Parchment Paper vs. Silicone Baking Mats

You’re most likely used to seeing cookie recipes that decision for lining your half-sheet trays with parchment paper, so what provides with the rise in reputation of silicone baking mats over the previous couple of years? Are these two nonstick surfaces interchangeable in recipes? And, are they equally good at baking cookies, cooling thick caramel, or releasing delicate macaron shells? Or a litany of different frequent baking and cooking duties?

Let’s get into it.

What’s Parchment Paper?

Often known as baking paper, parchment paper is solely paper that’s been handled with both silicone or Quilon (a chemical made up largely of isopropanol) to render it nonstick and heat-resistant. Silicone-treated parchment is barely dearer to supply, but in addition extra frequent in grocery shops. Not like Quilon-treated parchment, you possibly can reuse silicone-treated parchment just a few instances, and there appears to be some disagreement about Quilon’s well being security for baking functions.

Parchment paper is mostly offered in shops by the roll or in packing containers of pre-cut sheets that may match on most cookie trays. I favor the rolls of parchment to the pre-cut sheets as a result of many of the sheets are too small, and I’d quite trim off or fold up any extra paper to get extra protection. Nonetheless, pre-cut parchment paper has its followers (together with affiliate editorial director Riddley Gemperlein-Schirm, who swears by King Arthur Flour’s). 

Many specialty shops additionally promote pre-cut parchment liners for cake pans of all sizes, however you may also minimize out your personal. (As an apart, parchment paper may even be become piping bags.) 

The Professionals and Cons of Parchment Paper

Professionals

• Disposable for straightforward clean-up
• Very skinny for even cooking and optimum warmth transference
• Nonstick, however not slippery, resulting in optimum unfold for cookies
• Far more versatile—good for lining any measurement pan, and even making pastry baggage
• Some manufacturers are compostable

Cons

• Single-use paper, even when you will get just a few makes use of out of it, isn’t as sustainable

What Are Silicone Baking Mats and What Can You Use Them For?

In my kitchen, probably the most common process for parchment paper is lining half-sheet trays for a batch of cookies. (I additionally like to chop off a small rectangle to line quarter-sheet trays and dole out balls of dough for straightforward chilling.) Not solely does parchment present a floor that even the sugariest cookie dough gained’t stick with, but it surely additionally provides a layer of slight insulation, serving to to stop scorching (particularly if utilizing darker pans). It gained’t stick with your cookies, but it surely additionally isn’t so slippery that your cookies flatten out quicker than they bake. 

Silicone mats can’t compete on this area. As Stella Parks notes in her piece on the troubles of baking cookies on silicone, it doesn’t soak up moisture or fats like parchment does, leaving cookies a tad greasy—and in addition sweaty, if cooled on their trays. Additionally, they’re a bit too nonstick, inflicting cookies to unfold an excessive amount of within the oven, which ends up in the flawed texture, overcooked edges, and/or not sufficient rise. The thickness of those mats can assist conduct warmth extra gently, however they insulate the cookies an excessive amount of from the direct warmth from the tray under, which may be why they don’t set quick sufficient and unfold an excessive amount of. 

One other nice use for parchment that may’t be replicated by silicone? Lining cake tins. Greasing the tin, after which putting a sheet minimize to the pan’s form on the underside means the cake will launch with ease and little to no breakage. After all, they promote cake tin-size silicone mats, however then it’s important to have two to a few of them for each measurement cake pan you could have. 

For delicate piping work like buttercream flowers, royal icing transfers, or tempered chocolate designs, I like to make use of parchment as a result of it’s straightforward to peel off whereas being very cautious to not injury your creation. Silicone mats could be a bit too thick to softly peel them off. Plus you possibly can minimize the parchment into no matter measurement you want and simply transfer them round, wish to the fridge or a showstopper cake. 

Lastly, I really like rolling out dough for cut-out cookies on parchment as an alternative of a silicone mat. I simply lay one other piece of parchment on high of the dough and roll the dough between the 2 items, which additionally helps my rolling pin from changing into a sticky mess. This manner, it’s tremendous straightforward to find out the right thickness for rolling, switch the slabs to and from the fridge, and pry the fragile cutouts out of their dough prisons. 

Though parchment can also be nice for baking one other cookie, macaron shells, some bakers swear by utilizing silicone mats. A lot of them even include macaron templates of various sizes conveniently printed on them. This may boil down to private choice. And whereas silicone mats make some cookies, for instance, the classic chocolate chip, unfold an excessive amount of, different forms of cookies reminiscent of florentines and tuiles profit from a number of unfold. 

Bread bakers love utilizing silicone mats which are precisely the scale of a bread oven. With them, they will end up their formed loaf onto an oval of silicone, spray it, coat it in flour, rating it with a lame, and simply switch it with their two little tab handles to the pre-heated bread oven. In my expertise with baking sourdough, parchment tends to scorch on the excessive temperatures required for a tall rise and open crumb. 

One other style of baked items I’ll whip out my silicone mats for is something tremendous sticky. I’ve discovered that with scorching, molten caramel, silicone is rather more forgiving. After I’m dipping caramel apples, I like to position them on silicone to set. Or once I’ve made a hard-crack caramel like for peanut brittle, I wish to pour it out onto a silicone mat on a sheet tray. Parchment can get caught on the caramel somewhat simpler and, as a result of it’s paper, it is inclined to ripping. (A very good silicone mat will nearly by no means tear.) The identical goes for a batch of syrupy granola. It’s annoying to should attempt to peel off parchment caught to one thing sticky, belief me. After all, you would all the time flippantly grease any parchment you’re utilizing, however you then’ll get a sheen on the completed product, and why undergo the additional step?

In addition they make silicone mats for worktops which are an awesome non-stick floor for rolling out pie crust, brioche dough for cinnamon rolls, or different sticky pastries. They usually include ruler markings on the perimeters, useful baking conversion charts, and concentric circles displaying you the right diameters for pie crust, too.

The Professionals and Cons of Silicone Baking Mats

Professionals

• Price-effective in the long run—purchase it as soon as and also you’ll have it for years 
• Reusable—much less waste and environmental influence
• Extra heat-resistant than parchment paper
• Simple to throw within the dishwasher
• Much less fragile than parchment paper
• Evenly distributes warmth

Cons

• Too slippery, resulting in an excessive amount of unfold on cookies
• Tough to wash and dry by hand
• Have a tendency to carry onto highly effective smells and stains

Why We’re the Specialists

• Eric King is a recipe developer, photographer, meals stylist, and content material creator.
• He has a B.S. in journal journalism from Syracuse College.
• He runs a baking weblog known as easygayoven and has developed, styled, and photographed recipes for Netflix Household.
• He has reviewed many gadgets for severe eats, together with bench scrapers and wine tumblers.