Cooking Utensils, MICROWAVE-SAFE Utensils

Other Helpful Information

HOW FOOD CHARACTERISTICS AFFECT MICROWAVE COOKING

Density of foods: Light, porous food like cakes and breads cook more quickly than heavy, dense foods such as roasts and casseroles. You must take care when microwaving porous foods that the outer edges do not become dry and brittle.

Height of foods: The upper portion of tall foods, particularly roasts, will cook more quickly than the lower portion. Therefore, it is wise to turn tall foods during cooking, sometimes several times.

Moisture content of foods: Since the heat generated from microwaves tends to evaporate moisture, relatively dry foods such as roasts and some vegetables should either be sprinkled with water prior to cooking or covered to retain moisture.

Bone and fat content of foods: Bones conduct heat and fat cooks more quickly than meat. Therefore, care must be taken when cooking bony or fatty cuts of meat that the meats do not cook unevenly and do not become overcooked.

NOTE: It is a common misconception that micro-waves cook food from the inside out. This comes from heating filled pastries with a high sugar content, like jelly doughnuts. The pastry is cool but the filling is very hot! If you cook a chicken or a roast, you’ll see the outside is cooked first.

Shape of foods: Microwaves penetrate only about 1 inch (2.5cm) into foods; the interior portion of thick foods is cooked as the heat generated on the outside travels inward. In other words, only the outer edge of any food is actually cooked by microwave energy; the rest is cooked by convection.

It follows then that the worst possible shape for a food that is to be microwaved is a thick cube. The corners will burn long before the center is even warm. Round, thin, and ring shaped foods cook most successfully in the microwave.

Quantity of foods: The number of microwaves in your oven remains constant regardless of how much food is being cooked. Therefore, the more food you place in the oven, the longer the cooking time. Remember to decrease cooking times by at least one-third when halving a recipe.

Cooking Utensils

MICROWAVE-SAFE UTENSILS

CAUTION

SOME ITEMS ARE NOT INTENDED FOR MICROWAVE COOKING, INCLUDING SOME STONEWARE AND ITEMS WITH HIGH IRON OR LEAD CONTENTS.

Never use metal or metal-trimmed utensils in your microwave oven: Microwaves cannot penetrate metal. They will bounce off any metal object in the oven and cause arcing, an alarming phenomenon that resembles lightning. Most heat-resistantnon-metallic cooking utensils are safe for use in your microwave oven. However, some may contain materials that render them unsuitable as microwave cookware. If you have any doubts about a particular utensil, there is a simple way to find out if it can be used in your microwave oven.

Testing utensils for microwave use: Place the utensil in question next to a glass bowl filled with water in the microwave oven. Microwave at power HIGH for 1 minute. If the water heats up but the utensil remains cool to the touch, the utensil is microwave-safe. However, if the water does not change temperature but the utensil becomes warm, microwaves are being absorbed by the utensil and it is not safe for use in the microwave oven. You probably have many items on hand in your kitchen that can be used as cooking equipment in your microwave oven. Just read through the following checklist.

1.Dinner plates: Many kinds of dinner-ware are microwave-safe. If in doubt, consult the manu-facturer's literature or perform the microwave test, above.

2.Glassware: Glassware that is heat-resistant is microwave-safe. This includes all brands of oven-tempered glass cookware. However, do not use delicate glassware, such as tumblers or wine glasses, as these might shatter as the food warms.

3.Paper: Paper plates and containers are convenient and safe to use in your microwave oven, provided the cooking time is short and foods to be cooked are low in fat and moisture. Paper towels are also very useful for wrapping foods and for lining baking trays in which greasy foods, such as bacon, are cooked. In general, avoid colored paper products as the color may run.

4.Plastic storage containers: These can be used to hold foods that are to be quickly reheated. However, they should not be used to hold foods that will need considerable time in the oven as hot foods will eventually warp or melt plastic containers.

5.Plastic cooking bags: These are microwave-safe provided they are specially made for cooking. However, be sure to make a slit in the bag so that steam can escape. Never use ordinary plastic bags for cooking in your microwave oven, as they will melt and rupture.

6.Plastic microwave cookware: A variety of shapes and sizes of microwave cookware is available. For the most part, you can probably cook with items you already have on hand rather than investing in new kitchen equipment.

7.Pottery, stoneware, and ceramic:

Containers made of these materials are usually fine for use in your microwave oven, but they should be tested to be sure.