Gas oven and browning

badjak

badjak

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Zambezi Valley, Zambia
I got a gas oven with heating at the bottom only.
So how do I brown the top of say focaccia, bread, pizza?
Higher in the oven to use reflective heating. Lower temperature to give the top more time to brown?

I cleaned the supply pipe of this oven and it is working pretty good again (at one point it actually had flames coming out of the back).

I just made some (free style) focaccia and it tastes great, but would look better if it was a bit more browned at the top
 
badjak said:
I got a gas oven with heating at the bottom only.
So how do I brown the top of say focaccia, bread, pizza?
Higher in the oven to use reflective heating. Lower temperature to give the top more time to brown?

I cleaned the supply pipe of this oven and it is working pretty good again (at one point it actually had flames coming out of the back).

I just made some (free style) focaccia and it tastes great, but would look better if it was a bit more browned at the top
Click to expand...

Using the higher position would be worth a try. I'm not so optimistic about the lower temperature. I get decent browning on pizza with a higher temperature.

CD
 
caseydog said:
Using the higher position would be worth a try. I'm not so optimistic about the lower temperature. I get decent browning on pizza with a higher temperature.

CD
Click to expand...
Thanks, it is sort ofvwhat I was thinking.
Little lower temp came of the idea of giving it a bit more time...
I suppose I have to make more focaccia's ( this one had olive brine instead of salt, olives, bacon, red onion, chili, garlic, oregano and freah rosemary,)
 
badjak said:
Thanks, it is sort ofvwhat I was thinking.
Little lower temp came of the idea of giving it a bit more time...
I suppose I have to make more focaccia's ( this one had olive brine instead of salt, olives, bacon, red onion, chili, garlic, oregano and freah rosemary,)
Click to expand...

It might also help to help the browning process with a bit of fat, like a butter brushing, or protein, such as an egg wash. :scratchhead:

CD
 
When I had a gas oven, my trick was to put a large, dark tray on the rack above the above, so the heat would reflect back to the food.
 
LissaC said:
When I had a gas oven, my trick was to put a large, dark tray on the rack above the above, so the heat would reflect back to the food.
Click to expand...
That’s sort of how an Aga works. They have metal plates that can be inserted, making the oven smaller, so to speak, and the metal plate gets hot and browns the food better.
 
badjak said:
The oven is black on the inside :wink:
Gonna try the upper level for next baking exercise
Thanks all
Click to expand...
The idea is that the heat will reflect back to the food instead of dispersing inside the oven. The bigger the tray and the closer it is to the food the better the brownning.

I think the original tip suggested a light colored tray that didn't absorb heat so well but I only had black trays lol

When I had a gas oven I had the same issue and did a bit of googling to find out what could work. This was the solution that worked best for me (I can't remember the other options but there were other suggestions).
 
Getting there
IMG_20231226_175641_275.jpg


Reduced hydration, higher in oven and I put a try underneath the dish after about 30 minutes to prevent burning the bottom
 
badjak said:
I got a gas oven with heating at the bottom only.
So how do I brown the top of say focaccia, bread, pizza?
Higher in the oven to use reflective heating. Lower temperature to give the top more time to brown?

I cleaned the supply pipe of this oven and it is working pretty good again (at one point it actually had flames coming out of the back).

I just made some (free style) focaccia and it tastes great, but would look better if it was a bit more browned at the top
Click to expand...
Mine is electric, so there IS a heating element at the top of the oven. The toaster oven has 2 at the top. It might be a good idea to get a toaster oven because they DO have elements at the top inside of them. But the regular oven DOES brown. You have to turn the thrmostat control to about 500 degrees & it should work just enough to get whatever you're browning done. It always worked for me!! :whistling:
 
Thanks, but toaster oven is not an option as it uses more electric power than I generate with my solar (fully off grid)
I've slowly been getting the hang of this gas oven. Bread is still a bit tricky, but other dishes go pretty well :)
 
badjak said:
Thanks, but toaster oven is not an option as it uses more electric power than I generate with my solar (fully off grid)
I've slowly been getting the hang of this gas oven. Bread is still a bit tricky, but other dishes go pretty well :)
Click to expand...
Didn't know that you had solar power in your home. :eek:
 
GadgetGuy said:
Didn't know that you had solar power in your home. :eek:
Click to expand...
Yeah, very rural area, no power.
So running limited solar & batteries.
Whenever I have some money, I add on.
I could do with an extra set of batteries, but that will have to wait till it is end of life span for this set
 
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