Different Ways to Bake

Baking is an ancient way of preparing food which involves dry heat, usually in an iron pan, but could also be done on hot rocks, or in open flames. The commonest baked item is bread, but any other kinds of food are also often baking. Heat is slowly conveyed “down” into the centre of baked foods, from the top of cakes, biscuits, and breads. The most important rule for baking, as for cooking, is that you should bake in a well-ventilated place with good ventilation and avoid excessive heat or too much cool air. If baking is carried out properly with the right ingredients and your oven is well-cleaned, then the result should be tasty.

Griddle Baking. This technique is used mainly with electric ovens (under 300 watt). Baking the cakes on a hot griddle can give a delicious flavor, but you have to make sure that it is well greased with oil. Also, you should make sure that you bake the cakes on a griddle which is slightly thinner than the cookware (i.e. one which is about 10cm deeper).

Baking with Oil. This method involves deep frying the bread or pastries in vegetable oil. It gives a nice golden brown color and a crisp texture. For deep fried food, always use cold oil (such as from an ice-box), as warm oil can cause the bottom of the food to stick and burn. To prevent this from happening, always pre-heat the oil before using it to ensure that the bottom is evenly cooked.

Tin Baking. This is a relatively slow baking process which gives a very rich flavor. You can bake the cakes or pastries in tins which are made of tin (also called “termite tin”). The tins must be placed in a hot oven (to achieve the optimal bake time). Once they are baked, you should examine them to determine if they have become dry (not greasy).

Roasting. This method can be used for baking anything which is prepared by burning the fuel such as oil or butter. In general, a roasted piece of cake or a pastry will turn out crisp and light golden brown. The main advantage of using an oven is that it allows heat to disperse evenly within the oven so that the cake or the pastry does not come out burnt.

Heated Air Baking. In this method, a coated cake or pasty is placed in an insulated box which is filled with heated air (usually with baking soda). The heated air seals the cake or the pasty thus preventing the heat from escaping thus giving a very crispy result.