MICROWAVE COOKING
RECIPES AND TABLES
Introduction
Your microwave oven can be one of the most useful
appliances in your home. If you follow a few basic
instructions, this book will teach you how to make
microwave cooking both enjoyable and safe. All of
the recipes in this book have been tested and
proven to provide many rewarding meals for you
and your family. Before you begin trying the recipes,
take a few moments to read these pages of instruc-
tions and helpful hints.
How Your Microwave Oven Works: Quite simply,
microwaves are a form of energy, just as sunlight
and radio waves. The only difference is in the shape
and form of the energy wavelengths. When the
magnetron tube in your oven is activated, electricity
is converted into h i g h frequency radiating energy in
the form of ver
mall (micro) waves. The micro-
waves are r e l d into the oven compartmer
through an opt
in the top of the appliance, and
are distributed evenly by a built-in stirrer. Whe:
microwaves penetrate food, individual molecules
in
the food begin to vibrate, and the heat friction
caused by this vibration passes from molecule to
molecule by induction, cooking the food.
Power and Standing Time: Like any conventional
oven, microwave appliances are affected by fluctua-
tions in local energy supplies. The location of your
house, weather, and time of day may all affect
energy availability, and you may find that your
microwave oven does not always cook at the same
rate. This book provides you with minimum and
maximum cooking times for each recipe to accom-
modate this possible variation in energy availability.
In order to avoid overcooking, you should always
check your food as soon as it has cooked the mini-
mum recommended time. Remember also that
cooking continues after the food has been taken
from the oven. This period of extra cooking occurs
because the molecules continue to vibrate after the
food has been removed from the source of cooking
energy.
Standing times, which allow the extra cooking to
take place, can vary from one to five minutes for
vegetables, or five to ten minutes for a large roast.
Experience will help you determine standing times
for the various foods you prepare.
Utensils
Because microwaves cannot pass through metal,
some standard utensils used in conventional ovens
are unsuitable for microwave use. Many of the con-
tainers which you already own, however, are per-
fectly safe to use.
How to Test for Microwave Use: Here is a simple
test to determine whether or not a utensil is compat-
ible with your microwave oven: Measure one cup of
water into a glass container, and place it on or near
the dish you wish to test. Microwave on at Power
Level 10 for one to two minutes, until water is hot,
then test the container in question, If the dish
remains cool to the touch, it is safe for the micro-
wave oven.
Utensils to Use in a Microwave Oven: Con-
made of glass, ceramics, and some forms
and plastic, allow microwaves to pass freely
them, making them ideal for microwave use. _
ble pouches and oven baking bags are usually
equally effective in your microwave oven.
Many utensils are made especially for use in a
microwave oven. These heat-resistant plastics may
go directly from freezer to microwave and vice versa
without harming either food or container. To avoid
problems, always read the instructions on these
containers before using them.
Shape and Depth: Depth and shape of containers
will affect cooking time. In a shallow casserole dish,
for example, food cooks more rapidly than in a deep
dish with the same volume, because more surface
area of the food is exposed to microwave energy.
Straight-sided containers are preferaole to curved
ones, because the more uniform food depth allows
for even cooking. Round dishes allow the micro-
waves to penetrate the food evenly from all sides.
Square dishes allow excess exposure of the food to
microwaves, often resulting in overcooking.
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