so if you're using the oven, try to minimise opening the lids. Lots of things (including pasta, rice, casseroles etc) can be started on the top and then put a lid on and pop it in the warming oven.

Absolutely love my electric Aga. It costs less than £5 per day to run (we have it on approx. Oct-April). It replaces the cooker, kettle, toaster, tumble dryer and provides a large amount of heating for the house.

Cooking is a dream. The bottom oven makes batch cooking and prep easy. Bakoglide eggs and drop scones are fab.

Haven’t turned our oil aga on in years as it drinks the fuel. If it wasn’t so expensive to run we would use it in the winter but still need an electric range cooker for the summer otherwise the kitchen gets too hot.

We absolutely love our oil AGA. It was in the house when we bought it so wasn't a "choice"
I would recommend living with it for 2 winters - this winter you'll be settling into the house, and next winter you can settle into the AGA.
We are fortunate that the oil affordability doesn't factor too much into our decision making. The AGA is such a big part of our kitchen I see it as a luxury I enjoy rather than purely fuel costs.

There's a Facebook group called I LOVE my AGA which is fantastic for cooking advice and problems.

I learned to cook on a four oven Aga. Absolute brilliant and I still miss it.

I am an Aga convert after buying a house with one too, they kindly left me the Mary Berry cookbook. Best advice I can give you is to ask the sellers to give you the name of the person who services the Aga now and carry on with the annual service with people who know your Aga. We have brilliant ‘tottering by gently’ cartoon hob covers as well as everyday striped ones. We get some supplies from Blake & Bull but I think I just found the Tottering by Gently online. Found them!

givans.co.uk/products/male-female-bliss-hob-covers-tottering-by-gently?pr_prod_strat=e5_desc&pr_rec_id=7f0e7d911&pr_rec_pid=6765427425367&pr_ref_pid=6765425000535&pr_seq=uniform

I have an inherited oil aga and I love her, but I did grow up with them so I do understand how to cook on them.
First, they are fabulous for "proper" cooking. I just had 13 for lunch this weekend and managed 3 courses, no problem. She roasts and bakes like a dream. The key is to get familiar with finding the temperature. I really recommend Mary Berry's Aga cookbooks and also Sarah Whitaker who has taught me tips even my mum didn't know! https://www.sarahwhitaker.com/
I also recommend trying the overnight Christmas cake recipe, it's just incredible.
In fact I also "slow cooked" my turkey last Christmas by putting it in the simmer after midnight mass and browning it for 30 mins at 11am, then just keeping it warm. It was bloody awesome, the best I've ever done.
They are expensive to run, there's no getting away from that, I bought all my oil in August with a local syndicate, and that's saved me a packet. I really recommend finding your local group, if it is oil.
I really hope you love your aga, once you get the hang of it, there's no turning back.
Mind you, it spoils you, I still can't work out how not to burn things in the bloody air fryer!

My Mil made the best bread in the Aga, she always used it.

Get yourself on ‘i love my aga’ on facebook - loads of tips on there. Sarah whittaker is on there and has videos on youtube showing you how to cook - her christmas demo is excellent.

Absolutely love my electric Aga. It costs less than £5 per day to run (we have it on approx. Oct-April)

That's interesting. Electric Agas must vary in their energy usage, in that case. Maybe yours is a newer, more efficient model? I'm living (temporarily, thank God) in a house with an electric Aga, and it costs a lot more than that per day. It's horrific how expensive it is.

Personally, I hate Agas. They're expensive to run (in my experience); you have no control; if you're cooking on the hobs for any length of time they start to loose power and the entire thing cools down; they're very hot to stand over, but on the other hand they need switching off in the summer because they make the house too hot. They're the work of the Devil, in my opinion.

They are expensive to run but they are also effectively part of your central heating. So they take some of the load off your radiators and the "net" cost is not so bad. Obviously it helps if the kitchen is a central part of your house and well used by the family

I think they are great but not everyone likes them. My childhood home had one, I learned to cook on it. When I left home, I worked in a professional kitchen and they had one. I don't think you mention if it's a 4 or 2 door oven model. 4 door are the best, each oven at a different temperature / for a different purpose. Bottom left - 65c, top left 120c, bottom right 180c, top right 220c (bottom shelf) 240c (top shelf). A large potato rolled in olive oil and salt flakes left in the bottom left takes 24 hours to turn into a wonderful deliciously crispy skinned delight. Take one out for lunch and replace it with another for the following day. 2 large hot plates, the left hot, the right cooler. Using good conductive cast iron casserole pans, slide the pan more or less on or off the hot plate until you have the temperature you want. You can have 6 - 8 pots on the go across both hot plates using this approach. On the 4 door model, to the left of the hot plates you have the warming plate. A large hot area that you can leave dishes to rest and keep warm. Also useful for leaving a mug of tea to keep warm if you have to step outside for 5 minutes. Truly versatile but it's like an old reliable car, something you come to understand and love.

@Time40 it's 15 years old now. We have economy 7 electricity so it is supercharged overnight on cheap rate electricity.

Also inherited one with the house. Am not a huge fan, but I did grow up with them so I am at least used to how to work them. And it is lovely and homely and warm!

Yes the fuel cost is high. Ours is oil. It does heat the house(or at least the kitchen) which is helpful due to the general damp, and it does replace things like electric kettle and drier etc.

I bought an induction hob and 2 drawer air fryer and we use those in the summer as we have no other oven. Made it to November this year before the aga went back on!

I’d consider solar panels and converting it to electric if I had the cash. I know people who’ve done that so I’ll wait and see what the outcome is!