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dbuhler
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#1 Posted : Thursday, August 24, 2023 11:22:43 PM(UTC)


I have two questions…


I recently acquired a few of Diana Henry’s books (US editions - I live in the US) and I noticed this small paragraph of information on the last page of the index of her book From the Oven to the Table.  It reads:


“The recipes in this book were all tested in Diana Henry’s oven on the convection setting, which - on her oven - equates to about 50°F less than a conventional oven.  All the conversions to Fahrenheit were driven by this.  Your oven may differ; we recommend you check it with an oven thermometer.”


My first question is…if I would like to use the convection setting on my oven, do I set my convection temperature to the temp listed in the recipe, or do I need to reduce the temperature listed in the recipe by 50°F?  This wording doesn't seem clear to me and I can’t tell if it is because it isn’t very clear, or if it is because I have read this little paragraph so many times that I have confused myself completely!


Second question…what are your thoughts on using the convection setting for roasting?  Like I mentioned earlier, I have a convection setting on my oven but I have only ever used it during baking when I am trying to counter the effects of me living at high altitude (most helpful with cookies so far) and I’ve not used it for roasting or cooking meats and vegetables.  Does it make a difference?


Diana Henry is a new-to-me cookbook author that I discovered on this site…so thank you very much!  I can’t wait to dive into her books!  I have A Bird in the Hand, Simple, and From the Oven to the Table.



darcie_b
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#2 Posted : Friday, August 25, 2023 10:34:43 AM(UTC)
To answer your question about what temperature to use if you use convection, well, it depends! Many oven manufacturers "bake" in a 25 degree Fahrenheit reduction to the convection setting. For example, if you use the convection oven setting and set it to 350, it actually uses 325 as the target temperature. So you first need to see if your oven does that automatic reduction or not. If it does, I wouldn't change anything and would see how it goes.

I have made a lot of Diana Henry recipes and I did not read that paragraph so I didn't make any temp adjustments. However, things still turned out well! An oven temperature discrepancy can lead to timing differences; I always check well before the suggested time just in case.

I don't regularly use the convection roast setting so take my advice with a grain of salt. My thought would be that it would result in a drier, more crisp external texture of whatever you are roasting (great for chicken skin, maybe not so great for a beef roast?) and it would bake a little more quickly.

Diana Henry's recipes are great and she is a lovely person to boot. I think you'll enjoy her books!
angrygreycat
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#3 Posted : Friday, August 25, 2023 5:43:15 PM(UTC)
I also use a lot of Diana Henry's books and have never noticed that comment. I haven't had an issue with any recipes, however on longer cooking items I do set the timer for about 10 minutes less time and check it then and sometimes pull it out.
Frenchfoodie
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#4 Posted : Sunday, August 27, 2023 4:32:54 PM(UTC)
As others say, it depends on your oven. I’ve only ever bought one oven from new (and even then didn’t note convection difference) so have always guestimated on ovens from a +40f rule of thumb. I have nearly all of Diana Henry’s books and find the recipes very forgiving with great effort to reward ratio.
ThePatheticBaker
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#5 Posted : Sunday, August 27, 2023 5:07:37 PM(UTC)
UK-based French baker Richard Bertinet writes in one of his books that in use there to be no difference between a convection oven and a conventional one.
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