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How to Pre-Heat an Oven

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This is Basic of Baking – Part II – Pre-heating an Oven. Here’s Part I – Getting started with baking.

I know it sounds silly that I write an entire post on this but check these stats out:

– Since I started blogging, I have received 134 emails in total, with questions, comments, suggestions, etc
– 88 of them are baking-related questions
– 32 of them asked oven-related questions
– 18 of them are about pre-heating an oven

So, how do we pre-heat an oven. Its really very simple, in fact too simple, which is probably why many people have questions about it.

Oven Clip Art

2 Steps to Pre-Heat your Oven

Step 1: Remove everything from the oven except the oven racks. Position them in the middle (where I leave them by default unless the recipe specifies otherwise). Turn on the oven and set the temperature to what the recipe specifies. Don’t worry, nothing will explode! (Been there, feared that)

For eg: if it says “bake in a pre-heated oven at 180C / 350F” then that means you should turn your oven on to 180C / 350F. If your oven uses Gas, then there will be gas marks on the oven, just go online to get a conversion from centigrade or fahrenheit to gas mark.

Step 2: In most ovens, there will be a light or a “ping” indicator that changes colour or makes a ping noise when the oven has reached the desired temperature. This should take roughly 10-15 mins depending on temperature so turn on the oven mid-way through the preparation steps.

Most recipes call that as the first step but I usually find that too early so I do it mid-way through the preparation of the dough or batter or whatever.

That’s it! Once your oven is pre-heated, place your item in and bake till done!

But wait, I hear some of you saying that your oven doesn’t have a temperature knob. My mom has been using one of those for over 30 years. There’s only an on-off button and absolutely nothing else, not even a light that goes green or orange. Its still okay, you can bake beautifully in this oven too. Just make sure you turn on the oven for a good 10 mins before placing the batter/dough in it to bake. Keep an eye on the time (as mentioned in recipe) and also the appearance of the baked item. For a cake, make sure you check if its rising, you can also try inserting a skewer to see if its coming out clean. If you need to, stop the oven for a bit, check and then re-start if its not done. Just make sure you are quick about it.

If you have any further questions, leave a comment and I will do an FAQ post 🙂

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  2. My question is quite dumb. Once the oven reaches the desired temperature (in my case the microwave which has a preheat mode) do i switch off that mode and then reset with the new timing and temperature. Since im lost as to what to do, i usually switch off and then reset temperature and time. Please help.

    Reply

    • Set the oven to the temperature that your recipe requires and let it run empty to pre-heat. When the desired time is over (usually 10-15 minutes), keep the baking item in and continue to bake. You can reset the time if you’d like but I just add the time to the current setting mentally and keep going. Do what’s easy for you. Main this is that the oven temperature needs to be same as baking temperature when you keep the item in.

      Reply

  3. hello, lee here. I’m gonna bake a chocolate cake for the first time and too excited to do it 🙂 , but a major confusion is most of the recipes says pre-heat at 350/180 thats all and no specific time, but from your replies i got to know to pre-heat it for 10-15 minutes but my doubt is after pre-heating we keep the cake pan with batter in oven and then bake for how long and on what temperature?
    (question repeating – After preheating how long to keep the cake batter and on what temperature? )
    that would be great if you reply for this, please and sincere thanks. 🙂

    Reply

  4. Hello,
    I wanted to know a simple thing. Do I heat the oven from below or give it heat from above ar both.
    I wanted to bake brownies.
    Thank you

    Reply

  5. hi this is sireesha we had bajaj 1701 MT solo oven can we make a cake in that if yes could you please tell the process because the oven has not having any temperature system only time knob and cooking levels knob is there so can you please leave a comment on this

    Reply

  6. Hi..I have an OTG which is 17 years old ….It has low medium and high temperature settings..Is there any device through which I can know it’s temperature….Some times it is ready difficult to bake in it..

    Reply

  7. Thank you for the tips. I’m really afraid to use my mom’s oven as it doesn’t have preheat option. Is it ideal to preheat the oven for 10mins? I have this fear of letting things (i.e. Stove, oven) on without anything in it. 😂

    Reply

  8. hi…
    I love ur blog..Thank u So much for providing the useful contents….Recipes and U both are beautiful……thank u….

