The Real Difference Between Fan Bake, Bake, and the Setting You Always Use

Or: Why your cookies are crispy on the outside and still emotionally raw on the inside.

If your oven has more symbols than your car dashboard, you’re not alone. Most of us pick a setting that worked once in 2009 and never look back. Bake? Fan bake? Grill-with-a-squiggle? They’re all heat, right?

Well – yes. But also: no. Here's what each setting actually does, when to use it, and how to stop your brownies from having the emotional range of a lava cake.

1. Bake (a.k.a. Top + Bottom Heating Elements)

This is the traditional, non-fan setting—the OG of oven functions. It uses heat from both the top and bottom elements, with no air circulation. Great for dishes that need a gentle rise or even heat without being blasted by a tornado.

Use it for:

+ Cakes that you don’t want to dry out
+ Cheesecakes (which are already emotionally fragile)
+ Baked pasta dishes
+ Gentle, slow roasting

Avoid it if:

You’re in a hurry or cooking anything with a time-sensitive crust. This is the yoga setting: low, slow, and not built for drama.

2. Fan Bake (a.k.a. Convection Mode)

This one adds a fan to circulate hot air, which sounds minor but changes everything. It cooks food faster, more evenly, and slightly more aggressively. Great for multitasking or when you want crispy and cooked through.

Use it for:

+ Roasts Veggies you want to caramelise without babysitting
+ Multiple trays of biscuits that you want to bake evenly (you rebel)
+ Pretty much anything frozen from a box

Avoid it if:

You’re baking anything delicate, or you’re following a recipe from the 1970s that assumes ovens are basically campfires.

3. Fan Forced (a.k.a. The One With Just the Fan and a Heating Ring)

Different from fan bake, this setting only uses the circular element around the fan. It’s turbo-charged airflow, without the top or bottom heat. More even, faster cooking—and great when you’ve got multiple trays and want no hot spots.

Use it for:

Batches of anything
Scones with ambition
Cookies that don’t deserve burnt bottoms
When your in-laws are due in 45 minutes and you’ve got a tray bake and a panic attack to manage

Avoid it if:

You want a browned top or slow-cooked depth. This one’s more "speed and efficiency," less "romance of cooking."

4. Grill, Fan Grill, and That Symbol You Keep Ignoring

Grill is top heat only. Fan grill adds airflow to the party. Great for fast, high-heat finishes. Terrible for anything you leave unattended for more than 12 seconds.

Use it for:

Melting cheese like you mean it
Browning the top of lasagna with theatrical flair
Toasting breadcrumbs (for the 3% of you who do that)

Avoid it if:

You don’t like surprise fires or charcoal pizza.

5. So... What Setting Should You Actually Use?

Honestly? It depends what you're cooking. But here’s a cheat sheet:

Summary

Your oven is smarter than you think – and probably smarter than whoever taught you to just “turn it on and hope.” A little setting strategy can go a long way in making sure your dinner is less “charred outside, frozen inside” and more “I totally meant to do that.”

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