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Convection Ovens

post #1 of 12
2/2/06 at 4:15pm
Thread Starter 
So I just put a pre-marinated pork roast into an oven and it said on the label that I should put it in for 2 hours for "normal" convection ovens and 2 1/2 hours for non-convection ovens. And well I burned and slightly overcooked it, leaving it in for an hour and 45 mins. I was just wondering if anybody has any tips for properly using a convection oven. Or is it all just too complicated with adjusting proper cooking times? Should I just switch to using the bake function(that's non-convection) instead of touching the roast function. What's the difference between roast and bake on an oven anyways? Lastly, would you think it'd be better to use the bake function instead?
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post #2 of 12
2/2/06 at 5:09pm
Hi
Convection ovens tend to cook things up to 20% faster than normal ranges do. I adjust my cook times by as much as 10 minutes, because I have a convection oven also. Its best to look at your manufacturers guidelines because all convection ovens obviously are not going to cook the same. I use mine a lot so I have learned its ins and outs. Best to use an oven thermometer to check your temp settings they could be off. Most manufacturers supply instructions on how to calibrate convection ovens. Or you maybe safer on bake rather than convection.
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post #3 of 12
2/2/06 at 8:38pm
Most manufacturers recommendations are for liability issues. They don't want you suing them if you get sick from undercooked and contaminated pork. They are usually just "guidelines" . The best way to judge is to use a thermometer.
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post #4 of 12
2/3/06 at 9:06am
My KitchenAid convection oven has a built-in computer- you enter the "regular" cook time and it tells you the convection time. There's also some conversion info in the cookbook that came with the oven.

Having said that, we picked up a wireless probe-type thermometer; you stick the probe in the meat and close the door on the thin, heat-proof cable connected to the transmitter. You select the temperature you want and it sounds an alarm when it's reached. It also signals a receiver you can carry around with you, so you're called from wherever you are around the house.

We find it very effective and of course you can use whichever roasting method is best for the project at hand.

Mike :chef:
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post #5 of 12
2/4/06 at 1:01pm
Thread Starter 
How much are these thermometers? Hmm.. I'm goignto have to make an investment into that some day then. I guess they'll be very useful for meats. I guess I can't go to hte manufacturer handbook since I have no diea where that is...
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post #6 of 12
2/4/06 at 1:51pm
NEVER COOK BY TIME.

Cook by the temperature of the food.

pork is done between 140 - 145 degrees.

http://www.ahherald.com/food/2003/ft...emperature.htm

Mark
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post #7 of 12
2/4/06 at 3:26pm
Yes, temp is better than time. But time is useful too. you don't want to poke your meat full of holes and let all the juices out either.

Keep a notebook of what you cooked, how big it was, how it was prepared and how long and how it turned out. You'll soon generate your own timetable for your own oven and prep styles. This becomes your rule of thumb for when to start sticking the thermometer in the food to verify proper doneness.

Even just jotting notes in the borders around a recipe is worth the time if you do nothing else. Then next time you cook it, you've got some reference info handy for what to tweak.

Phil
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post #8 of 12
2/5/06 at 10:40am
phatch I like your idea of the notebook. That type of log would be useful in the long run. Thanks for the informative posts. I may use your suggestion myself.
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post #9 of 12
2/5/06 at 8:03pm
One thing that you should also remember, is turning on your convection fan, increases the internal temperature of the oven by approximatly 75 degrees (you can check this with one of those cool infared thermometers). But it does it evenly and properly somehow, so it just reduces cook times. For instance, at work, I have my oven on at 550-575 degrees. So that means when I flick the convection switch, it heats it up to 625 - 650. There are alot of different techniques you can find and use to keep things from burning. All I know is my chef is really glad that I do that now, because it really does cook things alot faster. It's all about experimenting with different types of food, different ways you can prepare it to cook it, for instance instead of a whole roast, perhaps steaks or something.

Hope this helps.
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post #10 of 12
2/13/06 at 11:55pm
Hi, I have a convection oven and use it all the time and love it, but you need to play around with the time element. It is not at all like roasting or baking in an oven or a microwave. I referred to my cookbook that I received from GE Profile. Pork roasts, 3 to 5 lbs. cook bone-in 31 to 35 min/lb and boneless for 37 to 41 min/lb. Chops, 2, 35 to 40 total, 4 chops-40 to 45, 6 chops- 45-50 total cooking time @ 325 degrees and to 170 internal temp. Hope this helps.
Eileen
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post #11 of 12
2/16/06 at 10:13pm
My buddies at Lee Valley (woodworking, gardening, kitchen tools) have a nice-looking in-oven thermometer for just $20:

http://www.leevalley.com/garden/page...,49754&p=49754

I got a somewhat fancier one that has a wireless remote so that you can put it in the meat on the grill, go in the house, and still get called when the temperature is right. I believe Target has one like this for about $30.

By the way, I first heard about using the Microplane in the kitchen (it's actually a highly effective woodworking plane) from Lee Valley about ten or twelve years ago. I was the first in my neighborhood to have one in the kitchen! Lee Valley is a neat place for all kinds of sophisticated and high-quality tools.

Mike :cool:
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post #12 of 12
2/17/06 at 7:54am

Red Face

I have one of those Polder gadgets with the wire. It looked like a great idea. The only trouble is that the directions did not clearly say how to program the thing. They talked all around it, but I could not find a "this is how you do it" anywhere! The timer function-just the simple cook this for 25 minutes-will not reset so I can't even use it as an extra timer. And the part that is supposed to monitor the food and go off at the proper temp won't reset-the first time I set it, it didn't go off.
Yes, I should have returned it, but I guess I just thought that I wasn't getting it and maybe I should keep trying (I did), but now it's too late and the thing still doesn't do anything right. I'm usually VERY good at following directions, but . . .
I'm sure there's a simple answer to this problem. I have other Polder timers that are wonderful.
If anybody has one of these things , maybe you can tell me how to make it work. [URL="http://www.comforthouse.com/cookther.html"] This is like the one I have.
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