A cookery question for all would be cooks & chefs etc.

[Dave7]

Roasting is cooking over a fire eg a spit roast.

Apparently that USED to be a deciding factor but no longer.

 

[Dave7]

You're asking Google. Who is Google asking?

Me of course silly

 

[Dave7]

Right. For various reasons I will give the answer(s) according to google. I am not saying I agree and TBH the definition seems to depend which so called expert you read.
As I had never read these explanations and nor has my chef son I was interested what the folk on CC thought.
I found 3 seperate answers as follows.
1. If what you are cooking starts as a
liquidy type substance and hardens
under the process eg cakes then it is
baking.
2. If it is eg meat on its own then it is roast
if you add eg veg and stock it is baking
3. If its eg a whole bird its roasting. If the
bird is in pieces then that is baking.

 

[Electric_Andy]

I agree with 1) but not the rest. This is a bit like "what do you call a loaf?"! It will probably differ between generations, counties, cultures.

I'd say roasting is using fat/oil, i.e. something that gets hotter than boiling water AND being enclosed by something that cooks the whole thing evenly (i.e. an oven or a pot with a lid).

Baking generally relies on the ambient temperature around it (so doesn't have oil or anything). Some bread recipes might have oil in them, but that's IN them and not around them.

Roast potatoes (lard/oil....in an oven)
Pot Roast (American, but anyway, sitting in liquid with a lid on)
Roast Parsnips (see roast potatoes).

Tuna pasta BAKE (not sitting in oil)
BAKED Alaska (pudding, not sitting in oil)
BAKED apple (apple in the oven, not sitting in oil)

 

[Dave7]

I agree with 1) but not the rest. This is a bit like "what do you call a loaf?"! It will probably differ between generations, counties, cultures.

I'd say roasting is using fat/oil, i.e. something that gets hotter than boiling water AND being enclosed by something that cooks the whole thing evenly (i.e. an oven or a pot with a lid).

Baking generally relies on the ambient temperature around it (so doesn't have oil or anything). Some bread recipes might have oil in them, but that's IN them and not around them.

Roast potatoes (lard/oil....in an oven)
Pot Roast (American, but anyway, sitting in liquid with a lid on)
Roast Parsnips (see roast potatoes).

Tuna pasta BAKE (not sitting in oil)
BAKED Alaska (pudding, not sitting in oil)
BAKED apple (apple in the oven, not sitting in oil)

As I say, I dont really agree either. But if you google eg "baked chicken recipe" thats what will come up......then google "roast chicken", it will be a whole chicken.
Or do as I did and google "whats the difference between a roast and a baked meal"......thats what will come up.

 

[Racing roadkill]

https://www.thekitchn.com/whats-the-difference-between-roasting-and-baking-word-of-mouth-211695

 

[johnblack]

As long as we don't start with anyone trying to explain the difference between fried and "Pan-fried" other than it being a pretentious embellishment.

 

[Fab Foodie]

1) seems reasonable except for Baked potato....
The rest seems nonsense....

 

[Fab Foodie]

....also, baking is a dry process where you are trying to drive moisture out of the product, whereas roasting is about retaining moisture and preventing drying-out....
Both may involve browning reactions.
Roasting in my book involves oil or fat as an intermediate heat- transfer medium....

 

[IaninSheffield]

Think I'll just drop 'clam bake' in and see what happens ...

 

[Racing roadkill]

You can bake a ham, you can’t roast a cake, that’s why it’s mostly differentiated by the temperature.

 

[PK99]

Roasting is cooking over a fire eg a spit roast.

Errm, are you sure?


Over a fire is BBQ

 

[PK99]

Roast ham vs Baked ham: Spot the difference?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/how_to_cook_a_ham_22897

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/baked-ham-brown-sugar-mustard-glaze

 

[CharlesF]

Just accept that I was first and definitely correct. No more discussion.

Otherwise it will turn out like the colour of that dress from a year or two ago.

 

[flake99please]

All this oven talk has me thinking about a roast alaska.