Your completely baked cake is in front of you. You are filled with joy because the last few hours you have put in collecting all the ingredients, making the mixture, baking, and all the waiting have ended.
Your cake is in front of you; you just have to take it out from the baking pan and slice it to enjoy the dessert with your favorite Netflix episode.
But as soon as you lift the cake from the tray, you find that most of your cake has stuck to the sides of the baking pan.
Your joy turns into disappointment because all your preparation and work goes into nothing.
If the above scenario feels like a flashback to you or a fresh memory, do not worry because you certainly are not alone.
It does not matter how many hours you have put in to make the perfect cake, but if you do not adequately prepare your baking pan before pouring in the cake batter, you always will be disappointed in the end.
Also Read: Why Does My Cake Crumble (Reasons & Fixes)
Why Does My Cake Stick To The Pan And How To Fix It?
There can be one or more reasons which can clarify why your cake sticks to the baking pan. Here we have mentioned a list of all the possible reasons which can make your cake stick to the baking pan.
Read them thoroughly and make sure not to follow them next time you plan to bake a cake.
You forgot to grease your baking pan
Yes, without a doubt, there are some types of baking pans available in the market which do not require you to grease them before pouring the cake batter.
But most of the baking pan and cake recipe calls for a greased baking pan.
If you do not grease your baking pan before pouring your batter and placing the pan into the oven, you can not expect the cake to not stick to the pan.
It would be best if you always grease your baking pan with ghee, melted butter, shortening, vegetable oil, etc.
If you choose to use vegetable oils to grease your pan, then use only lightly flavored oils. Try not to use olive oil because it has a potent smell, and it can hamper the flavor of your cake too.
Once you have greased your pan, generously dust a little amount of flour into your cake pan.
Also Read: Why Does My Cake Sink In The Middle (How To Fix?)
You did grease your baking pan but did not thoroughly
You must know that preparation time is the most crucial time when you are baking a cake. You must pay attention to every detail because one mistake can wreck your whole cake recipe, and you will be left with only failure in the end.
When you are greasing your baking pan before pouring in your batter, make sure that you do not leave any corners.
To be sure that you have done your job correctly, rotate the baking pan and inspect that the surface of the pan is greased. Also, make sure that you are using a sufficient amount of your greasing material.
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You are not using the right baking spray
Although PAM could come in handy, the finest product is made expressly for baking cakes and other delicacies. This ought to be available at your neighborhood grocery store.
If you are not on a budget and are on a grocery shopping run, you should spend a little extra money on baker’s release spray.
It will tremendously increase the likelihood of your cake turning out well and coming out of the baking pan without any problem.
Your parchment paper was too small in size
If you have ever baked something in your life, then you must know how vital parchment paper is during the baking process.
It is one of the best methods which can help you to prevent your baked cake from sticking to the core of the baking pan.
So how do you use parchment paper? As we discussed above, you must first grease your baking pan with ghee, butter, or cooking oil.
Now, put your parchment paper into the baking pan and apply a second layer of the greasing material.
But one aspect you have to keep in mind is that you have to cut parchment paper exactly to the size of your baking pan.
If you use it too small, your cake batter will spill over onto the baking pan. It will lead to the situation where your baked cake will stick to the base of the baking pan.
If you think you do not have the patience to cut the parchment paper, then you can buy pre-cut parchment paper from your nearest grocery store.
You attempted to take your cake out forcefully
You are doing it wrong if your method of removing the cake from the pan entails sticking a knife or spatula into the pan and scraping it out.
Also Read: How Does The Number Of Eggs Affect a Cake (Explained!)
Three Tips To Keep Cake from Sticking to the Pan
Though it is hard to bake the cake perfectly every time, we can try. Here are three most critical baking tips which amateur bakers and professional bakers can use as well to keep the cake from sticking to the baking pan.
Never forget to use the parchment paper
If you do not want to see your beautifully baked cake stick to the baking pan, then you should make a habit of applying parchment paper after greasing your pan.
Please do not attempt to use paper towels or other because they can turn into a dangerous fire hazard. Parchment paper is advised to use because it can withstand a higher amount of heat from the oven.
Grease your baking pan
Never forget to grease your baking pan with melted ghee, cooking oil, butter, or baking spray.
It will make the base of your baking pan slippery, and you will not face any problem removing the baked cake from the pan. Also, you can use a nonstick pan for baking your cake.
Sprinkle flour in the baking pan
If you do not want to create any mess during the cake retrieval, sprinkle some flour into your baking pan before putting the cake batter.
When you add flour or shortening, the base of the pan is not able to grip the cake batter and thus prevents the sticking.
If you are thinking of making a chocolate cake, you can sprinkle the cocoa powder in addition to flour on the interior of the baking pan.
FAQ
How do you keep a cake from sticking without parchment paper?
Even the non-baker person knows that you need to line your baking pan with parchment paper so that the cake (or other things you are baking) does not stick to the pan.
But what if we do not have parchment paper? Is there any alternative that we can use to keep the cake from sticking without parchment paper?
Yes, you can use the greasing and flouring method instead of lining the baking pan with parchment paper. You will be amazed to see how well this method works if it is done correctly.
You can use butter, shortening, cooking oil, or ghee for greasing. Apply your greasing material generously to the baking pan you will bake your cake.
Should you wait for the cake to cool before removing it from the pan?
There is always doubt in people‘s minds about whether or not to let the cake cool before removing it from the baking pan.
Some people suggest that you should directly remove your cake from the baking pan, and others say to wait to let it cool down to room temperature. So whom to listen to?
Typically, you should leave your baked cake in the baking pan and allow it to cool for the time mentioned in your recipe (as per your baking) before removing the cake from the pan. Typically this cooling time is fifteen to twenty minutes.
Please do not allow your cake in any circumstance to cool completely before you take it out from the baking pan.
Also Read: Can You Make Brownies From A Cake Mix? (Full Recipe!!)
Final Thoughts
Even if you are a professional baker, it is tough to bake the perfect cake every time because anything can go wrong during the whole baking process.
If you have just started your baking process, get ready to face some setbacks but trust the process and do not forget to enjoy the baking process.
There can be a lot of reasons which might be responsible for your cake sticking to the pan. You may have forgotten to grease your baking pan properly, or if you did grease the pan, you have not done your job thoroughly.
Not using parchment paper might be one of the reasons your cake is sticking to the pan.
Grease your pan and then sprinkle some flour in your baking pan so that batter doesn’t grip the base and stick to it. Do not forget to use parchment paper every time you bake.
Happy baking!
