Can You Put A Baking Pan On The Grill? If yes then how?
magine walking past a bakery on a dry, cold morning as the subtle, sweet, yeasty aroma of freshly baked bread wafts through the oven doors, hitting your smell receptors with a heartwarming, welcoming treat.
The consequences of this unforgiving pandemic may have put an end to these pleasant early morning walks, but you can easily make bread in the oven while sitting idle in your kitchen. What better way to kill time while quarantined than satisfying your taste buds with some homemade fluffy goodness?
Not everyone owns an oven. Is there no way to bake without using an oven?
If there’s a will, there’s a way. So the answer is yes! You can bake using a grilling machine.
Can you put a baking pan on a grill?
Yes, you can slide your baking pan onto the grill and bake away!
How An Oven Works?
When you plug in your oven to the socket, the heating element starts to warm up, converting electric energy to heat energy. This, in turn, starts to heat the air around the heating element. Hot air rises to the ceiling of the oven while the cooler air at the top sinks to the bottom. Eventually, this cooler air heats up, therefore rising back on top. The following process is called convection. This cycle continues to take place until your food is ready to eat.
Most grill machines these days come with a lid. When the lid is shut, convection currents start forming under the lid, essentially working like an oven. This makes grill machines suitable for baking.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is There A Specific Type Of Baking Pan To Use On A Grill?
Baking pans can be made of ceramic, metal (usually stainless steel), or glass. Using ceramic or glass-made baking pans on a grill can pose a safety risk. This is because grills can get much hotter than ovens. Ceramic and glass may not be able to withstand the extreme temperatures inside a grilling machine, and could potentially shatter.
To avoid such a disastrous mess from happening, we would suggest using baking pans made of solid metal on a grill. It is also perfectly fine to use cake pans made of metal on a grill.
What Is The Right Temperature To Set Your Grill At?
This depends on the food you’re baking and also on the recipe you are following.
Temperature is an important factor to keep in mind when baking. Controlling and maintaining a steady temperature on a grill, however, can be tricky.
As a rule of thumb, if your grill comes with two burners, initially fire both burners to reach your desired heat level. Once the desired temperature has been reached, put off one of the burners, continuing to heat the food with only the other burner. This will give you more control over the temperature.
To avoid burning your food, it’s best to keep the baking pan away from the heat source, letting the food bake with the warmth of the hot convection currents. You can do this by placing the baking pan on top of a metal rack. This will not only prevent your food from burning, but it will also make your cake or bread moist and fluffy if you are baking one!
Expert Tips And Recommendations
Every recipe requires different temperature and time settings. Use a timer to help you keep track of the progress made. This helps avoid overcooking the food and lets you complete your other pending chores without risking a burnt cake.
If you suspect that the cake you are baking has not properly been cooked within the time frame given by the recipe, you can check for raw batter by poking a toothpick into the cake. When taken back out of the cake, if the toothpick is clean and dry, it means that the cake is cooked through and through.
Using metal racks would be great to keep your food away from direct heat. However, using double baking pans (placing a second baking pan under your primary one) can also do the trick.
Finally, make sure that the grill machine’s lid is shut. A grill only works similar to an oven when the lid is closed. Keeping the lid open would let out the warm air from the grill, which would not be suitable for cooking by convection. You would most certainly end up with undercooked batter as a result.
Conclusion
If your best friend’s birthday is coming up and you don’t have an oven to bake a cake in, a grill can most certainly be used instead. Make sure you use a timer, follow the recipe properly, and keep an eye on the temperature. Have fun baking!