    Reply

  9. Thanx for the tios though.. but there is one more question which I wonder sometimes if it is only me who has it.

    They say pre-heat the oven to 180 at 35 mins.. So does that mean whilst we are in the process of preparing the cake batter we set it and the next 5mins we place the cake battee in the oven.doesn’t it vary the baking temp of the cake?

    Thanks for all your tips 😃

    Reply

  10. hi i read your comments i wanted to know I have a oven bajaj and it has microoven and convenction i have no idea how to turn the knob on as the temperature doesnt read out as per the receipe shown for eg 200 degree it shows 2:00 if you want i can post a pic of the oven please help me

    Reply

    • yes when the temperature setting is reached, the oven light may turn off and then on again when it needs to start heating. this all depends on your oven so please check the manual or talk to the retailer you bought the oven from

      Reply

  14. Hi i have got sharp microwave oven with grill and convection..now my chrismas cake receipe says 2 1/2 to 3 hours oven at 250degree fareheight..now how do bake my christmas..can give my instructions.

    Reply

  15. Hi thanks a lot for the post….
    I have a query if a recipe says preheat the oven at 350 degrees for 20 mins…It means one has to keep running the oven for 20 mins after it has reached that temperature? ..am I right?

    Reply

    • no preheating means you keep the oven turned on with knob turned to the temperature until that temperature is reached. if time is specified you can keep for that amount of time but the real test is if the specified temperature has been reached

      Reply

  16. To preheat the oven, besides turn to the required temperature, do we need to turn the timing knob too? My question may sound stupid but if you only mentioned turning the temperature knob and nothing about the desire timing

    Reply

  19. Hey i am a beginner at baking. I tried making a pavalova but it failed.The top part didnt get cruchy.My question is what am i doing wrong?also if i preheat the oven then even after putting my dish in should i keep the temperature same or should decrease it?i have a gas oven.thanks

    Reply

  20. I have got a LG microwave charcoal light heater oven which has alot of auto cook receipes. I want to use my oven for baking without the auto cook receipes but I’m not being able to pre-heat the oven. As soon as I set the mode to convection and set the temp I’m not able to set a time limit for preheating and if i just on the button then it displays cooking started. It does not consider or display preheating.

    Reply

    • it’s fine if there’s no specific pre-heat button or option. just turn the oven on for 15 mins or so and then place the baking pan inside. that should be fine.

      Reply

  21. I’m preparing store bought cinnamon rolls and it says to “Heat oven to 350 degrees.” Not preheat. My husband thinks that means you DON’T preheat the oven. I say it means preheat. Who is right (and wins the $5 bet?)? 🙂

    Reply

    • it means just turn the knob to 350F and bring the oven to that temperature. not necessarily “pre-heat” in this context. afraid he gets your 5 bucks 🙂

      Reply

  22. Hi. This is an awesome post and very helpful. I bought a microwave convention oven and tried to bake a simple chocolate cake. I set the temperature for preheat. Once it’s done, I heard 3 beeps and then the microwave ran for 10mins. My question is – when do I put my batter in..is it before the 10mins completes or after? I read the manual that came with it and it says “once preheated, it keeps the temp for 10mins”. Please help. Thanks!!

    Reply

    • hello preeti, sounds like your MW pre-heats, beeps, and then maintains that heat for 10 mins so you can put in your cake to bake any time in that 10 mins. You can put it in immediately after the beeps also because it seems that the beeping sound comes after the oven has reached the right temp. hope this helps!

      Reply

    • yes you don’t really need the timer but you can turn it on if you want to, say, pre-heat for 15 mins or so.

      Reply

  24. There are different functions on the oven. Like the symbols which dictates the convection. Which one do i use for baking?

    Reply

    • you’ll have to check your manual or call the retailer. hard to explain when i have no idea what your oven is or how it looks like.

      Reply

  25. Hai, I bought an otg Morphy Richards 24ltrs RSS. I have a doubt, in otg there is a power light, wen ever I fix the time for my recipie that light gets on n off for every few seconds automatically. It is normal or else otg problem.

