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The Tovala Smart Oven Pro combines the benefits of an air fryer, toaster oven, steamer, and convection oven all in one small unit about the size of your average microwave or high-end toaster oven.
The Tovala caught my eye because, as a tech enthusiast, I’ve been intrigued by the idea of a smart oven for a while. I had looked at the Suvie Kitchen Robot previously, but it seemed complicated for a non-chef like me and I wasn’t fully sold on sous vide cooking or using a meal service at that time.
Then, the Tovala popped up on Reddit, Facebook, and YouTube. It looked simple to use. I also liked that it can replace my air fryer and toaster oven.
Many people think the Tovala is for use only with the company’s prepared meal kits, but that’s not true. Over the course of nearly two months using this oven/air fryer combo, I reheated dozens of meals, grilled chicken breasts to perfection, and prepared frittatas almost every morning. It has also virtually replaced my Ninja Air Fryer for cooking chicken fingers, fries, and anything else you’d cook in a traditional air fryer. Read on to hear what I loved, what could be improved, and tips for the best ways to use and clean your Tovala Smart Oven Pro.
There’s a lot to love about the Tovala Smart Oven Pro and its meal plan. But there are also a few limitations you should be aware of.
The Tovala Smart Oven Pro retails for $349 on the Tovala website, or $379.99 on Amazon. But you can find it for less if you take advantage of a sale. During Amazon Prime Day, the Tovala was on sale for $249 with no commitment to buy meals.
You can also get the Smart Oven Pro for $119 with free shipping at Tovala.com if you commit to ordering meals six times within six months. You can order four to 12 meals each time. Most meals cost $12.99, although you can find $9.99 options. You can pause, delay, or cancel your subscription at any time.
The Tovala Smart Oven Pro looks like a microwave, but it is definitely not. The oven has a sleek black finish and looks like a high-tech microwave, toaster, or air fryer toaster oven on your countertop. With its small footprint and modern design, it fits well in any kitchen.
You’ll need at least six inches of clearance between the top of the oven and your cabinets, and three inches on all three sides, since the oven’s exterior does get hot.
The touch panel buttons are intuitive and easy to use. You can also operate the oven via the app, although you can’t start cooking through the app. This prevents you from accidentally turning on the oven while you’re not at home. You must physically push the “start” button to begin any cooking or preheating cycle.
Let’s explore what’s inside your Smart Oven Pro box.
The Tovala Smart Oven Pro comes with a stainless-steel crumb tray, a rack, an air fryer basket, a baking tray, and a high-quality oven mitt. If you order through Amazon with no meal commitment, you’ll also receive a $50 credit for three to five Tovala meals.
The Tovala oven came with a collection of recipe cards, but there are also thousands of recipe cards in the app, which is easy to use and you don’t have to worry about losing the physical cards. Which I did! There are also reheating and air-frying guidelines for easy, one-touch cooking.
The crumb tray slides in smoothly and stays in place. You can also take it out easily for cleaning, which you should each time you use the oven to prevent burnt-on crumbs. There is also an air fryer tray and baking sheet. Tovala recommends lining the baking tray with aluminum foil for easy clean up if you aren’t using their prepared meals, which come in their own aluminum plans.
Only the baking tray is dishwasher safe, but the others clean up easily with soap and water and a non-abrasive sponge.
The Tovala Meal Plan is comparable to other meal plans, including Green Chef, HelloFresh, and Blue Apron. Meals from Tovala cost between $9.99 and $14.99, with most at $12.99. Tovala offers a variety of calorie-smart, gluten-friendly, vegetarian, Mediterranean Diet, spicy, and carb-conscious meals, with 35+ choices each week.
If you eat paleo or keto, the “Carb Conscious” selections may have too many carbs for your diet. For instance, the Panko-crusted Pork Chop with Mashed Potatoes has 35 carbs, which could be a whole day’s allotment for someone eating keto. Likewise, the Shrimp & Truffle Mushroom Risotto has 35 carbs. Still, if your plan limits you to 50 to 100 carbs per day, these meals can fit your macros. You’ll also want to watch the sugar content on some selections. In general, though, if you’re looking to eat healthier and cook with fresh, natural ingredients, Tovala offers a good solution.
What sets Tovala meals apart from other services is how easy they are to prep. They cook in their own aluminum tray, which means there’s no pots or pans to scrub clean. If you want to save the reusable tray, it takes seconds to wash it out with dish soap.
Over the course of a month using the Tovala Smart Oven Pro, I ran the appliances through its paces as an air fryer, broiler, toaster oven, and also tested two weeks of carb-conscious meals.
