Convection Oven questions

wvjules

DIS Veteran
Joined
Mar 7, 2001
I moved over the weekend and now have an oven with a convection option. To those that have convection ovens give me some tips!

When I get home tonight I think I want to make peanut butter cookies.

(The kitchen is the only room completely unpacked and organized. lol I want to cook and bake after not being able to for a couple of weeks due to packing and moving.)
 
I moved over the weekend and now have an oven with a convection option. To those that have convection ovens give me some tips!

When I get home tonight I think I want to make peanut butter cookies.

(The kitchen is the only room completely unpacked and organized. lol I want to cook and bake after not being able to for a couple of weeks due to packing and moving.)
I hope you get lots of tips. We purchased a 5th wheel trailer and the newest model came with a micowave/convection combo oven (originally only a microwave). I have no clue as to how to use the convection part.
 
Lower the temp 25 degrees on a recipe and start by checking for doneness at about 25% less than the recommended cooking time. So, for example, if it says 350 for 20 minutes, try 325 for 15 minutes. You'll quickly learn what works for your oven. Also, with my convection, I barely worry about preheating it. Since the hot air is circulated evenly, this is much less important. Also, no need to move stuff around while it cooks.
 
Our convection oven takes care of lowering the temp for you. If we use the convection option, which we always do, if we set it for 350 it sets it self to 325. Otherwise we just cook for the same period of time just ignoring any direction to rotate the item if mentioned in a recipe.

We have a double oven and do have to remember that if we are cooking something really large, 16" pizza I am talking about you, it has to go in the bottom non-convection oven to fit. The convection oven loses about 2 inches of cooking depth to the fan box in the back.
 
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You don't have to use the convection feature. Some recipes work well with it, others do not. You will need to experiment to see how much adjustments are needed and when to use it. The 25 degree idea is a good place to start, but won' t work on every recipe. I would wait until settled in from the move before using the convection feature.
 
When I use convection I lower the temp by 25 but I don't adjust time. I haven't burned any cookies yet LOL
 
I moved over the weekend and now have an oven with a convection option. To those that have convection ovens give me some tips!

When I get home tonight I think I want to make peanut butter cookies.

(The kitchen is the only room completely unpacked and organized. lol I want to cook and bake after not being able to for a couple of weeks due to packing and moving.)

Some tips.
1. Cooking will take less time. So check things quite a bit earlier.
2. don't cook most things that require lift using convection like a souffle. Also don't use convection for things like custards. The airflow might put a crust on it that you don't want.
3. If you over crowd the oven, just leave convection off. It will do nothing for it.
4. Don't use deep roasters on convection. The deep sides defeat the purpose. Use flat cookie sheets for cookies. For casseroles, just use your normal stuff.
 


Our convection oven takes care of lowering the temp for you. If we use the convection option, which we always do, if we set it for 350 it sets it self to 325. Otherwise we just cook for the same period of time just ignoring any direction to rotate the item if mentioned in a recipe.
Maybe that's what mine does! I've always punched in the temperature and cooking time and it always turns out well. I can hear the fan blowing, but I never thought that the convection really worked.

I think I may have to find the user's manual online and actually read it.
 
Thanks for the tips. I'm going to make PB cookies when I get home. I'll let you know how they turn out.
 
I only use the convection when having more than one tray in the oven. If you only
Make one tray of cookies just use the bake button.

I love it now that I’m baking Christmas cookies because you can put three trays in at once.

I disagree with the person who said you can do it in less time. I find I use the longer time ...if it says 8-10 minutes it is 10 minutes I need sometimes a few more minutes.

My oven also drops it down 25 degrees by itself when you chose convection over the bake button.
 
No great tips, but I love my convection oven. I never could get meatloaf cooked right until I cooked it in the convection oven. Now it comes out perfect! Same with a lot of other dishes. I think you will really like it!
 
It's the only way to reheat fried chicken decently, IMHO. I rarely have reason to do so, but when I do, I do :). Crisps fried stuff up pretty nice.

Terri
 
Convection cookery is frequently found in pastry shops/bakeries and professional kitchens as it's even cooking is a boon to baking.

It also works well for roasted meats that want crispy skin such as roasted poultery. I use my large capacity convection/microwave countertop oven (made by Sharp) every year when holiday hosting requires 2 to 3 small turkeys and am happy for the additional option.

Here is a regular to convection conversion chart that will be of use:

http://www.convection-calculator.com/

HTH
 
Convection is great for baking cookies. Other desserts, not so much (it will turn your cakes/breads into pucks).

General rule is 25º lower temperature OR 25% less time.
 
I have a convection oven and we haven’t needed to adjust the temps even on the cookies. My oven also has a convection roast feature which works great on getting that skin nice and crispy. My turkey breast came out amazing.
 
OP indicated they just moved. In the many times we have moved, there is always a LOT going on relating to unpacking and getting settled. Fiddling with a feature on the oven wouldn't be high on the priority list. All convection ovens aren't the same and while some require adjustments, others do not. After the dust settles from moving is a better time to learn how to use it.
 
I have a convection oven and we haven’t needed to adjust the temps even on the cookies. My oven also has a convection roast feature which works great on getting that skin nice and crispy. My turkey breast came out amazing.
Is that what that button does....I have had this stove over 10 years and never used it! I have been complaining anything with breading stays wet like shake and bake. I will have to try it now.
 
Well, I decided to unpack the guest bathroom last night and didn't have time to bake cookies. However, Wednesday is DBF's work Christmas party so I will bake cookies then.

19disnA, actually fiddling with a new gadget does rank up there on my priority list. lol
 
Is that what that button does....I have had this stove over 10 years and never used it! I have been complaining anything with breading stays wet like shake and bake. I will have to try it now.

It turns on the top element in addition to the bottom heating element.
 
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Convection is great for baking cookies. Other desserts, not so much (it will turn your cakes/breads into pucks).

General rule is 25º lower temperature OR 25% less time.

Our convection oven (the Breville Smart Oven mentioned below) does a great job on cakes and breads! No pucks here -- beautiful browning and people rave about the cakes. Ovens can be so different from brand to brand.

Not so long ago I got Breville Smart Oven Pro Convection. We can fit a decent sized roast in it, and cook bacon & eggs, cakes, scones, all sorts of stuff and it is nice and easy to clean. You can find a review on it on cookwared . Hope this helps:)

Thumbs up on this oven -- we love ours!
 

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