Do you use a convection oven for baking and if so, what is your experience with it?

I use it fairly often when making chicken or roasts. I’m very happy with the results and it does speed up the cooking.

I have not had as much luck with baking cakes and cookies. I haven’t mastered it I guess. It’s supposed to be really good if you are baking on multiple racks, which I almost never am doing, so I haven’t tested it.

Usually, you have to lower the temperature 15–25 degrees, depending on the original temperature recommended for a regular bake, but the difficult thing I have come across is some ovens seem to automatically do the subtraction, while others you need to adjust it. I would suggest checking the information pamphlet the oven comes with.

A side note: Electric ovens are typically more even at baking than gas, so the convection might really improve the baking evenness for you, but I don’t know why it would change how much the oven temperature drops if you open the door? Gas is better for some cooking though, supposedly the humidity is different, and for broiling is fantastic in my opinion.

@JLeslie I’m loving the gas cooktop but the gas oven does not hold the temp like my previous electric did.

I will read the manual but you know that is always the last resort! :-)

@janbb A lot of people buy gas cooktop with electric oven.

Are you opening the oven to rotate the food? Because it’s cooking uneven?

I mostly bake in my toaster oven, but for cookies, large cakes, and also when transferring from stove top to oven (I do that with chicken) I use the regular oven.

Convection electrics – – – love them. Large one as a double oven slide-in range and micro-convection over the the stove. Over the stove holds a 9X9 inch. Slide-in does a great jobs on breads, pies and cookies. Get a pizza stone (cordierite) or soapstone oven baking stone at the bottom of oven. Pizza stone sits on middle rack, large rectangular.

@JLeslie I have the stove already and it is all gas as far as I know. (I said cooktop but it’s all one stove.) I open the door to check how the food is cooking or to rotate. With my last electric stove, when the temperature dropped it told you and then went back up. This oven doesn’t seem to regulate itself as well.

I can’t bake pies, cookies and cakes in a toaster oven. This does have a smaller oven on top which I’ve been leery of baking in but that actually might stay warmer longer.

@Tropical_Willie What would I want a pizza stone for?

My convection oven automatically lowers the temperature 25 degrees from the set temp. I love it.

@janbb i holds the heat same as soapstone. Steel walls don’t hold the heat; the stones hold the temp.

@filmfann i have the option of convection drop of 25* F or not.

Our oven has Convect Bake (reduce temp, same time) and Convect Roast (same temp, reduce time). I used Convect Bake once. The food was properly cooked but not properly browned on top. Not appetizing at all! I use Convect Roast for meats and veg all the time. It works great! Properly cooked, properly browned, saves 20% time. I never use convection for cakes, though. Not sure how it would come out.

I really must read the manual. Just was curious for some feedback.

Our manual didn’t tell us about the browning and how the look and smell was better with Convect Roast. I was also curious whether the circulation would collapse cakes and soufflés. That’s why I don’t use convection for those. But at least Convect Roast comes back to temperature quickly if I open it for basting. Such a time saver!

I bake cakes in my toaster oven, but just one layer. Typically I make them in a square glass baking dish. It’s just my husband and me so I don’t make large desserts usually. I loosely cover with aluminum foil so it doesn’t burn on top.

I understood it was one unit. Some gas stoves have electric ovens. Anyway, I don’t expect you to go out and buy a new appliance obviously.

Let us know how it works out. I think the trick is you have to really watch the bake and then adjust, and so you might have to make something once or twice before you figure out the perfect temperature and time, and I’ve never had the patience to keep trying.

@JLeslie Thanks. I could have gotten it with an electric oven and a gas top but I wanted a white one and I could only get it this way. I didn’t think it would make such a difference in baking and mainly it works ok, it just always takes much longer and I have to watch it.

Oh well. I’ll investigate the convection modes and see.

I think the convection will help once you get the hang of it.

When I was building my house several years ago I seriously considered buying an all gas stove/oven unit and then additionally an electric wall oven. It wound up being so expensive I didn’t do it, but there are good and bad things about both.

^^ Yes, thanks.

I honestly didn’t know you were supposed to lower the temperature for convection baking. That makes so much sense. Now I understand why it hasn’t worked well for me.

I just got in the habit of checking food early, which usually worked.

I know this is not your question, but I use an air fryer a lot now (which is just a small convection oven). It’s great.

I’m sure with some experimenting the convection oven feature will be great.

I don’t open the oven much while cooking/baking, but I do wonder if my temperature gage is off. I’ve considered hanging an oven thermometer (we had one growing up). Maybe that will help you out, too. Although, it sounds like your issue is a “recovery” one more than the temp, itself.