I recently upgraded my aging home oven, switching to a model with more bells and whistles. Although many fancy functions remain a mystery (delayed start) or have been tested and now avoided (proofing mode), there is one setting that I am grown to love: Convection Mode. Here's what.
Jenn Bakos
What does Convection Mode do?
In convection mode, a small fan in the back of the oven moves hot air, circulating it evenly over the oven. In contrast to the normal bake setting, when the oven is set on convection, the warm air is constantly moving, providing more even, constant heat.
Why is this better? Even hits gives a more consistent bake. Think of it as the baker's information video video. In convection mode, the circulating hot air (similar to the circulating hot water in sauce Wide) heats my bake from all sides. So, Cookies Brown evenly, Pie Skavs Crisp more beautifully, and Puff pastry Raises to higher heights.
So so the difference game in my house: In my old gas oven, which has a heating element located at the bottom, a trolling trolls or buns on the first day of the roller. Bleech.
My new oven has a heating element at the bottom too, but it also has the fan in the back of the oven, which circulates the warm air around which I baking that everything has a healthier shine. My rolls bake from all sides, rather than just on the bottom, with better color overall.
Photography by Rical Holbrook; Food stealing by Caitlin Wayne
More than just good looks
Beyond the improved visuals, the convection mode also improves tissue. In my old oven, to get the color I wanted on my RollI had to extend baking time or even use the broiler. While the workarounds can get the color I want, a more bake meant that things like Cardamom buns And Pretzel Rolls Often a dryer, more katoni canticure; At that time they were a deep golden brown, the interior was overcuped. With convection, I get the golden brown color I want while preserving moisture in the interior.
What about using convection to bake sidough breeds?
In the past, I never used convection for my HART BREDS. I still stop that when I am “opening baking” – in other words, when I baking my bread on a preheated baking stone and adding steam to improve the crust and support the best promotion and support the best promotion and support the best promotion. For this method, I do not use convection because the moving air vix steam away from the crust, drying it and put the loaf prematurely.
However, for the Bread I bake in my cersizen bikers, I sing a different tune.
If you use the traditional bake setting, I often found myself sharging my Dutch OwensSolving warm place as a game of hack-A-mole and trying to ensure that my bread is not darken too much on the bottom.
While the convection setting is not fully resolved this issue, I find that I show less, and I can shorten my preheat times too, because the covered buckers warm up more quickly with the circulating heat up more quickly with the circulating heat.
Photography through Rick Holbrook; Stealing by Kaitlin Wayne
But what about pizza?
If you've asked me about using convection for pizza even six months ago, I would have made a bad face – like, isn't a setting for brownies? But today, in the final stages of writing a pizza book with my colleagues here in King Arthur, I will admit that I have grown fond of using Connection for Pizza. The circulating heat milk away from toppings and cooking cheese, improve flower and simply baking things more quickly. My pizza is better, and it's especially visible with Pan styles such as Detroit, GrandmotherAnd South Bar Pizza from South BeachWhich are loaded with toppings and profit from the added crackaturity.
And, as a bonus, if I preheat with convection mode, this reduces the amount of time for the oven to heat up. Less time = pizza sooner. I winning.
Photography by Rical Holbrook; Food stealing by Caitlin Wayne
So, convection is better for everything, right?
Not complete.
In some ovens, especially those with superior pot power, the fan may be too strong. If this is the case in your oven, be careful with thin batters as cakes or liquid desserts, which could be blown around. Occasionally, fan power may also disturb parchment paper, which requires small weights or clips to keep it in place. Beyond the clips, when baking small batches, placing a cookie, for example, in every corner of the parchment can also help keep things.
The other consideration tells to my favorite aspect of convection utility: Browning. As I discussed, fan supports big browning by air movement and heat distribution. But sometimes it is a bit too good: it can mean that the things bake more quickly. To address this, the conventional wisdom was always to reduce your oven heat through 25 ° F to 50 ° F when use connection mode for a recipe for a recipe calling for a recipe. My experience is that 25 ° less is about right for most things. And, as with all bikes, convection or standard bake, I do after rotate and check regularly, especially when I change a bake mode or temperature.
So, convection mode? Yes, I'm a fan. A big fan. And I'm guessing that you will also be, once you try.
Cover photo through Rick Holbrook; Food styling through Caitlin Wine.