When my wife is cooking a roast in the oven does the top element engage at all?

Question

My beleaf is that the broiler element only works when broiling and not when roasting. Our muffins burn at 350 degrees and if the rack was lifted another one or two notches that problem may be curtailed. And we should stop blaming the top element especially when the muffins only burn on the bottom.

Answer 1

There is nothing wrong with your top element nor anything wrong with the temperature you are baking your muffins at. What IS wrong is your oven thermostat - not an unusual state of affairs. (Also remember that in baking your pans should be placed as close to the center of the oven as possible.)

Pick up an inexpensive oven thermometer. You will find one right in many grocery stores, in the aisle where they sell things like measuring spoons and burner liner pans. Position the top rack of your oven so that the oven thermometer, when hung from one of the wires in the center of the rack, is as close to the center of the oven as you can get it. Be sure the thermometer is facing out.

Now, set your oven to 300 and let it preheat. Record the exact temperature shown by your oven thermometer. Turn the oven temp up to 325 and repeat. Keep repeating until you get to 450 or so - about the highest tempt things are usually cooked at in a home oven.

With luck, you will discover that your thermostat is off something on the order of 25 degrees across the board, as is often the case. Compensate for that by determining whether your oven burns too hot (so it is really 375 when you set it for 350) or too cold, then simply set your oven to compensate. (Set the oven to 325 to get a real temp of 350.)

If you aren't quite so lucky, you now have a handy chart of what the various settings on your stove mean in real temperatures that you can use to set your oven accordingly.

Answer 2

Do you have a dutch oven? Or a heavy pot with a lid that the roast will fit into? If so, heat some oil on medium high heat and brown the roast on all sides, add one cup of wine or broth (chickens best but beef or vegetable will do), add any vegetables that you want like onions, potatoes, carrots, celery, etc, cut in large pieces because you will be cooking for a long time at low temps or you can add in the last hour, don't forget to season with salt and pepper plus whatever else you would normally use. Cover and simmer on the stove top at medium low for about 2 to 4 hours depending on the size of your roast. The roast should easily pull apart with a fork when it's ready. If you use a pot other than a dutch oven make sure the bottom is heavy and thick or you will have a problem with it burning on the bottom.

Answer 3

a roast is actually a bake... its the bottom element only.. in fact.. I don't know of any oven that runs both simultaneously...
sometimes I roast the meat, then turn off the bake, and turn on the broiler at the last of the cooking, to crisp up the top of the roast...
if her muffins are too brown at the bottom, either the rack is too low, or the temperature is too high and it cooks too quickly... (its not the top broiler element at all)

Answer 4

Have you tried using an oven thermometer to see how hot your oven really gets when set at 350?

My oven top element comes on when broiling, and also when the oven is on the preheat setting. When I turn it to bake, after it's preheated, only the bottom element comes on when necessary to keep the correct temperature.

And, 350F isn't too hot to bake muffins.

Answer 5

Turn the oven down. 350..!!!!!!
No wonder they're burned, bet if you bit into them you would find a raw bit.
Cook gently. It's not a race to see which muffin makes it out first.
And in the middle of the oven is good.
And apologies for this, it's 'belief'.

Answer 6

Listen to the previous answers , my oven runs 25 hotter than set , I tested it w/ 2 oven thermometers.