Bosch HBL5551UC Review

The Bosch 500 Series HBL5551UC is a wall double oven that provides the basic necessities for baking. This basic electric double oven features thermal technology, 4.6 cubic feet of cooking space and only a few advanced settings.

Top Ten Reviews Verdict

This basic wall double oven has a recessed broil element, which improves its cooking capacity and makes it safe to reach inside, but its overall feature package is lacking.

Pros

  • +

    The Bosch 500 Series can be installed flush with your cabinetry.

Cons

  • -

    It does not provide delayed bake or rapid preheat options.

Why you can trust Top Ten Reviews Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.

The Bosch 500 Series HBL5551UC is a wall double oven that provides the basic necessities for baking. This basic electric double oven features thermal technology, 4.6 cubic feet of cooking space and only a few advanced settings.

This Bosch oven has 4.6 cubic feet of cooking space in each oven, which is plenty of room for most dishes, including a large turkey. It uses thermal technology, the standard method for oven cooking. Unlike some double ovens, it doesn't offer the option of convection cooking, which circulates the air with a fan to speed up the cooking and bake the food more evenly.

You can control the oven features, settings and temperature with both touch controls and a metal knob. The basic cooking features on this oven are bake, broil, roast and warm settings. If you prefer an oven with all touch controls, which tend to be easier to clean, the KitchenAid KODT100ESS is a good option.

The oven doors have oversized windows to allow you to clearly see the progress of your cooking. This keeps the heat in the oven, rather than letting it escape when you open the door to see your food. Losing heat this way affects the consistency of the temperature, resulting in uneven cooking. A bright interior light is located in each oven cavity as well for easy monitoring.

Another helpful feature of this electric wall double oven is the broiling heating element is recessed, making this oven safer for you to reach in and pull out your pan. The oven can be installed flush on your wall, and its low profile makes a stylish statement in your kitchen.

This oven comes with four racks, two in each oven cavity, that can be adjusted to accommodate any size of dish. This flexibility also allows you to place your food in the optimal place for the heating elements to give you the best results.

This electric double oven has heat self-cleaning capabilities. Its shortest self-clean cycle is only two hours, which is quicker than heat self-clean cycles, and the manufacturer claims the EcoClean technology eliminates the need for scrubbing. The enamel interior makes it easier to remove the residue than in most ovens. The oven doors automatically lock during the self-cleaning cycles for safety. Bosch has a standard one-year warranty to protect this oven's parts and labor.

The Bosch 500 Series HBL5551UC is a standard electric double wall oven. While it doesn't have convection capabilities, its recessed cooking element allows you to optimize the capacity and makes it safe to reach inside the oven. It has a sleek flush wall design and all the basic features you need to cook a good-sized meal for your family, but the overall feature package is limited.

Angie Parkinson

A contracted writer for TTR, Angie has been reviewing vacuum cleaners, countertop appliances and other home goods for more than eight years. Her spare time often goes to planning improvements for her quirky 103-year-old home or hiking in the gorgeous Utah mountains. In her past role, she was a newspaper journalist and she has a bachelor's degree in Technical Writing.