An Aga is a traditional cooking range, and the original models were heated with solid fuel. However, the modern Aga in Erw Wen runs on gas - so is constantly hot and needs little if any attention. Erw Wen features a two-oven Aga as shown in the picture. It has two big hotplates - one fast, one slow - and two large ovens, one for roasting/baking, the other for simmering.

Those that know about Agas think that there is no other way to cook.  Those that don't may feel daunted at first. But there is no need. Just plan your meal, curl up with a Trollope (Joanna) and the meal cooks itself.

It is ideal for meals such as soups, casseroles and roasts. There are roasting pans, large Le Creuset casseroles and frying pans and skillets, so you are very well equipped to cook for the large numbers that Erw Wen can sleep. You can also cook toast on the hot plate (although there is an electric toaster if you prefer)

Ovens: The top oven is the hot one, for most cooking. The lower is cooler and is used for slow cooking and can be used for warming plates and other dishes. There are two large hot plates. The left hand plate is the really HOT one and the right hand one is less fierce - for simmering.  Up to three pans at once can be placed on the hot plates.

Cookbook: There is an Aga cookbook in the cottage for your information - so there are plenty of recipes for you to try if cooking is the way you wish to spend your holiday.  If not - just treat it like any other cooker and you will manage fine.

History: The original Aga was introduced over 70 years ago, and it remains outstanding in its ability to cook food with better taste and flavour. This is a stove that has become a legend in its own right. The story begins in 1922 when a Dr. Gustaf Dalen, a world renowned Swedish physicist and Nobel Prize Winner, lost his sight following an explosion during an experiment with pressurized liquids and gases. Kept at home, he learned how his wife was exhausted and harassed by the constant need to care for and watch over food as it was cooked. Although unable to see, he was determined to develop a stove that was both highly capable and easy to use, with perfect results. Adopting the time-honored principle of heat storage, he combined a small and efficient heat source, two large hotplates and two generous ovens into one robust and compact unit -- the AGA Cooker.