Is it really safe to cook food in an oven?

Everyone knows that open flame grilling can produce carcinogens, so many friends ask if it is safe to bake food in a home oven? Does it also produce toxic and harmful substances like open flame grilling?

In fact, the key here is to control the heat.

We need to know that there are two main reasons why open-flame grilling produces carcinogens: one is being close to the fire source, and the other is high temperature. For example, the temperature of traditional charcoal grilled lamb legs can reach about 200-240 degrees. When meat is heated for a long time at a high temperature of more than 200 degrees, the production of heterocyclic amine carcinogens will double; at the same time, the fat in the meat will also undergo a series of reactions such as thermal polymerization to form polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons such as benzopyrene. Especially in the process of smoking, the more smoke means the higher the content of benzopyrene.

The cleverness of home ovens is that they avoid the two "fuses" mentioned above. First, the food will not come into direct contact with the heat source, and there is basically no smoke. Second, the temperature can be easily controlled, and the heat is easy to be evenly distributed, so the food will not be too hot locally. For barbecued meat and fish, as long as the temperature does not exceed 180-200℃, and the time is properly controlled, and the temperature is adjusted at any time during the baking process to avoid burning the surface, there is no need to worry too much about the production of carcinogens (or the heterocyclic amines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons produced are negligible).

For example, it has been found that the benzopyrene content of lamb kebabs baked in oven is only one tenth to one tenth of that of lamb kebabs baked over charcoal, far below the limit of smoked and roasted animal food hygiene standards (no more than 5μg/kg). On the contrary, traditional cooking methods such as frying and stir-frying can also cause partial burning and produce carcinogens if the heat is not properly controlled.

Furthermore, the temperature set in the oven refers to the temperature of the hot air in the oven, and the hot air can only contact the surface of the food. In fact, the internal temperature of the food is much lower, which adds another "bumper".

In addition, some tips can also help us eat healthier, such as wrapping it with tin foil or lotus leaves before baking, which will further reduce the production of carcinogens. For example, marinating it with garlic juice, cinnamon powder, rosemary, onions, etc. before baking can also help reduce the production of carcinogens. Of course, when eating, pairing it with more fresh, dark-colored fruits and vegetables and potatoes can reduce the interference of some harmful substances to the body. This is not only true for oven-baked meat, but also for any form of meat.

In short, as long as you control the temperature and avoid burning, you can eat food baked in the oven with confidence. It can be used as a form of cooking diversity and you can choose according to your preferences.