En-6
General Guidelines
STANDING TIME
Dense foods e.g. meat, jacket potatoes and cakes,
require standing time (inside or outside of the
oven) after cooking, to allow heat to finish
conducting to the center of the food to cook
through completely. Wrap meat joints and jacket
potatoes in aluminium foil while standing. Meat
joints need approx. 10–15 minutes, jacket potatoes
5 minutes. Other foods such as plated meals,
vegetables, fish etc. require 2–5 minutes standing.
If food is not cooked after standing time, return to
the oven and cook for additional time. After
defrosting food, standing time should also be
allowed.
QUANTITY
Small quantities cook faster than large quantities,
also small meals will reheat more quickly than
large portions.
SPACING
Foods cook more quickly and evenly if spaced
apart. NEVER pile foods on top of each other.
MOISTURE CONTENT
Many fresh foods e.g. vegetables and fruit, vary in
their moisture content throughout the season,
particularly jacket potatoes. For this reason
cooking times may have to be adjusted. Dry
ingredients e.g. rice, pasta, can dry out during
storage so cooking times may differ.
PIERCING
The skin or membrane on some foods will cause
steam to build up during cooking.
These foods must be pierced or a strip of skin
should be peeled off before cooking to allow the
steam to escape. Eggs, potatoes, apples,
sausages etc, will all need to be pierced before
cooking. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO BOIL EGGS IN
THEIR SHELLS.
COVERING
Cover foods with microwave cling film or a lid.
Cover fish, vegetables, casseroles, soups. Do not
cover cakes, sauces, jacket potatoes or pastry
items.
DENSITY
Porous airy foods heat more quickly than dense
heavy foods.
CLING FILM
Cling film helps keep the food moist and the
trapped steam assists in speeding up cooking
times. Pierce before cooking to allow excess steam
to escape. Always take care when removing cling
film from a dish as the build-up of steam will be
very hot.
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2015/06/24 14:08:23
