Baking is a method of preparing food that uses dry heat, typically in an oven, but can also be done in hot ashes, or on hot stones. The most common baked item is bread, but many other types of foods can be baked. Heat is gradually transferred "from the surface of cakes, cookies, and pieces of bread to their center, typically conducted at elevated temperatures surpassing 300°F. Dry heat cooking imparts a distinctive richness to foods through the processes of caramelization and surface browning. As heat travels through, it transforms batters and doughs into baked goods and more with a firm dry crust and a softer center. Baking can be combined with grilling to produce a hybrid barbecue variant by using both methods simultaneously, or one after the other. Baking is related to barbecuing because the concept of the masonry oven is similar to that of a smoke pit.

सेंकना भोजन पकाने की एक तकनीक है जिसमे भोजन को शुष्क उष्मा के संवहन द्वारा पकाया जाता है। आमतौर पर भोजन एक तंदूर में सेंका जाता है पर सिंकाई गर्म राख, तवे पर या गर्म पत्थर पर भी हो सकती है। इसका प्रयोग मुख्य रूप से रोटी, केक, पेस्ट्री, पाई और कुकीज़ आदि बनाने में किया जाता है।