    Reply

  26. I have a bajaj majesty otg 1603 T SS.Please let me know what are the default settings of selector.I am unable to preheat the otg.I have lost its manual.

    Reply

  27. I have a oven which does not have the degrees marked on it. So if I want to bake a cake at 160 or 180 or 120 degrees how do I setit – is there a gadget to buy so that at can set it and place it inside the oven. Please help, quite desperate.
    If I buy a oven thermometer can I set it for 160 degrees.

    Please be good enough to send me your reply to my email address: [email protected]

    Thank you
    Arleine

    Reply

    • hello, sorry i can’t commit to emailing replies individually. i get too many comments on a daily basis to do that. yes, you can use an oven thermometer, you can’t use it to control the oven but you can place it inside the oven and read the temperature through it.

      Reply

  28. Hi
    recently I purchased IFB 38 SRC1 Convection oven ,we want to cook cookies every cooking blogs saying like Pre- heat oven 325 F ,but we are not getting confusing how to preheat in this oven ,Could you plz explain me,
    what ever people showed videos we followed but nothing got fruits.

    Reply

    • keep the oven turned on at the preferred temperature for 15 mins before placing the baking items inside.

      Reply

  30. Hi this is pooja and i m using baja 1701 mt oven .ut has two dials one is for time and other is for temprature but that s not in numbers.ita in minumym maximum ect how will i preheat to 170-180 or any temprature.kindly reply i m just confused.

    Reply

  31. Nice info. I need one help, again in the preheating part of microwave. I have old Panasonic microwave with only grill option and no temperature setting knob. My question
    . how do I preheat it.
    . which mode microwave or grill mode?
    . in case I can preheat, can I run the microwave dry without any food in it or do I have to place a bowl of water while preheating.
    Pls help

    Namita

    Reply

    • Hello Namita, sorry it’s hard for me to know the details of all brands of microwave. Can you check the manual that came with the microwave? A Google search or searching the manufacturer’s website may also help

      Reply

    • Hello Maria, really depends on your budget and how often you plan to bake. Maybe you can try a small countertop convection oven

      Reply

  34. A pizza receipe says to preheat oven to 220 degree, and then keep dough inside for 7 minutes. My doubt is when keeping the dough inside , what must be the temperature. Same 220 degrees or it has to be changed

    Reply

  35. Hi Nagalakshmi,
    Thanks, for this blog about Pre-heating oven. I have some doubts,
    I recently brought a cooking range (brand is ARISTON, full gas)My oven is also gas and in that temp is return as Min . .160 . 180 . 220 . . Max , like this not mentioned Celsius or Fahrenheit and if i want to pre-heat the oven to 350degrees what shoul i do? Do i have to put it max. Also , can you please tell me how to use oven thermometer. Can i put the thermometer inside the oven while caking and grilling. Please kindly guide me.

    Reply

  36. In my gas oven, there are no gas marks like 1, 2, to 9 on the knob through which i can set the temperature. But in the oven door there is a marker which has temperature needle and marks written in degrees. so just wanted to know how should i use it or how should i preheat such type to gas oven. there is no timer also but i can set that on my mobile. but only the temperature setting is a problem for me.

    Reply

  37. I have prepared the idli-dosa batter. I dont know how to ferment it in oven. Could u please tell me how to make it.

    Reply

  38. Hi, After years of browsing (drooling) over baked goodies, i finally have the time now to actually start baking :-). We are expats in malaysia and looking at buying a small oven. Would you recommend any specific model?? which one do you use. Love your blog and amazing photos.

    Cheers
    Aish

    Reply

    • I use a delonghi conventional oven. not sure if you get that in malaysia. you could also consider getting a microwave convection oven that does the microwave's job and an oven's job. do some research, look around, ask questions 🙂 I am not sure of ovens available in Malaysia

      Reply

  39. Hi Nags

    I hav a morphy richards 25 ltr convention oven, tried baking cakes several times, bt failed.
    I would like to know, what is the correct way of baking the cake in it?
    How do i preheat my oven, as it doesnot clearly provide the settings to preheat …….

