What is broiling and how to broil?

Many recipes call for broiling, but what is it? Broiling is actually a setting on your oven – most ovens have off, bake and broil. With broiling you are heating food by using the top element in your oven to cook. The bake setting instead bakes your food by surrounding the food by an even heat. Normally, you use the broil setting with the oven door open ajar.

Broiling is often used for browning the tops of dishes, particularly with cheese such as a lasagna. It can also be used to cook a steak when a barbeque isn’t available.

If you are broiling anything that drips juices or fat, use a broiling pan. This is a pan that is similar to a rimmed baking dish on the bottom but the top (that you place the food on top of) has slats that allow the fat or juices to drop down to the bottom. This prevents the fat from then spitting up onto the heat element. It also helps reduce fat.