Preheat
The initial heating phase before the oven reaches the cooking temperature.
Definition
Preheat is the initial heating phase that brings the oven cavity from room temperature up to the set cooking temperature. Preheat times range from 8-15 minutes for conventional ovens, 6-10 minutes for convection ovens, and 4-6 minutes for premium fast-preheat models. Loading food during preheat (rather than waiting for the preheat-complete signal) results in slower, less consistent cooking — the food sits at intermediate temperatures during the warm-up. Some recipes benefit from this (slow-rising bread), but most baking recipes assume the cavity is at the listed temperature when the food enters.
Where this term appears
Preheat comes up in product spec sheets, service reports, and troubleshooting documentation across most major appliance brands. If you encountered it in a manual or a service description and want context for how it fits into the larger picture, the related articles in the sidebar drill into the practical details. The glossary as a whole is intended as a quick lookup reference; for a deep dive on any specific topic, jump to the related buying guide or troubleshooting article.