1. Acquire a Thermometer for the Oven
Yes, you do require one. Did you know that ovens may alter their temperature setting by up to 90 degrees? That is a SIGNIFICANT difference — and a significant difference while baking. Without an oven thermometer, there is no way to tell whether 350° is truly 350° in your oven. Oven thermometers are inexpensive and simple to use; simply hang them in your oven.
PLUS: ensure that you position it in the proper location. My sweet spot is in the mid-middle rack on either side. If you place it anywhere and the reading is incorrect, reposition it to ensure it is in the correct location.
2. Allow sufficient time for your oven to preheat.
I am guilty of doing this: putting food into the best oven for baking that has been on for less than 15 minutes. That may be sufficient to preheat some ovens. However, some may take up to 30 minutes to reach the desired temperature. You cannot rely on the oven beeps to alert you either – which is why an oven thermometer (see #1) is necessary.
3. What type of oven do you have: gas, electric, or convection? The best oven for baking
Electric and gas ovens heat differently. While gas ovens heat from the bottom and have a broiler on top, electric ovens heat from the bottom and have a heating element at the top that can be turned on and off. Both gas and electric ovens frequently include convection, which uses a fan to distribute the heat, resulting in a speedier baking process.
Nota bene: All recipes tested on this blog were baked in a conventional oven, not a convection oven.
4. Become familiar with the way your oven bakes
Over time, as you use your oven, you’ll notice subtle variances in the way items bake and will be able to adjust your baking technique accordingly:
Is it always darker in the back? Due to the fact that my previous oven did this, I was required to rotate the pans 180° during baking.
Does the bottom brown more quickly? This frequently occurs when baking two cookie sheets or pans simultaneously – the bottom one cooks faster (and the bottoms brown faster) due to its proximity to the heating element. To combat this, you can either rotate the pans top and bottom while baking or bake one pan at a time in the centre.
Do you have a range with two ovens (one little on top and one large on the bottom)? If that is the case, you will notice changes in baking results between the small and large ovens due to the difference in surface area. Additionally, your larger oven will bake differently than my single enormous open range oven. The surface area is critical!
5. Recognize that your best oven for baking may bake at a different rate than the recipe testers.
As a result, I always provide a range of bake times. Each oven warms and bakes differently, resulting in a variation in baking time.
If your oven is set to a higher temperature, items may brown more quickly and remain underdone in the centre. Reduce the oven temperature to compensate.
If your oven operates at a lower temperature, it may take longer to bake.
If you have troubles with #4, certain items may bake more quickly…and so on.
Not everything will bake concurrently with my oven. Brands, age, and ability all have an effect on the outcome.
6. Rack placement has an effect on the outcome
When baking one cookie sheet in the centre of the oven, you will achieve a more equal bake than when baking three cookie sheets. (Same thing if your cookie sheet has six cookies rather than twelve, etc.)
Middle rack, top rack, or bottom rack – each bakes differently. Bake on the centre rack only for the best results. Place no more than two cookie sheets or two pans on two racks as close to the middle as feasible.
