What You NEED to Know About Your Oven

Learn the three most important things to know about your oven and how to adjust, to be successful whenever you bake something in the oven.

1. Oven 101: Temperature

• The #1 fact to know about your oven: it’s lying to you about the temperature it’s really at.
• Many home ovens are off by 15°F, some by even 25°F or more!
• I’ve never had a home oven be 100% accurate.
• In fact, my new oven often tells me it’s preheated to the temperature I specified, when it’s actually 20°F cooler.
• It may not seem like a big difference, but baking at the wrong temperature can significantly alter your final product.
• In the image above, you can see what your cookies should look like if they’re baked at the correct temperature of 350°F, vs. how they’ll turn out if they’re baked at 25°F too cool or 25°F too warm.
• Too cool, and your cookies can overspread and not brown enough.
• Too warm, and your cookies may not spread enough, brown too much, and burn on the bottom. 
• An oven thermometer is a necessity to make sure your oven is heating correctly.
• If your oven is not at the right temperature, you can adjust accordingly until your oven thermometer confirms it’s correct.

2. Oven 101: Placement

• The position of your oven rack can also have a surprising impact on your cookies.
• Certain recipes will specifically tell you where to position your oven rack, but most of the time it should be in the middle. Why? This is where the heat will be most even.
• If you bake your cookies (or anything) on the top rack, there won’t be as much browning.
• On the bottom rack, there will likely be too much browning.
• The same effect can occur when you’re baking multiple dishes at once. The other baking pans can block the heat from moving around freely and change the way the product is baked and browned.
• When possible, try to bake off one batch at a time instead of baking multiple pans at a time.

3. Oven 101: Conventional vs. Convection

• Unlike a conventional oven, which is the standard here in the U.S., a convection oven has a fan inside and an exhaust system that helps to circulate the hot air.
• This allows the oven to heat more quickly and evenly, and to bake more quickly and evenly.
• It’s more energy efficient and can even lead to better browning since the blowing air creates a drier environment.
• In many ovens, it also bakes so much more evenly, so you don’t need to rotate your baking trays.

When to Use Convection (if your oven has both convection + conventional settings)

• Convection is great for savory preparations like roasts or anything that is covered, like a braise or casserole.
• It can be good for cookies, pies, and pastries IF you make the proper adjustments (below).
• It’s NOT good for delicate foods like custards, soufflés, cakes, or quick breads.

How to Adjust

• If you’re using the convection (fan) setting in a recipe that doesn’t specifically call for it, be sure to drop the temperature 25°F.
• Also begin to check for doneness earlier, at least 2/3 or 3/4 of the way through the recommended baking time.
• Note that some convection ovens will automatically adjust the temperature when switching on the fan.
• Consult your oven manual if you’re unsure about yours.