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MICROWAVE COOKING TIPS
MICROWAVE COOKING TIPS
Amount of Food
• If you increase or decrease
the amount of food
you prepare, the time it takes to cook that food will
also change. For example, if you double a recipe,
add a little more than half the original cooking time.
Check for doneness and, if necessary, add more
time in small increments.
Starting Temperature of Food
•
The lower the temperature
of the food being
put into the microwave oven, the longer it takes to
cook. Food at room temperature will be re-heated
more quickly than food at refrigerator temperature.
Composition of Food
• Food with a lot of fat and sugar
will be heated
faster than food containing a lot of water. Fat and
sugar will also reach a higher temperature than
water in the cooking process.
•
The denser the food,
the longer it takes to heat.
Size and Shape
• Smaller pieces of food
will cook faster than larger
pieces. Also, same-shaped pieces cook more
evenly than different-shaped pieces.
•
With foods that have different thicknesses,
the
thinner parts will cook faster than the thicker parts.
Place
the thinner parts of chicken wings and legs
in the center of the dish.
Stirring and Turning Foods
•
Stirring and turning foods
spreads heat quickly
to the center of the dish and avoids overcooking at
the outer edges of the food.
Covering Food
Cover food to:
• Reduce
splattering
• Shorten
cooking times
• Keep
food moist
You can use any covering that lets microwaves pass
through. See “Getting to Know Your Microwave
Oven” for materials that microwaves will pass
through. If you are using the Sensor function, be
sure to vent.
Releasing Pressure in Foods
•
Several foods
(for example: baked potatoes,
sausages, egg yolks, and some fruits) are tightly
covered by a skin or membrane. Steam can build up
under the membrane during cooking, causing the
food to burst. To relieve the pressure and to prevent
bursting,
pierce
these foods before cooking with a
fork or toothpick.
Using Standing Time
•
Always allow food to stand
either in or outside
the oven after cooking power stops. Standing time
after defrosting and cooking allows the temperature
to evenly spread throughout the food, improving the
cooking results. For standing time inside the oven,
program a “0” power second stage of the cooking
cycle. See “Two-Stage Cooking.”
•
The length of the standing time
depends on the
amount of food being cooked and how dense it is.
Sometimes it can be as short as the time it takes to
remove the food from the oven and move it to the
serving table. However, with larger, denser food items,
the standing time may be as long as 10 minutes.
Arranging Food
For best results, place food evenly on the plate. You can
do this in several ways:
• If you are cooking several items of the same food,
such as baked potatoes,
place
them in a ring pattern
for uniform cooking.
•
When cooking foods of uneven shapes or
thickness, such as chicken breasts, place
the
smaller or thinner area of the food toward the center
of the dish where it will be heated last.
• Layer thin slices of meat
on top of each other.
• When you cook or reheat whole fish, score
the
skin – this prevents cracking.
• Do not
let food or a container touch the top or sides of
the oven. This will prevent possible arcing (sparking.)
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