Braun MultiGrill 9

A while ago, I came home to my partner and my two lovely children and announced that I'd finally found the time - and the energy - to start baking. It was a moment met with a touch of scepticism, perhaps due to the self-importance with which I delivered the news, which, it must be said, is perfectly fine. But in the weeks that followed, I threw myself into one project after another.

In that context, I was naturally also looking for ways to use up all the bread I'd crammed into the already overflowing bread bin and freezer, and so I came across Braun's MultiGrill 9 as a suitably versatile way to stuff my otherwise rather well-fed family. And what a success it has been.

Okay, so what exactly is the MultiGrill 9? Well, it's a way of combining a whole host of kitchen functions - which previously were either fiddly or required separate equipment - into a single gadget, an approach we've almost always welcomed across markets here at Gamereactor. Its exterior is made of stainless steel, but the grill plates are cast aluminium, meaning they can easily go in the dishwasher with a PTFE coating that doesn't just wear off.

The integrated heating element can deliver up to 2200W of power. That's a lot, but translated into more understandable terms, we're talking up to 230 degrees, and on the two dials that let you set the temperature, there's also a Sear button that cranks the heat up to 265 degrees, and is especially designed, for example, to give steaks a nice sear. Yes, the MultiGrill 9 is almost a sort of tabletop grill, which you can, in principle, use as a waffle iron one day and an open grill for cooking steaks the next.

It's a 3-in-1 design, meaning it can be fully closed for when the family, to their no-surprise, wants Dad's paninis made on homemade focaccia again. But it can also be open at 180 degrees, or used as an "oven" with the top lid raised. It's incredibly elegant how the MultiGrill 9 switches between these modes, and in my view, the heat—crucially—has always been even, which is harder to achieve with larger ovens.

There are two independent thermometers that monitor the heat, and overall the whole machine seems to be incredibly precisely engineered. What's more, you get these plates included, which make it exceptionally versatile and allow you to make the aforementioned paninis and waffles, which quite frankly, could easily be considered the highlight of a chaotic weekend.

The approximate £170 this one is priced at is no small sum, and it certainly is a fair bit compared to a cheap Melissa toaster. But not only is the MultiGrill 9 brilliantly put together, it packs a wealth of functions into a single unit, and it even does it better than some of the dedicated machines. In my view, that means this isn't just recommendable, but downright brilliant.