POOR BAKING

There are three principles that cook food.

The first is conduction. The hot air around the food cooks though conduction, or touch from particle to particle.

The second is radiation. The hot metal in the oven gives off infrared radiation and cooks through that energy. (That is why cookies around the corners of a cookie pan are more done, there is more infrared radiation coming off the sides of the pan.)

The third is convection. Convection is the transfer of energy by movement, which happens when the hot air is moved over the food with a fan.

Several things cause poor baking results in an oven.

1. The oven isn't preheated.

Preheating is necessary for good even heat, and cooking.
To preheat, set the unit to the desired temperature. Wait 15 minutes before placing food in the oven. Many ovens beep after six minutes to indicate that they are preheated. Don't believe the beep. It takes a solid 15 minutes before the oven is really preheated.

2. Poor air circulation around food.

Avoid placing too many pans on the racks. Don't cover an entire rack or the bottom of the oven with aluminum foil. A small square of foil can be used to catch spills on the rack below.

3. Incorrect pan placement on the racks.

If baking on more than one rack, place the pans so that they are not directly over each other, except when baking cookies using your oven's convection bake feature.

Allow a couple of inches around each pan, and a couple of inches from the oven walls.

4. Incorrect rack position.

If a food is cooked too close to the roof of the oven, it may brown too much on top.
If baking on a single rack, center so the food is being cooked in the middle of the oven.
If food is cooked too close to the bottom of the oven, it may brown too much on the bottom.

5. Incorrect Pan finish.

Dark, dull pans absorb heat which results in darker browning. Shiny pans reflect more heat which results in lighter browning.

Shiny pans are recommended for cakes and cookies. Dark pans are recommended for pies and breads. If used for cakes or cookies, lower the oven temperature by 25 degrees F.
Glass pans require 25 degree increase.

6. Older oven temperature shift.

As a cooking appliance gets older, sometimes the oven temperature gets hotter.

Oven temperature can be tested with a good quality oven thermometer. Allow 15 to 20 minutes without opening the oven door for an accurate oven temperature reading. Some ovens can be calibrated from the back of the knob. If you remove the oven temp knob and find two screws on the back, it can probably be calibrated on the knob.

Many newer ovens can be calibrated using the control board. See your owners manual for what keys to hit on your model to calibrate the digital display.

7. Altitude.

Bakingand cooking general takes longer at higher altitudes. Some homeowners, moving from low altitude cities may need to adjust to the extra several minutes it takes to bake in higher parts of the world. Much of northern Utah is over 4000 feet high, the level that calls for high altitude cooking.