Do I need to grease my silicone mold before baking?

A silicone baking pan is a convenient dish in which you can prepare various delicacies: cupcakes, muffins, pies, cookies, bread, cake layers, rolls, casseroles and other confectionery products. Its important advantages are ideal thermal conductivity and non-stick coating. Silicone, like other materials, has its disadvantages, but they can be avoided if you use the container wisely. There are a couple of important points that worry many housewives: whether it is necessary to lubricate the silicone mold, and what is the best way to do this.

To lubricate or not - that is the question

In general, any container intended for baking confectionery products requires compliance with certain rules both before the first use and during operation. As for silicone forms, everything is a little simpler with them: they do not require such attention and care, such as metal products or heat-resistant glass.

The advantage of silicone molds is that their inner surface is already coated with a layer that prevents food from burning. But this only applies to high quality products.

So, should you grease your silicone mold? Yes, but only before the first use and only if you have spared no expense and purchased really high-quality cookware. Primary oil treatment is needed to create an invisible fatty film that will last for a very long time.

If the silicone is not of high quality, then you will have to lubricate the walls before each use - to be on the safe side, since the dough will burn.

However, whether to treat the surface of the mold or not is a person’s personal preference. You can lubricate it, or you can ignore this process - time will tell how best to use the silicone container. In fact, there are no strict rules or restrictions. But there are a number of recommendations from chefs that you need to listen to. Be sure to lubricate the silicone if:

• dishes with grooved edges, small grooves, bulges and depressions;
• the dough contains a lot of sugar, jam, marmalade and other ingredients that can stick to the surface of the silicone;
• In the future, the mold will be washed in the dishwasher.

How to grease a silicone baking pan?

There are several options:

• oil - butter or vegetable oil, odorless;
• margarine;
• fat.

If you use solid products, it is better to first melt them over low heat and then apply them to the walls of the mold using a special culinary brush. You can also use a cotton pad or even a paper napkin. It is very important to distribute the composition evenly so that there are no drips.