Have you ever wondered why your room gets hot when you turn on the oven? You must have also observed an enormous range hood over your Gas Oven; what is its purpose?
An oven is a standard part of the kitchen these days that has evolved over the years. Typically it comes in two variants, electric and gas, but electric ones are more popular due to their functionality and convenience.
No matter what type you prefer, all ovens have vents, which are a critical part of the appliance. But the question is, why do ovens have them?
- All ovens have vents that help the interior gases to escape. The air in the room enters the stove via the door because it has gaps.
- As the air gets hot, it rises and exits the cooking chamber through a duct called a vent. It is a constant process that allows hot air to escape the oven while entering the fresh air from the other side.
- The venting system has numerous benefits, but it helps to cook food uniformly and keep your oven safe from fire hazards.
So, are you interested to know more? Read further as we enlighten you about Oven Vents and their benefits.
3 Reasons Why Ovens Have Vents
We cannot imagine our kitchen without an oven these days. It is one of the most used and beneficial appliances.
According to statistics, its global sales stood at 104.9 billion U.S. dollars in 2021. The efficient venting system, improved functionality, and mechanism in the ovens make it ideal for cooking, baking, and grilling your favorite food.
Here are a few reasons why ovens have vents:
1. Quickly Cooks the Food
Burning requires oxygen for sustainability and better functioning. When fresh air enters the oven, it provides oxygen that aids in the better cooking of food.
Let’s put it this way, a sealed oven with no vents will only raise the temperature but will take longer to cook. Even If you increase the temperature to 500F, its efficacy will be lower than a vented oven with a lower temperature.
If you want to know how oxygen helps in combustion. Do a simple experiment.
Cover the burning candle with an air-tight jar. You will notice that the flame will stop burning as the air supply is cut off.
2. Oven Safety
Vents are essential to keep your oven safe from fire hazards. The heated air inside the stove needs a place to escape.
If it is blocked inside the chamber due to thermal expansion (the process of expanding due to a change of temperature), it can overheat the oven resulting in malfunction or a fire hazard.
3. Better Taste and Texture
Everyone prefers baking because it makes your food soft from the inside while giving a crispy look from the outside. However, you can only achieve this rich texture by baking a moist food item in a vented oven.
Oven Vents help the moisture from the food to escape making it crumbly from the outside. If the steam is blocked inside the oven, it will make your food soggy and gooey which is not tasty at all.
Never cover the oven’s vent while baking, as it can cause fire and safety hazards.
Takeaway
Ovens need vents to circulate air from the cooking chamber properly. The principle of cooking food in ovens is based on the combustion that requires oxygen. If you have a sealed cooking range, the hot air won’t escape, which can have disastrous consequences.
Furthermore, the circulation of air also aids in better cooking and taste of the food. After learning about Oven Vents, I am sure you must have understood why you get such a crispy and crumbly apple pie or turkey straight from the oven at Thanksgiving.