    Reply

  40. Anita, try medium.

    Anon, if your oven is MW convection, you can turn it on and pre-heat as specified above. If you are using regular microwave to bake, then you shouldn't pre-heat.

    Reply

  41. Dear Nags,

    I intend to prepare Pineapple Macaroni. In the recipe I found in Google it says to Preheat the Oven @ 180 C. I have a microwave oven. Is is possible to bake a macaroni in Microwave? If yes the how to preheat the same?

    Reply

  42. Hi,

    Please help.I have a IFB 170PM MEC model(solo) which has temp as high,med high,medium,medium low etc..if i have to preheat the oven 180C/350F which mode shud i keep it on :(:(..

    Reply

  43. Thank you so much for sharing Ranjeetha 🙂 I use aluminium foil when I need to carry a cake or brownies for a potluck. Super convenient!

    Reply

  44. Hii Nags,
    I baked using Aluminum foil trays…my cake came out nice and soft…Ur banana cake was the star of my Christmas cooking….no brown bottoms this time 🙂
    I think anyone who has no baking tins can try this…they are convenient and the cake come out easily from the mold…u can use them to store the cake too…
    I used the mixie to bet a smooth batter of butter,sugar and egg mixture since I was baking twice the quantity…this also aided in making the batter smoother (got this from one of your previous posts)…Thank you

    Reply

  45. Usually people have the tops turning dark or burning, hardly ever the bottom. I think its because there's too much heat there. try positioning your tray on the middle rack and also, if your oven has a setting to turn off the bottom heat, try that. each oven is different so you may need to work with it a bit 🙂 hope it helps!

    Reply

  46. hi nags,
    I tried the one banana bread recipe and followed ur tips on pre-heating for 10min. My cake tasted so gud but I had a small problem….the bottom of the cake was dark (almost black)- I had to carefully slice off the bottom to make it look and taste good. Can you give me some tips on how to prevent this? I even tried lining my tray with baking sheet to prevent this but it didn't make much of a difference.

    Reply

  49. I start pre-heating about halfway through mixing the batter. I've found that in my convection oven – Morphy Richards 35lit – keeping the cake trays on the top rack helps best.

    Also, to get your cake to rise evenly (not form a dome) cut an old towel into strips, soak the strips in water, wring the excess water out and tie it tightly around your cake pan. The cake comes out even at the top and pulls apart from the sides. Makes it a LOT easier for icing! (especially if you're doing a layer cake.)

    Reply

  51. Hello Nags…..
    I really enjoy reading your posts…..they are so encouraging and the recipe always seems simple….it may be too soon to ask but would you be able to share any link which would help me with the basics for Cake decoration…?

    Reply

  54. Sharmilee, we pre heat oven so that the temp is jsut right for the batter or dough to go in. the slow heating up will mess with the bubbles in there and what not, u get the drift.. 🙂

    Chinna ponnu, thanks!!! unfortunately i havent had a chance to make the banana cake again and take better pics. its mindblowing! so wait for it!

    Reply

  57. There are people who say, "yes I will look at your mail and help you later. I am busy now" you respond to every mail and make a post also. I LOVE your enthusiasm and most importantly your passion for this whole blogging thing. You da best!

    ~Chinna POnnu

    ps- hopefully next post is on that awesome banana cake. I have 2 rotten bananas to be used up.

    Reply

  58. Even I do the preheating in midway or sometimes even after the batter is ready…this way its hasslefree. And in my OTG manual it says always to preheat oven in toast/pizza mode for 10mins for whatever recipe we try.

    But I always have the doubt why do we preheat the oven? And is it necessary to keep the wirerack in while preheating?

    Reply

  60. If we're using a microwave oven (not convection mode), is pre-heating even possible? In such cases, should we just skip the part of the recipe that talks about pre-heating? 🙂

    Reply

  61. Do you have a mail I.D. that I can use to ask you all my doubts? Some times it can be something related to one of your previous recipes like say Gobi Manchurian, or Medu Vada. Or sometimes it can be not related at all. Thank you for your time. Have a nice day and please keep posting interesting topics like this one on baking.

    Reply
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