Cooling racks are really handy to have when you bake lots of tasty treats. You usually use your cooling racks to give baked goods a convenient spot where they can cool down before you decide to bite into them.
If you don’t have a lot of space in your kitchen, then you might be wondering where to put your cooling rack. Some people even ask themselves whether a cooling rack can go into the oven or not.
If you could put a cooling rack into the oven, then it’d be nice and out of the way. Is it possible for cooling racks to go into ovens, though?
Read on to learn more about cooling racks and whether or not they can go into ovens. You should feel a lot more informed about what can and cannot be done with cooling racks after reading this information.
Certain Types of Cooling Racks Can Go Into Your Oven
Certain types of cooling racks will be able to go into your oven and be just fine. For example, cooling racks that are made out of high-quality stainless steel are going to do very well in your oven.
If you have a cooling rack that is made out of some type of plastic, then that definitely shouldn’t be going into your oven. Essentially, you need to ensure that the cooling rack is oven-safe before you place it inside an oven.
Some cooling racks are made using iron and they have a light layer of chrome coating. Cooling racks like this are okay to use normally, but you probably won’t want to place them in your oven.
You see, the coating chips off of these cooling racks rather easily, and you don’t want bits of that chrome coating to wind up in your food. There’s a reason why those iron cooling racks are so inexpensive, and they’re definitely not the best when it comes to longevity.
How to Know If a Cooling Rack Is Fine to Use in the Oven
Now you know that stainless steel cooling racks are safe to go into the oven. Many types of cooling racks are technically fine to go into the oven, but it’s best to buy a very good cooling rack that you know will last a long time.
That being said, the easiest way to tell if a cooling rack is safe for the oven is to look at the package. On the package, it should say that the cooling rack is oven-safe if it is indeed meant to go into the oven.
If the package doesn’t say that the cooling rack is oven-safe, then there is a good chance that it isn’t meant to be used in the oven. Not every cooling rack is going to be usable in this fashion.
You might need to specifically seek out stainless steel cooling racks to be sure that everything is oven-safe. Every cooling rack that is oven-safe should have some type of label stating that it is, though.
Avoid Buying Cooling Racks That Have Non-Stick Coating
Non-stick coating is usually a nice feature that you’d want something to have. However, it’s not ideal when you plan on using a cooling rack in the oven.
Non-stick coating tends to warp and it will eventually break down when it is used in an oven. The heat of the oven will warp the cooling rack and this could wind up causing the coating to ruin your food.
If you wish for your food to turn out perfectly with no issues, then it’s probably going to be better to buy a cooling rack that doesn’t have non-stick coating. Non-stick coating does make it easier to clean your cooling rack, but it simply isn’t worth the potential hassle.
Thankfully, there are many good cooling racks out there that don’t have non-stick coating applied. You’ll just need to read the description of any cooling rack that you plan to purchase to avoid non-stick coating.
Uses for Cooling Racks in Ovens
Cooling racks aren’t just used for helping foods to cool down. They can be so much more than that when you’re able to put them in ovens safely.
Take a look at some of the potential uses for cooling racks below. It might give you some strong ideas for what you can do with your new cooling rack.
1 – Smoking Meats and Fish
One of the most common ways that people use cooling racks in ovens involves smoking meats and fish. To smoke meats and fish properly, you’re going to need significant air circulation.
Cooling racks work well for this because they allow air to come up from the bottom just right. You can place your meat or fish directly on the cooling rack to get the job done.
If you would like to make a delicious smoked meat dish sometime soon, then using your cooling rack will come in handy. It’s definitely going to help you to get things to turn out just right.
2 – Dehydrating Foods
People also use cooling racks to dehydrate foods such as tomatoes or apples. You can make tasty dishes such as dehydrated apple rings that will be a very healthy snack.
Cooling racks work better for dehydrating foods than many other methods. It will help you to diffuse the heat while preventing the bottom of your pan from getting scorched.
There are many excellent dehydrated dishes that you could consider making, too. If you’re looking for new ways to try out your oven-safe cooling rack, then dehydrating foods will be a fun place to start.
3 – Basting Food with Ease
You can utilize cooling racks to baste foods with ease as well. Many people find that basting foods is a lot simpler and better when using cooling racks to get the job done.
If you’re roasting some type of juicy meat such as chicken thighs or steaks, then you could consider placing some beans or veggies under the cooling rack. It should be easy to fit a pan with veggies or beans under there since cooling racks aren’t quite as high as traditional roasting racks.
The beans or veggies can soak up the juices from the meat and become even tastier over time. This is something that many people love doing when they have cooling racks that can go into the oven.
4 – Delicious Crispy Baked Foods
It’s even possible to use your cooling racks to make delicious crispy baked foods. You can suspend your baked foods in the oven using a cooling rack to ensure that they get really crispy.
Baking breaded foods like this is healthier than frying them. You can still get them nice and crispy if you have a cooling rack that you can use.
Certain dishes are going to turn out really well like this. You might find that making scrumptious crispy baked foods will be one of your new favorite things to do once you get used to utilizing your cooling rack.
5 – Making the Bacon
Of course, using a cooling rack to make crispy bacon is going to be an excellent idea. You can fit so much bacon on a cooling rack, and it’s actually way better than making bacon in a skillet.
To get good results, you’re going to want to heat your oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Place a sheet pan underneath the bacon to catch the drippings.
You should notice that the bacon will turn out much crispier than it does when you make it in a skillet. It’ll be unbelievably tasty, and everyone is going to want you to make breakfast more often.
Final Thoughts
Cooling racks are going to be a great thing to have when you’re trying to make dishes conveniently. Not only are they good for cooling down various types of food, but they’re also great for helping you to make things in your oven.
To use a cooling rack in your oven, it’s going to be necessary to ensure that it’s oven-safe. Not all cooling racks are going to be oven-safe, but you can find ones that are.
The best types of cooling racks to use are made out of high-quality stainless steel. These cooling racks will hold up well and you’ll be able to use them for a long period of time.
Many iron cooling racks might say that they’re oven-safe, but they often have a chrome coating that can flake off and get on your food. Also, non-stick coating is something you need to avoid because it can get warped in the oven and ruin your food.
You’ll need to be careful when buying cooling racks for your oven. Do a bit of research and be sure to read the product descriptions before making a purchase.
When all is said and done, you should be able to have a cooling rack that will suit your needs perfectly. It’ll make your life a lot easier, and you’ll be glad that you purchased one.
Hopefully, you feel more confident about what to look for now. You also have lots of information about how you can use a cooling rack to its full potential.
I have two Associate’s degrees, one in Medical Assisting and the other in Computer Technician, and I am roughly five classes from a bachelor’s degree. Though I never ended up working in the medical field, I have five and a half years of experience in IT. I recently became a stay-at-home mom to my two young boys, and I’m so excited to start this adventure with them! In my spare time, I love to bake and read pretty much anything I can get my hands on.