Bake

To bake is to cook food in the dry, hot air of a closed oven. The heat comes from all sides, so the outside sets and browns while the inside cooks through more slowly. The word is used most for bread, cakes, pastry, cookies and casseroles. Cooking meat or vegetables the same way is usually called roasting, though the method is the same.

How to do it

1. Preheat the oven fully, usually 15 to 20 minutes. Most cakes bake at 175 to 180°C (350°F), bread at 200 to 230°C (400 to 450°F).
2. Put the rack in the middle unless the recipe says otherwise.
3. Use the pan size the recipe asks for. A smaller, deeper pan needs more time.
4. Leave space between pans so air can move around them.
5. Keep the door closed for the first two thirds of the time. Each opening lets heat out.
6. Check a few minutes before the end of the stated time.

How to tell it is done

• Cakes: a skewer comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs (the toothpick test), and the top passes the spring-back test.
• Bread: the crust is deep brown and the loaf sounds hollow when you tap the base. Inside, it is about 93 to 99°C (200 to 210°F).
• Cookies: the edges are set and golden brown while the middle still looks a little soft. They firm up as they cool.

Why it works

Hot air is a slow way to move heat, which gives batters and doughs time to rise before they set. Water turns to steam and lifts the crumb, proteins and starches firm up, and the dry surface browns.

Common mistakes

• Trusting the dial. Many ovens run 10 to 20°C off. An oven thermometer shows the real heat.
• Forgetting the fan. A fan oven (convection oven) runs hotter; lower the setting by about 20°C (25°F).
• Measuring flour by volume. Weighing is more reliable.
• Cutting too soon. Bread and cakes keep cooking as they cool.

In recipes

"Bake until golden" means until the top is light brown. "Bake blind" means baking a pastry case empty. A temperature given without a note usually means a conventional oven with top and bottom heat.