Hints

Points to remember when defrosting manually

*The shape of the package alters the defrosting time. Shallow rectangular packets defrost more quickly than a deep block.

*Separate pieces as they begin to defrost; free-flow slices defrost more easily.

*Shield areas of food with small pieces of foil if they start to become warm. Wooden toothpicks may be used to hold the foil in place.

*When defrosting, it is better to under-thaw the food slightly and allow the process to finish during the standing time.

The amount of food

The more food you want to prepare the longer it takes. A rule of thumb is that double amount of food requires almost double the time. If one potato takes four minutes to cook, approximately seven minutes are required to cook two potatoes.

Moisture content:

Because microwaves are attracted to moisture, cooking time will vary according to water content. Naturally moist foods such as vegetables, fish and poultry will cook quickly and evenly; drier foods such as rice or dried beans require added moisture for microwave cooking.

Condensation:

Humidity and moisture in foods will sometimes cause condensation on the walls of the oven or inside the door. This is normal with cooking. Generally, covered foods will cause less condensation than uncovered foods.

Sugar:

When cooking foods with a high sugar or fat content, such as Christmas pudding, mince pies and fruit cake follow the recommended cooking instructions carefully. Exceeding the recommended cooking times may result in burning of the food and damage to the oven.

Releasing pressure in foods

Several foods are tightly covered by a skin or membrane. These foods should be pricked with a fork or cocktail stick to relieve the pressure and to prevent bursting, as steam builds-up within them during cooking. This

applies to jacket potatoes, potatoes, chicken livers, sausages, egg yolks and some fruits.

Standing time

Always allow the food to stand for some time after using the oven. Standing time after defrosting, cooking/reheating always improves the

result since the temperature will then be evenly distributed through out the food.

In a microwave oven foods continue to cook even when the microwave energy is turned off. They are no longer cooked by microwaves, but they are still being cooked by the conduction of the high residual heat to the centre of the food. The length of the standing time depends on the volume and density of the food. Sometimes it can be as short as the time it takes you to remove the food from the oven and take it to the serving table. However, with larger, denser foods, the standing time may be as long as 10 minutes. The food will finish cooking during this time.

Arranging Food

The best results are achieved if the food is evenly distributed on the plate. This is done in several ways in microwave cooking to give more even cooking results.

If you are cooking several items of the same food such as jacket potatoes, place them in a ring pattern for uniform cooking.

When cooking foods of uneven shapes or thickness, place the smaller or thinner area of the food towards the centre of the dish where it will be heated last.

Uneven foods such as fish should be arranged in the oven with the tails to the centre.

If you are saving a meal in the refrigerator or “plating” a meal for reheating, arrange the thicker, denser foods to the outside of the plate and the thinner or less dense foods in the middle.

Place thin slices of meat on top of each other or interlace them.

Thicker slices such as meat loaf and sausages have to be placed close to each other.

Gravy or sauce should be reheated in a separate container.

Choose a tall, narrow container rather than a low and wide container. When reheating gravy, sauce or soup, do not fill the container more than 2/3

When you cook or reheat whole fish, score the skin - this prevents cracking.

Shield the tail and head with small pieces of foil to prevent over-cooking but ensure the foil does not touch the sides of the oven.

Composition of the 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 more dense the food, the longer it takes to heat. “Very dense” food like meat takes longer time to reheat than lighter, more porous food like bread.

Size and shape

Smaller pieces of food will cook faster than larger pieces and uniform pieces of food cook more evenly than irregularly shaped foods. To ensure even cooking, cut all pieces of food into similar sizes and shapes.

Stirring, turning of foods during cooking Stirring and turning of foods are techniques used in conventional as well as in microwave cooking to distribute the heat quickly to the centre of the dish and avoids over-cooking at the outer edges of the food. turning foods is especially important here because it allows for more even cooking. As in conventional cooking, foods such as roasts need to be elevated so they are not allowed to steam in their own juices.