Baked or roasted?

[kamp]

I am a bit confused about english term roasted and baked.

Here in norway the oven has:
Grill
Grill + over heat
Over/under heat (thats what we normally use)
Fan (that cirkel the air in the oven so I can make cakes at to levels)
Fan + under heat (good for pizza..)

When I was on holiday in FL we rented a small apartment with kitchen. It seemed like the oven only had under heat and grill. It also had a broiler pan. We dont use that in norway.

But anyway.

What is the difference between baked and roasted meat?
Is it with over/under heat or only under heat?

Broiled meat, is that with the grill on a broiler pan? Is there not any other heat, only the broiler?
It is not normal to broil food here so I am very curios how that works!

Thanks for any answers!

 

[bigdaddy3k]

Baked is where the heating is even all the way around the item being baked.

Roasted or broiled is where the heat comes from a single source and is directed at one side of the item at a time.

 

[kamp]

Baked is where the heating is even all the way around the item being baked.

Roasted or broiled is where the heat comes from a single source and is directed at one side of the item at a time.

So if it is roasted the heat will come from under the meat? And broiled is over?

 

[Andy M.]

The majority of ovens in the US have two heat sources. One at the top of the oven which is used for broiling. That is cooking the top surface of a piece of meat with direct heat. This often requires you to turn the food over to cook the second side. Think of this as an upside down charcoal grill. Broiling is used for smaller pieces of meat, poultry and fish. Such as steaks hamburgers, etc.

The second heat source is at the bottom of the oven either under the oven floor in the case of gas or just above it for electric. The bottom heat source is used for baking and roasting. Baking and roasting are essentially the same - dry indirect heat that heats the air surrounding the meat in a low sided pan.

Baking is more often used to describe things like breads and cakes while roasting is used to describe meats.

However, in the case of chicken, cooking a whole chicken is commonly referred to as roast chicken. If you cut had that same chicken into pieces and cooked them using the same heat source, it's referred to as baked chicken. Go figure.

A small fan that circulates the air in the oven makes baking/roasting more efficient by constantly moving the air around so hot air is always on the move and in contact with the food.

 

[kamp]

Thank you so much for answer

Now I understand a bit more!

I have been very confused about this. I normally use over and under heat (but not the broiler).

 

[Scotch]

I don't think there's any real difference between "bake" and "roast." Both refer to cooking by dry heat.

As Andy said, "bake" usually refers to breads, cakes, cookies, and so forth, cooked in an oven, but it can also refer to meats (for example, "baked chicken" or "baked fish," which are usually cooked in a sauce of some sort).

"Roast" usually refers to meats, poultry, or fish ("roast beef" or "roast chicken") that are cooked in the oven without a sauce.

At least that's how I've come to understand the terms. There may be regional differences in how these words are understood.

 

[Arky]

My understanding, after consulting some of my old time recipe books goes something like this:

To bake means oven cooking or cooking in coals using some sort of a baking dish or container as in casseroles, cakes, pies, souffles, Dutch Oven, etc.

To roast primarily refers to oven or open fire cooking that may include a wire rack, rotisserie, grill or means of support other than a baking dish.

Simplicity. What is the food being cooked in or on?

 

[msmofet]

The majority of ovens in the US have two heat sources. One at the top of the oven which is used for broiling. That is cooking the top surface of a piece of meat with direct heat. This often requires you to turn the food over to cook the second side. Think of this as an upside down charcoal grill. Broiling is used for smaller pieces of meat, poultry and fish. Such as steaks hamburgers, etc.

The second heat source is at the bottom of the oven either under the oven floor in the case of gas or just above it for electric. The bottom heat source is used for baking and roasting. Baking and roasting are essentially the same - dry indirect heat that heats the air surrounding the meat in a low sided pan.

Baking is more often used to describe things like breads and cakes while roasting is used to describe meats.

However, in the case of chicken, cooking a whole chicken is commonly referred to as roast chicken. If you cut had that same chicken into pieces and cooked them using the same heat source, it's referred to as baked chicken. Go figure.

