Convection Oven vs Conventional Oven: What’s the Difference?
Choosing between a convection oven vs conventional oven when shopping for appliances can be quite the task. It can be tough because you’ll want a stove that ensures your food is cooked evenly, but that also cooks the fastest. There are many differences between the two that might make one style better than another in your eyes.
What Is a Convection Oven?
Convection ovens are typically known as the devices that cook the fastest, and they give you the ability to cook at lower temperatures. For example, convection ovens usually operate up to 25 degrees less than conventional ovens. With their design, they rely on the heat being circulated to cook food thoroughly.
When you’re using a convection oven, there are a few different things to keep in mind. First, you’ll want to use pans that will allow for even cooking, such as ones with low sides. You’ll also need to make sure you don’t overload the oven with too many items.
The more things you have cooking in your oven, the longer it will take for everything to cook. Another important tip is to avoid using aluminum foil to cover your food, as it will take much longer to finish as well. A great example of a type of convection oven is an air fryer, as it uses circulated air to crisp your food.
Benefits
The easiest way to tell the difference between convection and conventional ovensf is to consider the benefits of each. There are plenty of reasons as to why convection ovens are as popular as they are.
1. Ideal for Baking
Since you won’t be relying on an element at the bottom of the oven to cook your food, a convection oven has more even results. This feature is important for people who bake regularly, as you’ll want to make sure your cakes and cookies get the heat they need. Many have found that cakes baked in a convection oven are flawless.
2. Easier Cooking
If there’s one thing known about conventional ovens, it’s that they require a lot of attention to detail. You will likely have to focus on flipping and turning items to make sure they achieve an even cook on all sides. Convection ovens, on the other hand, require far less rotating.
This point means that you can put all your ingredients together in the oven and let it cook for the allotted time. It’s ideal for entertaining, as you won’t have to spend your entire time keeping an eye on your baked goods or main entrée. Teens will also love a convection oven as it’s easier to make their favorite frozen meals with less effort.
3. Faster Cooking
When hot air is circulating the stove, it’s penetrating the food with every pass. Compared to having to be heated by elements, moving hot air makes food cook substantially faster. This theory is why using an air fryer takes much less time than using your regular oven.
Its ability to cook faster is also essential to note when using a convection oven, as you won’t want to overcook your meals. This fact is especially true for people who haven’t had the opportunity to use a convection oven in the past.
4. Fuel Type
This point is a benefit for both convection and conventional ovens, as they both work with gas and electric power. This feature gives you the ability to choose the most convenient range for your kitchen, depending on what you have available. You may also find that specific ranges are less expensive, depending on the fuel they require.
What Is a Conventional Oven?
You’ve likely set your sights on a conventional oven in the past most likely because they are very popular in North America. As mentioned, both convection and conventional ovens can be heated using gas or electricity, but a traditional oven’s heat distribution differs.
Instead of relying on the circulation of hot air to cook food, conventional ovens have heating elements. When turned to a specific temperature, the elements preheat the oven and then maintain the oven’s temperature until the cooking time is set or the stove is turned off. This method is the more traditional way of using an oven, but it’s also one of the most common.
What is interesting is that plenty of conventional ovens also feature a convection setting, so you can choose between what type of cooking method you prefer. However, these models are likely to be more expensive than ordinary convection or basic conventional ovens.
Benefit
There is one main advantage to using a conventional oven compared to a convection one, especially if you prefer to use appliances that you are used to.
By far, using conventional ovens are more natural as they are a technology that most cooks and bakers are accustomed to. There’s no need to adjust the temperatures found in recipes, and you can typically gauge what temperature is best for specific items. For example, if your box cake says to cook it at 350 degrees F, then that’s what you set the oven at.
With a convection oven, you need to adjust the temperature to accommodate the convection method of cooking. You may have to reduce the temperature between 20 and 30 degrees, depending on the type of oven you have. You may also have to adjust the cook times depending on the recipe.
Convection Oven vs Conventional Oven: Final Thoughts
Choosing a convection oven vs conventional oven offers faster cook times and more even baking. Even though it’s not as well known as conventional ovens, a convection oven will quickly become your most used appliance.
