An oven liner is a nonstick piece of plastic or fiberglass that is designed to protect the bottom of an oven from food drippings and fires. Some oven liners are made to be used in a particular style or brand of oven, but the vast majority can be trimmed or adapted to fit into almost any type of oven. The liners allow bakers to quickly clean their ovens without either scrubbing or using the oven’s intensive self-cleaning feature.
Even the most careful bakers cannot usually go long with a pristine oven. Foods have a tendency to boil or bubble over, and drips on an oven’s floor are incredibly common. If left unattended, spilled food can bake onto an oven’s surface, and with time, these baked-on drippings can smoke or even catch fire while baking. The key to reducing these occurrences is a regular oven cleaning regimen. An oven liner makes this task easier in most circumstances.
Trying to scrape food particles out of an oven can be a tricky proposition. Ovens are typically small, and orienting one’s self into the oven box in order to exert enough scrubbing force to remove a stain or drip can be quite uncomfortable. Particularly in gas-fueled ovens, it can also be dangerous.
An oven liner acts as the oven floor, but is easily removable. Once the oven has cooled, cooks can simply remove the oven liner and bring it to a sink or other surface for cleaning and scrubbing. Many are also dishwasher safe. Once the liner has dried, it can be easily slid back into the oven. Liners typically have a lifespan of at least a few years, if not more.
Most oven liners are made of high-density plastic or fiberglass. They are typically nonstick, which makes cleaning even easier. Different manufacturers make different sorts of liners, and the qualities — and prices — vary. The best liners are temperature-tested to withstand high temperatures for extended periods of time.
Oven liners are most popular among cooks without self-cleaning ovens. Self-cleaning ovens are ovens capable of cleaning themselves, usually by heating themselves to extraordinary temperatures in an effort to scorch off any drippings or oven spills. While it is usually a good idea to run an oven’s self-cleaning feature periodically, it can be an extraordinary use of energy if all that needs to be cleaned is a few oven drips. An oven liner is a fast and easy cleaning alternative that saves both time and resources.