Baking is the technique of cooking food in an oven by dry heat applied evenly throughout the oven. The person that does the baking is called a baker. Breads, desserts, and meat (see also roasting) are often baked, and baking is the primary cooking technique used to produce cakes and pastry-based goods such as pies, tarts, and quiches. Such items are sometimes referred to as "baked goods," and are sold at a bakery. Less often, the term "baking" is slang for the act of smoking weed.

The dry heat of baking gelatinizes starch and causes the outside of the food to brown or char, giving it an attractive appearance and taste, as well as partially sealing in the food's moisture. The browning is caused by caramelization of sugars and the Maillard reaction. Moisture is never really entirely "sealed in," however; over time, an item being baked will become drier and drier. This is often an advantage, especially in situations where drying is the desired outcome, for example in drying herbs or in roasting certain types of vegetables. The most common baked item is bread. Variations in the ovens, ingredients and recipies used in the baking of bread result in the wide variety of breads produced around the world.

To compensate for moisture loss, some items (usually meats) are basted on the surface with butter or oil to slow the loss of moisture through the skin. Some foods are replenished with moisture during baking by placing a small amount of liquid (such as water or broth) in the bottom of the pan, and letting it steam up into or around the food. The term baking is not usually associated with the cooking of meats in this manner, it is instead termed roasting.

Over time baked goods become hard in a process known as going stale, this is not primarily due to moisture being lost from the baked products but a reorganization of the way in which the water and starch are associated over time, a process similar to recrystallization.

Cooking terms

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