I often see ovens with their control panel behind the elements, mostly in US American settings, like in the picture below.
Where I live, the controls are always in front of the appliance. It seems unnecessarily dangerous to me that one has to reach over the pots or pans on the stove to regulate the heat.
Is there some historic or technical reason to this?
Best Answer
It's much more difficult for a small child to "play with the controls" and turn the stove elements on in that location.
Having lived with stoves like this for a long time, I've never burned myself reaching for them.