We cooked fresh and frozen chicken, Real Good low-carb chicken tenders and SeaPak shrimp from Costco, dozens of slices of toast, and even grilled cheese, which came out melty, crispy, and delicious in less than 10 minutes. My family and I also reheated lots of restaurant leftovers, from Texas Roadhouse dinner rolls to potato skins.
My teenage son cooked his favorite convenience foods like Eggo waffles and Totino’s Pizza Rolls with a click of the app and a push of a button. We also reheated New York-style pizza and it was easy and delicious—nothing like microwaved pizza that gets soggy or oven-heated pizza that takes forever to cook.
I found the Tovala meals easy to cook, generally healthy, and delicious across the board. It’s convenient to spend a few minutes prepping a meal, toss it in the oven, and then go about your day. The app sends a notification to your phone when the meal is cooked.
This oven’s versatility, style, and small footprint are its biggest selling features. My Ninja air fryer is a bit time-consuming, especially if I’m making greasy foods like bacon, but that’s not the case with the Tovala oven. The ease of use and versatility even outshine the convenience of the app and meal plan, which are both excellent.
Without fail, everything I cooked in the Tovala came out tasty. If you order meals, the marinated chicken comes out moist and tender every time. I almost replicated the results using the oven’s instructions for chicken breasts.
Mine were from the Good Chop meat delivery service, so they were also high-quality. I added a thin coating of olive oil, seasoned them with lemon pepper seasoning, and then cooked for 19 minutes using the recipe for chicken breasts in the app.
But the Tovala meal plan chicken won out for taste, in my opinion. Likewise with the salmon and pork chops. Sure, you can buy three pounds of chicken breasts for roughly $10 (the price of one Tovala meal), but the taste is worth it to splurge on the Tovala meal, especially if you are only cooking for one and want a quick lunch or dinner.
One of my favorite recipes is one I modified from the app: The Southwest Egg White Frittata. I sprayed the mini loaf pan with cooking spray and then, instead of egg whites, scrambled two whole eggs in the pan. Then, add your choice of protein (chopped ham, cooked bacon, or cooked sausage) and chopped fresh veggies like spinach, broccoli, or peppers. Add shredded cheese of your choice and cook using the Egg Frittata recipe in the app. You can also use this recipe to make egg muffins per the cooking time in the app.
Granted, it doesn’t take much longer than 12 minutes to whip up an omelet on the stove, but I like being able to multitask while my breakfast or lunch cooks.
The oven steams, toasts, air fries, broils, bakes, and reheats, all with the push of a button or via the app. There is no voice control, which some competing smart ovens offer. When you use one of the pre-programmed recipes, the oven cycles through different cooking methods for a perfect meal each time.
The oven bakes or grills chicken faster than you could in a conventional oven, including preheating time. It preheats rapidly. It also toasts bread faster than my old Hamilton Beach toaster oven. When it comes to air frying, however, my Ninja Max gets the job done slightly faster for things like chicken nuggets, pizza rolls, and fries. But I like the larger capacity of the Tovala and the easier cleanup.
It doesn’t get much simpler to prep meals, scan a barcode or find a recipe in the app, and cook your meals. Likewise, toasting bread is as simple as choosing from one of five settings based on the darkness.
If your WiFi connection goes out, however, it might be more complicated to use your oven. You can cook any food based on cooking times listed on your reference cards.
You can still cook Tovala meals, as well, but you’ll need to use the Reheat button, according to the Tovala website. First, look up the time on the Tovala meal card or in the app (using your phone’s data service), choose the longest time range and add two minutes. It’s not ideal, but it gets the job done.
The app is intuitive and user-friendly. I wish it supported more pre-packaged foods and also listed more recipes for common dinners, but I’m sure that will come with time.
The oven is simple to wipe clean after each use. The sheet tray is the only component that is dishwasher safe. If you end up with cheese dried on the air fryer basket, soak it in warm, soapy water until you can wipe it off. Do not use abrasive cleaners on any components.
The Tovala website instructs owners of the Smart Oven Pro to descale the oven every six months. I haven’t reached that stage but the process seems simple enough. You’ll need at least an hour and a half to descale it fully, but you don’t need to watch the oven the whole time.
If this review sounds a bit like I’ve joined the cult of Tovala, it’s true. After one week with the oven I was absolutely hooked. The robust communities you’ll find on Facebook and Reddit add to the oven’s versatility. I don’t enjoy cooking although I am a foodie. Being able to prepare delicious, easy meals in minutes and multi-task while they cook was a game-changer for my busy household.
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