To fan, or not to fan – that is the question

October 2, 2025 by
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If your oven has a convection setting, how often do you use it? If the answer is “never because I don’t know when it is appropriate”, recipe developer and cookbook author Irvin Lin can help you. He penned an article on Simply Recipes that gives you the lowdown on how to properly use your oven’s convection setting.

oven dial

First, you need to determine just what kind of convection your oven has. True or European convection has a heating element incorporated at the back of the oven along with the fan, providing more even heat. This type of convection is generally found on pricier models, with the cheaper (also called American) convection featuring a fan only, so you do not get the advantage of the additional heat.

Then there is the conundrum of what is the difference between convection bake and convection roast. Although there is no standard for these terms, most of the time convection bake uses only the bottom heating element and a lower fan speed than convection roast. This is better for more delicate items like cookies or cakes, while convection roast – which often uses the top and bottom elements and a higher fan speed – is reserved for meats and vegetables.

The final item to consider is how to adjust the temperature when using convection. The rule of thumb is to reduce the oven temperature by 25 degrees Fahrenheit when using convection. Some models do this automatically, so check your user manual to find out. In what I can only believe is an attempt to drive me over the edge, my oven automatically reduces the temperature for convection bake, but does not do it for convection roast.

Category: Cooking Tips

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10 Comments

  • Fyretigger  on  October 3, 2025

    Perfect timing! My new range with convection was installed 3 days ago. I baked scones today from a BBC Good Food recipe and used the “fan” instructions. True to the article, I found that they came out too dry. So now I know, not for most baked goods (but I’ll bet they are great for macarons).

  • dbuhler  on  October 3, 2025

    My home oven doesn’t have a fan, but my parents oven does and I run into problems every time I cook/bake there…which is basically every time I visit. The main issue I have with their oven is that the fan runs all the time and I can’t seem to find a way to turn it off, along with the already mentioned confusing settings of convection bake and convection roast. I’m told that the oven will automatically reduce the heat if I choose one of the convection settings, however, when I just choose “bake” that fan still runs and over bakes everything if I don’t watch it like a hawk. I will say, last thanksgiving, we had the best roasted veggies we’ve ever had, so it does that well!

  • tmjellicoe  on  October 4, 2025

    I don’t use convection only because once the oven heats up and the metal expands a bit, the fan develops a loud tic-tic-tic as it goes past a small dent in the back of the oven. Probably ought to have returned the oven at the beginning, but there were circumstances happening at that time and didn’t realize what had happened.

  • pamacea  on  October 4, 2025

    What a useful article!

    A few years ago, I needed new appliances and got as large and cheap a refrigerator I could find and put the rest of the budget towards the range. I don’t know if I can mention the brand, but I can tell you I have never loved an inanimate object as much in my life as I love this range! No word of a lie, I tell it that I love it on a regular basis.

    I spent about $5500CDN–not a ‘luxury’ brand, but I think after a certain cost point you’re just paying for a name.

  • innerharbors  on  October 4, 2025

    Thanks for this article! One thing I learned right away is not to use any convection setting on fish — dries that right out! 😁

  • demomcook  on  October 4, 2025

    I love my convection ovens – both the wall ovens and the counter oven. I do follow the rule of reducing 25 degrees when baking sweet things. It is also a great way to pre-heat the oven quickly and evenly, and is particularly nice when roasting chicken and baking bread.

  • FJT  on  October 6, 2025

    I love every convection oven I’ve ever owned. I breathed a sigh of relief when we returned to Europe from North America as I had missed convection so much. Normally European recipes recommend a 20C drop in temperature for fan/convection cooking, which is nearer 70F probably because of that extra heating element.

    I use convection for baking and never have a problem.

  • FJT  on  October 6, 2025

    Ignore my comment about C to F! Commenting on a blog post when you’ve just woken up is a bad idea!

  • MaryMM  on  October 6, 2025

    I have bake, roast, convection roast, convection bake, true convection and a couple others. I have no clue about any of it. I’m guessing the true convection fires up an additional heating unit. Engineered beyond my abilities I think. I mostly avoid using this oven because I’m afraid the cleaning cycle will damage the motherboards. My big toaster oven and the air fryer are easier to clean. I would use convection bake for pies and cakes if I thought there might be some advantage to it. The manual didn’t provide much guidance.

  • MonikaM  on  October 8, 2025

    I have always had a convection oven but then I live in Europe … I use it all the time, unless I need bottom heat for a pizza or some other reason (My oven can do whatever …)

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