About Hearth Cooking

History of Hearth Cooking

Over 7,000 years old, the hearth oven was the oven in which all baking was traditionally done throughout the world. Made entirely from stone, brick, and/or clay, their original design featured a flat baking surface, curved sidewalls, and a beehive shaped domed roof. To heat the hearth oven, a wood fire was built in the baking chamber and left to burn for several hours. After the wood had burned down to ashes, the ashes were removed and the oven was ready for use.

During this heating process, the hearth absorbed the heat from the wood, essentially becoming “charged” with heat. The hearth slowly released this heat and evenly distributed it throughout the baking period. This slow and steady process produced incredible baked goods, better breads, and roasted foods. In fact, the hearth retained heat so well, two or three batches of bread could be baked before the temperature fell too low. At that stage, the oven chamber could be loaded with crocks of stews or beans that benefited from an extended period of cooking at lower temperatures.

Often permanently constructed in a fireplace, the hearth oven was not portable. With urbanization and the industrial revolution in Europe, space and wood became scarce and coal became the fuel of choice. Smaller portable ovens were needed. In the 19th century, access to less expensive metals and industrial production techniques led to the invention of the metal cookers — the first modern home oven. Portability, price, and relative lightness made such metal cookers the norm.

Why is Hearth Cooking Better?

Hearth ovens have more mass so they maintain a steady even heat that is released into all foods baked on the hearth. When baking in a hearth oven, three heat principles are at work: conductive, radiant, and ambient. The three work together to form a hearth environment. Conductive heat is cooking in direct contact with the heat source; the heat moves vertically through the food. Radiant heat emanates from the roof and sides of the oven, while ambient heat fills the oven cavity and determines the length of the baking cycle.

Conventional modern day ovens use only ambient and minimal radiant heat. Some ovens have been improved by circulating hot air with a fan inside, also known as convection. However, without conductive, radiant, and ambient working together, it is impossible to achieve a hearth environment. Conventional ovens have very little mass and cool rapidly, causing them to continuously cycle on and off in an attempt to maintain a steady temperature. As a result, oven temperatures can swing up to 75°F and subject food to frequent high blasts of uneven heat.

This is where the hearth oven outperforms a conventional oven. In short, HearthKit solves the challenges of the modern oven with eons-old, time proven methods.

photo credit: jared