My oven has convection-roast and convection-bake settings. I understand convection is a heat-circulating fan, but the roast vs. baking part confuses me. What difference does it make to the oven if I leave the lid off a meat pan?
In food language, roast and bake really aren't different. Both are done in an open pan, usually in an oven. We refer to cooking meats and vegetables in an open pan as roasting, while cakes, cookies and pies are baked.
But convection, which uses fans to circulate air, is a different beast. Deb O'Connor of Jenn-Air, which makes an oven that has the convection-bake and convection-roast functions, says the difference is in how the heat is applied while the fan is working.
