Impingement/convection/microwave oven and method

A system for cooking a food product comprising:

• an oven chamber that comprises a plurality of walls, one of said walls being vertical and comprising a baffle plate;
• an oven rack disposed in said oven chamber to hold a metal pan that contains the food product;
• a microwave generator that provides microwave energy into said oven chamber via at least one vertical wall of said plurality of walls of said oven chamber to rapidly cook said food product;
• a fan disposed in a fan box to circulate heated air between the fan box and said oven chamber via said baffle plate;
• an impingement air generator that comprises a removable impingement plate that converts at least a portion of said circulating air to (a) an impingement mode, wherein columns of impingement air flow substantially in a vertical direction in said oven chamber toward said food product when said removable impingement plate is disposed within said oven chamber, and (b) a convection mode when said removable impingement plate is removed from said oven chamber;
• and
• a controller that operates said oven in at least one mode selected from the group consisting of:
• a microwave mode, said convection mode, said impingement mode, a combination microwave and impingement mode, and a combination microwave and convection mode.