Author Topic: Convection - yes or no? (Read 1663 times)

pythonic · « **on:** October 05, 2012, 02:31:14 PM »

I know lots of people say using convection is a no no but if it gives me a nice brown crust in 4 minutes should I just stick with it?

Don K · « **Reply #1 on:** October 05, 2012, 03:27:25 PM »

If it works for you, then stick with it! There are no rules.

When I use convection is when I want to bake a bunch of pies at once. I use screens with no stones and just put one pie per rack. they all bake fairly evenly with convection.

Skee · « **Reply #2 on:** October 05, 2012, 04:32:45 PM »

Convection can inhibit the crust from rising as it dries out the surface too quickly. Or you could wait until the crust has risen and then use convection just for browning.

scott123 · « **Reply #3 on:** October 05, 2012, 07:22:42 PM »

I struggled with the concept of convection for quite some time because of it's lack of authenticity/lack of use in NY pizzerias, but then I was forced into using a 500 deg peak temp oven where I had to use the convection feature and the pies were some of my best ever.

I think, in theory, that, under certain scenarios, the hot flowing air might cause the rim to set faster, and, in turn, limit oven spring, but with my 64% hydration 13.2% protein bromated dough, this was definitely not the case. The rim was beautifully puffy, with a little more crispiness to the exterior.

Don K · « **Reply #4 on:** October 05, 2012, 07:55:39 PM »

I never thought that convection limited oven spring. I also used 64% hydration. With a lower hydration I suppose that drying would be possible. It did over bake with convection once though and the crust exterior was a bit tough.

pythonic · « **Reply #5 on:** October 06, 2012, 08:58:54 PM »

Went with convection today and my pie baked in only 3:45. Will post pics later.

pythonic · « **Reply #6 on:** October 08, 2012, 11:27:21 AM »

scott r · « **Reply #7 on:** October 08, 2012, 11:52:46 AM »

at one time I had a few bad convection pies, but the problem was that my cheese browned too much, not that the dough didn't turn out great. When I moved into my new home about four years ago I tried it again while I was testing out the new bosch oven. I had great success, and I think its mostly because I had found a source for cheese that doesn't brown too much. Bottom line is... if it gets your pie done faster, and has a few more similarities with a WFO (convection!), well.... then it can make a great pizza! Just beware of fast browning cheese and convection should be your friend.

pythonic · « **Reply #8 on:** October 08, 2012, 07:02:31 PM »

Scott,

I agree with the burning statement (it depends on the cheese). I used grande for this one and it held up pretty well.

Nate

slybarman · « **Reply #9 on:** October 08, 2012, 07:21:40 PM »

Fo sho. I'd eat it.

scott123 · « **Reply #10 on:** October 09, 2012, 02:47:29 AM »

Nate, how was the undercrust? A little on the pale side?

pythonic · « **Reply #11 on:** October 09, 2012, 06:34:33 PM »

Just a tad.

Skee · « **Reply #12 on:** October 17, 2012, 02:45:04 PM »

Finally got around to trying the convection-bake setting on my new Kitchenaide oven and as I suspected (from using commercial convection ovens for years), the crust did not rise nearly as much as usual. In addition, the cheese cooked so fast that the bottom crust did not have enough time to fully brown, even at 550F - with convection it took 4:15, without it usually takes right at 6:00. I only got one good picture, and the slice was tasty, just not quite up to par. The dough was 67% hydration, KASL, 24-hr cold, 3-hr room temp, cold sauce and toppings.

Next time, I'm going to leave the convection off for two minutes to let the crust rise a little, then run it for three minutes, see if that evens it out a little (and cuts one minute off the cooking time).

scott123 · « **Reply #13 on:** October 17, 2012, 03:52:34 PM »

Britt, all things being equal, it looked like it rose pretty well.

Bottom heat is essential to oven spring. That's what sends the crust soaring. Instead of slowing down the top bake in order to accommodate the bottom, why not just speed up the bottom with a more convective floor? A hearth that can give you a 4 minute bake on the undercrust, to match the 4 minute bake on the top, would be the best possible scenario for this style.

Skee · « **Reply #14 on:** October 17, 2012, 04:28:15 PM »

By "more convective floor" I assume you mean a steel plate? Haven't located a local supplier yet, but I haven't exhausted all the possibilities, just busy. The main stone I use is 5/8", don't recall the manufacturer, but it's good quality - I have a second, 1/2" stone that I keep on the top shelf for heat distribution and top-browning if needed, is there any value to stacking the stones, maybe with a layer of foil between them as a conductor?

scott123 · « **Reply #15 on:** October 17, 2012, 04:37:33 PM »

Yes, I recommend steel plate so frequently that I wanted to mix things up by being a little more cryptic this time

With convection, the top stone probably isn't contributing all that much to top browning, but it can't hurt. Whether or not stacking a 5/8" and a 1/2" stone is worthwhile- that's a really tough call. I believe 1" cordierite stone owners get better bake times than thinner stones, so theoretically a stack might trim your time, but that much thermal mass will extend your pre-heat considerably. Is the bottom of the 5/8" stone flat? I wouldn't worry about the foil. Foil will most likely create more air pockets rather than fill them.

6 minutes isn't bad- at all. Are you taking IR readings of the stone prior to baking? If you're in the 600 realm, you might not need steel and could get away with a high alumina kiln shelf. Maybe.

Skee · « **Reply #16 on:** October 17, 2012, 05:09:20 PM »

Yeah, I'm pretty happy with six minutes in the new oven - the Kenmore I replaced could just barely make it to 500 which wasn't cutting it. Hadn't tried the convection option yet, just wanted to see what it could do. I need to take a reading of the stone, will do that next time, and maybe stack the stones (the bigger one is flat on the bottom, the thinner one is ridged) for one pizza with the fan and one without, see which comes out better.

scott123 · « **Reply #17 on:** October 17, 2012, 06:09:54 PM »

Britt, definitely give stacking a shot- with or without convection, but, if possible, could you take a reading on a single stone pre-heated (using convection) for an hour?

As far as the pre-heat for the stack... I'd suggest at least 90 minutes.

Canyon · « **Reply #18 on:** October 17, 2012, 10:01:02 PM »

If you're worried about oven spring you may want to preheat using convection, then kill it prior to dropping the pie. My junkie oven with a max temp of 500 gets over 550 when calibrated up 30 degrees along with convection turned on. I'm guessing that extra 20+ degree kick I reach is attributed to convection and a thick baking stone. I personally leave the convection feature on the entire bake and I use the convection broil as well. Cubing the cheese or setting it down before saucing helps a great deal to reduce browning too.

Sqid · « **Reply #19 on:** October 17, 2012, 10:52:16 PM »

It seems logical to me that some type of air movement is essential for fast bake times. The hot air next to the crust needs to be refreshed with new hot air. To rely solely on literal convection (movement of molecules) would take too long. Whilst building an oven:
http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,19848.0.html
I have considered using a top flame that although fairly anemic would stir up the air, also have considered incorporating a fan into a deck oven.
Keep using the convection function on the oven.