Cooking
Guide
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 neces- sary, 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 tem- perature will be reheated 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 more dense the food, the longer it takes to heat. “Very dense” food like meat takes longer to reheat than lighter, more porous food like sponge cakes.
Size and shape
•Smaller pieces of food will cook faster than larger pieces and
•With unevenly shaped foods, the thinner parts will cook faster than the thicker areas. Place the thinner parts of chicken wings and legs in the center of the dish.
Stirring, turning foods
•Stirring and turning foods distributes 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
COOKING GUIDE
•Retain food moisture
All coverings that allow microwaves to pass through are suitable.
Releasing pressure in foods
•Several foods (for example: baked pota- toes, sausages, egg yolks, and some fruits) are tightly covered by a skin or membrane. This can cause the food to burst from steam building up in them dur- ing cooking. To relieve the pressure and to prevent bursting, pierce these foods before cooking with a fork, cocktail pick, or toothpick.
Using standing time
•Always allow food to stand for a while after cooking. Standing time after defrost- ing, cooking, or reheating always improves the results since the temperature will then be evenly distributed throughout 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 food,
the standing time may be as long as 10 minutes.
Arranging food
For best results, distribute 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 towards 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. Shield the tail and head of whole fish with small pieces of foil to prevent overcooking but ensure the foil does not touch the sides of the oven.
•Do not let food or a container touch the top or sides of the oven. This will prevent possible arcing.
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