HOW TO MAXIMIZE OVEN SPACE & COOK A VARIETY OF DISHES
Whether you’re having friends over or meal prepping for the week, creating multiple dishes in your oven doesn't have to feel like a game of tetris. Make the most of your oven’s capacity and save time in the kitchen with some simple oven tips. Learn how to cook multiple dishes at once for your next gathering.
HOW TO USE YOUR OVEN TO ITS FULL CAPACITY
Putting together multiple dishes doesn’t have to feel overwhelming. Remember that you can also consult the owner’s manual to learn about your various oven settings, as well as how best to use your oven. Along with these cooking tips, you’ll have a better understanding of rack positions and hot spots to help you create meals with ease.
1. PLAN AHEAD
Take a good look at all your recipes to make a plan. A helpful tip is to consider when you want food to be ready and work backwards. Items that need time to rest should be first on your list, then you can move on to dishes that require longer cooking times, like meats.
2. PREP AHEAD OF TIME
If you have baked items like pies on your menu, consider baking those ahead of time to free up space and make things less hectic when cooking the main dishes. Since desserts often need time to cool to room temperature and are usually served at the end of the meal, they can be stored, reheated, or chilled before being served to your guests.
3. USE YOUR CONVECTION SETTING
Convection ovens have different or additional parts than conventional ovens. Convection ovens like the Maytag® Gas Range with True Convection circulate hot air throughout the oven cavity to evenly cook food on different racks as well as reduce moisture on the exterior of foods. This helps eliminate your need to rotate dishes and delivers evenly baked results.
4. FOR OTHER TYPES OF OVENS
In conventional ovens, the bottom element is the primary source of heat. The upper heating element offers top-down heat. This means the bottom and back-ends of a rack may be the hottest areas to cook your food faster. Rotate your dishes from front to back as well as top to bottom to cook everything evenly.
5. UTILIZE OTHER APPLIANCES
For smaller dishes such as sides or appetizers, this Maytag® Over-the-Range Microwave with Convection Mode has a feature to cook or bake your dishes using a convection setting. For dishes that require braising or if you are cooking stews or soups, utilizing a dutch oven on your stovetop can also be a helpful addition.
6. CUT PREHEATING TIME WITH YOUR BROILER
Using your broiler setting isn’t an ideal option, but will help when trying to get dishes done in a pinch. Fast-track your preheating time, follow this easy tip: Preheat the oven to broil for 3 to 5 minutes, then customize the settings to achieve your desired temperature.
7. CONSIDER AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE
If you’re cooking different dishes at once like vegetables, entrees and baked goods, they don’t often bake at the same temperature. Set your oven to the average temperature needed for all the dishes to accommodate them in the oven at the same time. If one dish requires a temperature of 400℉ and another needs to bake at 450℉, set the temperature to 425℉.
Make sure to keep an eye on dishes if using this method and adjust times accordingly to cook food to proper temperatures, checking with a food thermometer.
CAN YOU COOK TWO DISHES IN THE OVEN AT DIFFERENT TEMPERATURES?
Ideally, if you’re cooking multiple dishes, each item should have similar temperature requirements. Remember to leave room between dishes in order for heat to be distributed evenly as much as possible.
This quick guide of what foods to bake, roast or broil is helpful to consider when deciding on an average temperature while keeping an eye on the food as it cooks. It may also require a particular oven rack placement depending on whether you have a convection or conventional oven.
HOW DO YOU ADJUST COOKING TIMES FOR MULTIPLE DISHES?
In a conventional cooking cycle, heat travels from the bottom to the top of the oven. Make it a best practice to place the largest dishes that require longer cooking times on the bottom rack for direct heat exposure. You will still need to keep an eye on food for crisping and browning and rotate dishes as needed.
If you’re running into overcooked or undercooked food, you may need to calibrate your oven temperature. This can be quickly tested prior to preparing your meals by preheating your oven to 350°F with an oven thermometer centered on the middle rack. If the thermometer reads 15°F higher or lower than it should when preheating is complete, your oven may need calibration.
CAN YOU BAKE TWO DISHES AT ONCE?
You absolutely can bake two dishes at the same time. Consider keeping savory or sweet items separated, as some flavors can slightly blend together in the warm, enclosed space. Stagger your dishes so you aren’t overlapping bakeware from rack to rack. Leave room for proper air circulation between the dishes, sides and back of the oven walls.
HOW DO YOU KEEP FOOD WARM WHEN COOKING MULTIPLE DISHES?
Take a peek at your owner’s manual and see if your oven comes with a keep warm setting. This feature is useful for keeping food warm until it’s ready to serve. If there’s no room left in your oven, you can try warming serving plates at the lowest setting in your oven. Alternatively, you can warm serving plates or food in a warming drawer, microwave, or simply insulate your food with aluminum foil until it's ready to serve.
CAN YOU COOK MULTIPLE DISHES IN A CONVECTION OVEN?
The convenience of a convection oven vs. a conventional oven is the fan and exhaust system that works well for multi-rack cooking. This allows for hot air to circulate around the inside of the oven cavity so heat is more evenly distributed. For cooking multiple dishes, keep note of the cooking temperatures needed for each dish and settle for an average temperature. Keep an eye on food as it cooks.
SHOP MAYTAG® WALL OVENS
All you need to host a few friends and begin meal planning for the week are the right tools. Powerful built-in wall ovens from Maytag brand are available in singles or doubles to take on the heavy lifting of feeding a large crowd. Select Maytag® wall ovens feature True Convection and Fingerprint Resistant Stainless Steel to help make cooking and cleaning more effortless.