Oven and Cooktop

Up until a few years ago all my oven did was bake or broil, and somehow I managed to get along fine. When I needed to brown something quickly, I used the broiler; the rest of the time I baked. Most of the new ovens give you the choice of using convection baking and pure convection in addition to baking and broiling. I have discovered that convection heat can be quite useful. The difference is that regular baking uses radiant heat, whereas convection cooking uses a fan that circulates the hot air. Circulating heat tends to cook the surface of foods faster, while radiant heat penetrates foods more. Thus regular baking cooks foods through more evenly, while convection baking is great for browning and making things crisp. For example, to roast a chicken I roast it first on the regular bake setting to cook the center, and then I finish it with convection heat to make the skin deliciously crispy. Similarly, cakes are better baked because you don’t want them browned, but breads come out better with convection heat. Since circulating hot air intensifies heat, if I cook something in a regular oven that calls for convection heat, I raise the heat by 25° to compensate.