What is a Convection Oven?
A convection oven typically consists of two heating elements — one on top and one on the bottom — and one fan (or sometimes two) to circulate hot air around the inside of the baking chamber and directly onto the food. This equalizes the internal temperature and helps food on each rack cook evenly.
Some convection ovens have three heating elements. This type of oven is called a true convection oven or a European convection oven. This third heating element is located behind the fan and helps food cook even more uniformly than a two-element convection oven. It may even cook food faster.
Convection ovens are available as freestanding ranges, wall ovens and built-in ovens, including:
- Single electric ranges
- Double electric ovens
- Gas ranges
- Wall gas ovens
- Electric wall ovens
- Electric wall double ovens
- Smart ovens
Like standard ovens, convection oven features vary and may include a warming drawer to keep cooked food at serving temperature, a digital display for easy reading and delay bake which lets you set a specific time for the oven to turn on by itself and, in some cases, turn off.
Most recipes are written for conventional ovens. Because the air circulates around the food in a convection oven, food tends to cook faster than with a conventional oven, so you may need to adjust your recipes to suit the shorter cooking time. While convection ovens may vary, if your oven doesn’t have a feature called "automatic convection converter" (which automatically converts the cook time and/or temperature to suit the recipe), you may need to reduce the cooking temperature by about 25 degrees Fahrenheit, shorten the cooking time or make both adjustments. Follow your oven manufacturer’s recommendations and check food early for doneness.
What Types of Cookware to Use in a Convection Oven
Some cookware works better than others in a convection oven. Choose thinner, lightweight cookware that allows heat to reach the food from all sides. Low-sided cookware can help circulating hot air reach more of the food’s surface. Choose oven-safe cookware that’s appropriate for the recipe and follow the manufacturer’s recommendations. Good cookware materials to use include:
- Aluminum
- Clay
- Ceramic
- Stone
- Heat-resistant glass
Microwave Convection Ovens
A microwave convection oven works much like a standard convection oven. It has an integrated fan that circulates the heat around the food so that it cooks and browns evenly. It’s a good appliance to have if you’re short on kitchen space and don’t have a conventional oven. Many convection microwaves let you use the appliance as either a traditional microwave or a convection oven.
Familiarize yourself with your microwave convection oven. Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions for your specific model.
Convection Toaster Oven
A convection toaster oven also has a built-in fan to circulate heat throughout the oven. The upside to the addition of a fan is that food is prepared faster than with a conventional toaster oven. A conventional toaster oven heats food slowly using direct heat from the heating elements. It also conducts heat from the pan inside of the toaster oven and relies on the warm air inside the oven. With a convection toaster oven, the fan is key. It creates the circulation of air, keeps the heat constant and removes moisture, which is great for browning foods. With a convection toaster oven, you can expect foods to be crisp on the outside and tender on the inside.
Commercial Convection Oven
There isn’t much difference between a commercial convection oven and a convection oven designed for home use. Both ovens cook with the use of heating elements and fans. However, commercial convection ovens are often larger, more powerful and more durable than home convection ovens. You can install a commercial convection oven in your home, however, installing it in accordance with applicable building, electrical, mechanical and fire codes is a must.
Convection Oven vs. Conventional Oven
As previously mentioned, convection ovens have a fan that circulates heat throughout the oven cavity and cooks food from every angle. While conventional ovens also have heating elements on the top and bottom to cook, bake and roast food, they lack a fan. However, some conventional ovens have a convection setting, allowing the oven to be used as both a convection and conventional oven.
Convection vs. Air Fryer
Convection ovens and air fryers work in similar ways. They both circulate hot air inside the cooking chamber to help food cook evenly and may cook food faster than a conventional oven. The difference is in the size of the appliances. Because of an air fryer’s size, you’ll likely need to cook food in batches; however, food will cook even faster in an air fryer. A convection oven can cook larger amounts of food than an air fryer.
What Foods Can Be Cooked in a Convection Oven?
A convection oven creates the perfect environment for food, especially those foods you want crisped and browned. It can also roast, bake and reheat. Some foods are perfect for a convection oven.
- If you think a fried turkey is good, wait until you try a convection oven turkey.
- Meats like chicken, beef tenderloin, pork shoulder, leg of lamb and more could benefit from roasting in a convection oven.
- For flavorful crispy edges, try roasting vegetables in a convection oven.
- Do you want a baked potato that’s crispy on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside? You can cook baked potatoes in a convection oven to perfection.
- Cookies, especially in large batches, can all be cooked evenly, even when you use more than one rack. Pies work well in a convection oven as well.
- Convection ovens are great for reheating foods like pizza, French fries and fried chicken to crispy perfection.
- Convection ovens can dehydrate foods like meats, vegetables and fruits because they extract the moisture from foods.
- Convection ovens produce crispy, crusty artisan bread with a golden exterior.
Don’t use deep pans. The air won’t have a chance to reach all sides of the dish, which can result in unevenly cooked food.
What Foods Shouldn’t Be Cooked in a Convection Oven?
Because a convection oven blows hot air around the oven, foods that can splatter or that are moist, delicate or very light, like custards or soufflés, should be saved for conventional cooking. Otherwise, you could end up with unevenly baked, dry food.
Tips for Successful Cooking in a Convection Oven
Cooking in a convection oven can be easy, even if you aren’t familiar with it. In just a short time, you’ll improve your cooking and baking skills, and prepare meals in less time than with a conventional oven.
- Ensure you’re using the correct setting on your convection oven. For example, for a whole chicken, you should set the convection to roast, whereas a batch of cookies should be set to bake.
- Don’t overcrowd the oven. Too many dishes at one time could block the airflow, resulting in dishes that aren’t cooked uniformly.
- When cooking a single dish, place the pan in the center of the oven to benefit from the heat all around it.
- Don’t cover foods when you want a browned or crisp surface. Covering food can trap moisture and limit the browning benefits of convection cooking.
- Don’t neglect the steam feature if your convection oven has it. Steam helps retain vitamins and minerals and keeps cheesecakes from cracking.
- Convection ovens cook and bake faster than a conventional oven. Once you’ve lowered the temperature 25 degrees Fahrenheit below what is suggested in a recipe, check on the food 10 or 15 minutes sooner than what the recipe suggests or reduce the time by 25 percent.