It turns out that the drawer underneath many ovens serves a very specific purpose and it s not just for storage.
Bottom drawer on stove purpose.
Leaving aside fancy chefs stoves this is the apparatus most of us probably grew up with.
Usually the heating element for the warming drawer is beneath it and separate from the oven s.
While every kitchen is different most stoves basically follow the same standard guidelines.
To be sure pull open the door.
If your electric oven contains a warming drawer button then congrats that s what the drawer is used.
If it looks more like a retractable pan than a drawer then it s a broiler.
The bottom drawer is for storing oven trays and other cooking utensils the manual says.
But regardless of what you put in it we bet you aren t using that space for its intended purpose.
While plenty of oven models have this extra space what exactly its purpose is remains a source of contention in the cooking community.
The true purpose of the drawer underneath your oven broiler drawer.
If you have an oven heated with natural gas the drawer is typically a broiler.
If your oven is electric the purpose of the bottom drawer is most likely to keep cooked foods warm.
It can get very warm don t store anything in it which may melt or catch fire.
The bottom drawer on some ovens can be used to broil or warm food.
It sounds crazy that appliance manufacturers expect us to let such a large potential storage space sit empty but on some oven models it s designed to be a spot to keep your food warm.
While it does serve as a great spot for all of your back up cooking tools on some oven models it s actually meant to be a warming drawer.
Check the inside of the drawer or owner s manual and you.
It s even so widely argued that there s a dedicated snopes page for the issue.
Tucked underneath most ovens is a spacious drawer though it is sometimes easy to forget.
What s false not all ovens have warming drawers and the bottom drawer on some ovens is used for storage purposes instead.
Never store flammable materials in the drawer.