20
USING THE OVEN FOR SLOW COOKING OR LOW TEMPERATURES
The oven can be used to keep hot food hot, to dehydrate food, to warm plates, for slow cooking (as in a crock
pot), and to defrost foods.
You can keep hot, cooked food at serving temperature. Set the oven to the temperature suggested in the
following chart (page 22). Rare meat must be eaten when it is removed from the oven, as it continues cooking
from its own heat.
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To keep food moist, it must be covered with aluminum foil or a lid.
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To dehydrate food, follow suggestions in a recipe.
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To warm plates, check with the dishware manufacturer for the recommended temperature.
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To use the oven as a slow cooker, set the oven control knob to 225ºF, place the food in the oven in a pan with a
tight fitting lid. Follow recipes for this type of cooking.
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To thaw uncooked frozen food, set the oven control knob to “warm”. Be sure the food is tightly wrapped in foil.
Thaw the food just enough to handle it. Cook immediately. Do not refreeze.
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To thaw frozen cooked food, set the oven control knob to 170ºF. Loosen the freezer wrapping.
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Do not use plastic wrap or wax paper in the oven.
FOOD SAFETY!
According to the United States Department of Agriculture you should not hold foods at temperatures between 40ºF
to 140ºF for longer than 2 hours.
HIGH ALTITUDE BAKING
Recipes and baking times vary if you are baking at a high altitude. For accurate information write to the
Agriculture Extension Service, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado 80521. Specify the type of
information and the baking mode (convection bake or bake) you need, i.e. cakes, cookies, breads, etc. There
may be a cost for the bulletins.
OVEN USE