Tips and guidelines
A P P E N D I X
Cooking with microwaves differs in some aspects from normal cooking. The guidelines
and tips below will help you get better results using a microwave oven.
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Wait time
Microwaves do not usually completely penetrate the food on the
rotary plate. The wait time allows the food to continue cooking even
after the oven has switched off. The temperature can rise by up to 8°
C inside the food.
After heating food in the microwave, let it stand in the oven for a
short time to allow the temperature to equalise. The wait time
depends on the weight, volume and density of the food (and can be up
to 10 minutes).
How to cook food without overcooking (drying, charring etc.)
◆
Select the right cooking level.
◆
Select the right cooking time. Times quoted in recipes are
approximate and depend upon initial temperature, weight, density
of food etc.
◆
Always use microwave-suitable dishes.
Defrosting
◆
Defrosting is faster in flatter dishes than in higher dishes.
◆
Divide large pieces of food into smaller pieces for faster defrosting.
◆
Cover the smaller pieces when they start to warm up.
◆
Do not defrost completely under power, let the food stand for a
while.
Amount
To warm up more food you need more time. Rule of thumb:
double the food, double the time (almost).
Initial temperature
The colder the food, the more time is needed.
Different foods
When cooking a meal with various ingredients remember that fat and
sugar heat up faster than water.
This means that ingredients with higher fat and sugar contents will
have higher temperatures after cooking than those containing water.
The more dense a food, the longer it takes to cook/defrost. Very dense
foods, like meat, take much longer to warm up than say sponge cake.
Micro heating of beverages can result in delayed eruptive boiling,
therefore care has to be taken when handling the container.
Skins, peels, shells ...
Some foods have a skin, peel or a shell (eggs, potatoes, apples, liver,
sausages).
Puncture the skin or peel with for example a fork to allow steam to
escape and the food to expand - this releases pressure and prevents
the food from bursting.
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