A small fan that circulates the air in the oven makes baking/roasting more efficient by constantly moving the air around so hot air is always on the move and in contact with the food.

absolutely correct. i may just add that an oven with a fan to circulate the heat is called a convection oven and the fan helps cook food faster and more evenly.

 

[RPCookin]

In my Samsung range, roasting uses the top element with the convection fan while baking or convection baking uses the bottom element. I haven't had the range long enough to really try everything out yet, so I can't do more than just repeat what the instruction manual says.

 

[msmofet]

In my Samsung range, roasting uses the top element with the convection fan while baking or convection baking uses the bottom element. I haven't had the range long enough to really try everything out yet, so I can't do more than just repeat what the instruction manual says.

is it electric? i have a gas convection and the top of the oven is a broiler with flames not for roasting or baking. my convection uses the heat from under the floor of my oven for convection baking or regular baking and convection roasting or regular roasting. yes i have a choice with both baking or roasting to use the fan or not. there is only hi or low broil and that adjusts the flames on the roof of the oven only. the top won't come on unless broiler is turned on (top and bottom heat sources WILL NOT come on at the same time)

 

[RPCookin]

It is an electric ceramic glasstop range. Although I'd like to have the luxury of a gas cooktop, I don't have the space for separate appliances, and I don't want a gas oven.

 

[msmofet]

It is an electric ceramic glasstop range. Although I'd like to have the luxury of a gas cooktop, I don't have the space for separate appliances, and I don't want a gas oven.

maybe thats the difference, electric may need to heat from the top AND bottom to get the right temperature. my electric toaster oven coils light up on the top and bottom when i bake in it. i had an electric stove/oven for awhile and HATED it!! i like gas much better for oven and stove top. i think the heat can be controlled better.

 

[bert bakering]

the problem is in different country's they use different terms for the same process, thats what is confusing to most people,

 

[Arky]

Roasted: Wire rack, grill or spit.

Everything else is baked.

Get it!? - Good!

 

[RPCookin]

maybe thats the difference, electric may need to heat from the top AND bottom to get the right temperature. my electric toaster oven coils light up on the top and bottom when i bake in it. i had an electric stove/oven for awhile and HATED it!! i like gas much better for oven and stove top. i think the heat can be controlled better.

Mine doesn't use both ever according to the instruction manual. It uses the top element plus convection fan for roasting, and the bottom with or without the fan for baking.

And as Arky says, when roasting you should use a rack so that the heat can reach all sides of the meat, and the convection fan aids this process. Roasting is for meats. Baking is for breads, cakes and pastries, some of which can use the convection fan and some of which don't.

 

[Andy M.]

Roasted: Wire rack, grill or spit.

Everything else is baked.

Get it!? - Good!

So if I put a whole chicken in a pan and cook it in the oven it's being baked. If I add a rack to the pan, it's being roasted?

 

[Arky]

So if I put a whole chicken in a pan and cook it in the oven it's being baked. If I add a rack to the pan, it's being roasted?

So, what is it that comes in the bottom of every roasting pan? A wire rack!

What is it called when you cook a chicken in a casserole dish? Baked chicken.

 

[bigdaddy3k]

I think I will just get baked. Then you can all roast me.

I was laboring under the impression that roasting required a directed heat source and perhaps a rotiseri. There are cuts of meat called "roasts" but "to roast" was something else.

Either way, i'll eat it.

 

[Arky]

I recently read that a "roast" is a piece of meat that, because of its size or shape, lends itself to being skewered and then cooked on a spit. (A Middle English term first used between 1250 and 1300 a.d. - sp. Roosten and rosten.))

Now, you can call me anything you like... just don't call me late for supper!

 

[Scotch]

In my Samsung range, roasting uses the top element with the convection fan while baking or convection baking uses the bottom element. I haven't had the range long enough to really try everything out yet, so I can't do more than just repeat what the instruction manual says.

That's what my electric GE ovens -- and every oven I've every used for that matter -- calls "broiling."

As for baking or roasting in the oven, only the bottom heating element is used in my ovens.

BTW, I found one site that suggests "roast" means to bake uncovered. Of course, that makes no sense when it comes to cookies and so forth.

I think the terms were invented to confuse foreigners so they won't be able to duplicate our wonderful cuisine.