How to adjust cook times for convection cooking

[Jennifer Murphy]

I just discovered the Convection Bake and Convection Cook settings on our oven. (Duh )

I have only tested it a couple of times with baked potatoes and bacon. For the potatoes, I use a probe, so I can time how long it takes. I only have a few data points, but it looks like the convention bake setting is about 1/3 faster than the regular bake setting.

A read some online articles about this. They generally claim that it is about 25% faster. They also say it cooks most foods better except for delicate foods like desserts.

I have a couple of questions:

1. Is it about 25% faster?
2. Is it true that it is good for cooking potatoes and roasts, but not desserts?
3. What is the Convection Cook setting and what does it do?

Thanks

 

[Andy M.]

1. I think that's about right
2. I had not heard that before
3. There is a fan in the oven that constantly circulates the air around the oven so the food is always exposed to the hottest air.

 

[Roll_Bones]

Convection bake and roast uses the fan in your oven to circulate the hot air.
My oven came stock with a 25° offset. Meaning if I were to set it to 350° on either convection setting it would heat only to 325°.
I have overridden this setting. To set at the temp exactly as I set it.
I don't see faster baking or roasting, I see better browning and the ability to use multiple shelves in the oven. For things like cookies where you want to bake 2 -3 trays at once.
I use convection when reheating foods I want to remain crispy as well. Like fried chicken.
In my combination counter top oven I use convection roast almost all the time as it ensures better browning and in that oven it does seem to cook faster.
Baked potato's for example cook in an hour or less where in my conventional oven it would take at minimum 15 to 30 minutes longer.

 

[dr morbius]

In my experience with my convection oven, when baking something frozen use the lowest number; for example, if it says it's ready in 25-29 minutes, 25 is right. Also, when it comes to things that don't take very long, my time savings is not so great - maybe 10% faster, maybe not. The real time savings kicks in when you're roasting; if a turkey would normally take 2.5 hours, it's now going to be about 2 hours.

The best thing about convection is that every spot in the oven is the same temperature. You no longer will have to turn cookie sheets around halfway through. When baking something delicate, like a cake or a souffle, don't use convection baking.

 

[Jennifer Murphy]

Thanks for the replies. A couple of additional questions:

1. What is the difference between convection bake and convection cook? See photo of oven dial below.
2. Can I adjust recommended cook times by 25% on things like frozen dinners? Marie Callender's Chicken Pot Pies (frozen) say to cook at 400° for 50 minutes. Would I adjust that to 38 minutes?
3. It seems to me that "convection" is the wrong term here. If I remember anything from my physics classes 100 years ago, convection is the innate tendency of a fluid (liquid or gas) to move as result of a heat differential. That is what happens with regular (non-convection) baking. So-called convection baking is really circulation baking.

 

[Andy M.]

Your owners manual will explain the difference between convection bake and cook.

 

[Jennifer Murphy]

Your owners manual will explain the difference between convection bake and cook.

If I could find it. The oven is over 40 years old and was in the house when we bought it.

Are you saying that there is no "standard" definition for these terms?

 

[Andy M.]

Find the name and model number for your oven then go to google and ask for the owners manual for that brand and model.

 

[pepperhead212]

I've had a countertop convection oven since 1977 (!), and I got hooked on it, because I bake so much bread (just used it again today!). Todays ovens, like yours, re-set the temp automatically, but I had to set the temp myself. I got hooked on this so much that I had to get a range with one, when I bought my house, and they really weren't available, back then, whereas now, they are the norm. Here are some things I've learned, through the years:

For yeast bread, set it 75° below the temperature in the recipe, or 300° minimum - what the oven's instructions gave, and it worked perfectly, for the same time. This way, they don't get over-browned. Batter type quick breads, as well as cakes, are another thing - the problem with those is the batter quickly sets in contact to the pan, then continues to rise, making a large hump in the middle, as that has to go somewhere! You can set it down on 275°, to help this, but a regular oven is best for this, IMO.

Crispy cookies are great in the convection oven! I set it on 325°, as a rule, which is less than the 350 or 375° given for most cookies. Some, like shortbread types, bake at 300°, so maybe set at 275°, but still watch closely. And you can bake several sheets at once, with even baking - I do 3 at a time in my large convection oven, and when getting ready to switch the trays, I turn the oven off, so it doesn't blow the heat out all over the kitchen, then turn it back on, after closing.

For semi-soft cookies, some do OK, but some not as well, in my experience. Chocolate chip types, and snickerdoodles do well, but things like oatmeal, with molasses, and things like that, seem to get a leathery feel to them, and those chocolate chip coconut macaroons I make, are OK, but sort of dry out a bit much, so those I do in the regular oven.

For meats, I don't do much roasts, but I remember they would get a thick layer of brown, over the rare or medium, so it wasn't my favorite method. Good for poultry, however, giving a crispy and evenly browned skin, and cooked at 325°.

Great for roasting things like nuts, sesame seeds, and similar things, used in cooking, and I always set it at 325°. And maybe use the minimum temp (usually 150°, though ovens vary) for drying some things out, though this is a bit much, for some things.

 

[Jennifer Murphy]

I've had a countertop convection oven since 1977 (!), and I got hooked on it, because I bake so much bread (just used it again today!). Todays ovens, like yours, re-set the temp automatically, but I had to set the temp myself. I got hooked on this so much that I had to get a range with one, when I bought my house, and they really weren't available, back then, whereas now, they are the norm. Here are some things I've learned, through the years:

You have a lot of experience. What would you recommend for my Marie Callender's Chicken Pot Pies (frozen) that say to cook at 400° for 50 minutes.

 

[pepperhead212]

I'd say reduce the temperature to about 350°, and check it maybe check it about 10 minutes early, too see if it has browned enough by then, and once it has, by putting my instant read thermometer in the middle.