Heating up: What those symbols on your oven actually mean

Author: Vanessa Walker

Hands up who doesn’t know how to use all the functions on their oven. If that’s you, don’t despair. Sam Zalin, head of buying and merchandising at Winning Appliances, says it’s a common customer confession. “I regularly hear feedback that customers don’t know what all the functions do on their oven,” he says. “They get confused by which function they should be using, so gravitate towards always using the function they are comfortable with.” Most frequently, this is fan-forced or grill.

But there’s a whole world of functionality out there that helps you be a better cook simply by pressing a button or turning a knob. And the good news is that, despite small variations in the designs of symbols, oven functions are basically universal. Here are the eight top oven functions and their explanations… along with some juicy cooking tips.

“Different brands use different variations of cooking symbols, but it is highly likely you will be able to understand the basics – grill, fan with grill, fan-forced – among them, as manufacturers have an interest in ensuring customers can easily understand key functions they use regularly,” Zalin says.

Upper and lower elements

This symbol shows that heat comes from above and below. Known as conventional, static or traditional heating, this function is best used when cooking a dish such as a casserole, a roast, bread, heavy cakes such as mud cake and puddings, and pavlova. It’s also a good choice for fatty meats such as goose and duck.

Tip: McKnight advises making sure the food is in the centre of the oven, on shelves two or three, when using this function.

Fan-forced

This is the fan (or fan-forced) symbol and in this mode the oven uses the fan and the rear element to distribute heated air throughout the cavity. This allows the oven to heat up faster, while reducing cooking time and decreasing energy consumption. As the elements at the top and bottom are not active, this function is best for baking butter cakes, cupcakes, cookies, muffins, sponges and soufflés.

Because it circulates heat evenly, this function is also ideal for baking multiple trays at the same time (biscuits, cupcakes and muffins on the top, middle and lower shelves respectively) or cooking varieties of food such as fish and veggies simultaneously (on different levels). Because the air is constantly moving, odours and flavours shouldn’t mingle. It’s also the function of choice for those who like their meat cooked tender on the outside and rare on the inside.

Tip: “This is the function to use ‘when in doubt’, because it is the most consistent temperature function,” McKnight says. “However, you may find with this fan-forced function, most of your recipes will need to have the temperature dropped by 20°C.”

Fan-forced grill

This symbol denotes the grill plus the fan and, unlike the grill alone, the oven door should be closed when your oven is in this mode. In short, the grill will brown food while the fan works to move the heat generated by the grill element around the oven, allowing you to cook or reheat on the lower levels. It’s good for thicker meats such as sausages, cutlets, skewers and chicken pieces. The fan-forced grill function is known for producing a rotisserie effect.

Tip: There is no need to turn the food as it will brown on the top and cook from underneath with the help of the rear fan.

Defrost

This symbol may be the most difficult to decipher: the snowflake above a drop of water is the defrost function. In this mode, the oven fan is switched on but no heat is generated: air circulation defrosts the food. It’s handy if you forgot to take food out to defrost overnight and need to get it thawed in a short amount of time.

Tip: Twenty minutes on defrost in a microwave equals one hour on this function. No temperature is required to defrost.

Warmer

An oldie but a goodie. Old ovens used to have warming drawers, but this symbol shows that the function is instead built into the oven itself. It’s useful for keeping food warm without heating it further or drying it out, and can also be used for warming plates.