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Baking golden crust bread in a combination oven

Baking bread in a convection oven usually results in a pale, unappetising crust. On the other hand, your combination oven is cheaper to use than a standard convection oven. I googled for other baker's solutions to the crust problem and did not find any - so I experimented and came up with a method which works 100% for bread rolls and small baguettes. All ovens are different and you will need to vary a little bit. The oven used in these photos is a Pansaonic NN CF853
This method uses steam - which is always good for baking bread as it relaxes the surface of the bread so that it rises more.
The cooking method is first oven bake followed by a short grill time. If your usual baking time is 22 minutes, then start this with
20 minutes oven
2 minutes grill (medium or high depending on how crusty you like your bread)
You can always extend the grilling time.

Equipment

  • heavy dish for water at the base of your oven
  • baking paper, silicone mat or baguette tray to support your bread dough. Not needed if baking pre-made part-cooked bread rolls.

Instructions

  • Position the oven wire shelf or rack at the middle height of your oven
  • Pour boiling water into a heavy metal or pyrex bowl and place on the bottom of your oven
  • Pre-heat your oven to the correct baking temperature and allow the oven to keep at that temperature for a further 5 minutes.
  • Meanwhile place your uncooked bread dough on the baking paper, silicone mat or baguette tray and slash the surface with a sharp knife (eg 3 diagonal cuts)
  • Place the bread dough on the oven rack. Close the oven door as quickly as possible to keep the steam atmosphere inside.
  • You will be using a combination of oven and grill. Usually this can be set all at once. In my example, I usually bake a mini-baguette in our conventional oven for 22 minutes eg.
    Cancel all existing setting or remaining time
    Set oven temperature (say 220ºC), set time to 20 minutes
    Press grill setting (use medium at first). Set time to 2 minutes
    Press start.
  • After the first baking programme has finished, the bread will still be pale. If you open the oven to see for yourself, be really quick to keep in the heat and the steam. Hence the steamy photo shown here but clearly the surface is still very pale
  • If, after the grilling programme has completed, you would like the bread more crusty and golden then grill for further minute. (You may want to turn the bread around)
  • After you have done your first bake like this, you will soon see how to fine-tune this for your oven. It is best to start with a shorter grill time and then extend if needed.
    Adjust the grill setting to either high or medium, and the grill time depending on your own experience. The other factor is the distance of the top of the bread to the grill element. As a general guide, whatever is the grill time that works for you, deduct this from the convection oven time.