QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS (continued)
Food
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What | is | wrong | when baked foods have a hard, dry, | A hard, | dry, |
| brown | spot | indicates | overcooking. |
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brown | spot? |
| Shorten | the | cooking | or reheating | time. |
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Why | do | eggs | sometimes pop? | When | baking, | frying, | or | poaching | eggs, | the | yolk may pop | due | to steam | ||
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| inside the yolk | membrane. | To prevent | this, simply | pierce | the yolk | ||||||
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| with a wooden | toothpick | before cooking. |
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| CAUTION: | Never microwave | eggs | in the | shell. |
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Why are scrambled eggs sometimes a little dryEggs will dry out when they are overcooked, even if the same recipe is
after cooking?used each time. The cooking time may need to be varied for one of these reasons:
Eggs vary in size.
Eggs are at room temperature one time and at refrigerator temperature another time.
Eggs continue cooking during standing time.
Is it possible to pop popcorn in a microwave oven?
Yes, if using one of the two methods described below:
(1)
(2)Prepackaged commercial microwave popcorn that is made for specific times and power output needed.
Follow exact directions given by each manufacturer for its popcorn popping product and do not leave the oven unattended while the corn is being popped. If corn fails to pop after the suggested time, discontinue cooking. Overcooking could result in an oven fire.
CAUTION:
o Never use a brown paper bag for popping corn or attempt to pop leftover kernels.
Why do baked apples sometimes burst during cooking?
Why do baked potatoes sometimes burn during cooking?
Why is a standing time recommended after microwave cooking time is over?
Why is additional time required for cooking food
stored in the refrigerator?
The peel has not been removed from the top half of each apple to allow for expansion of the interior of the apple during cooking.
As in conventional cooking methods, the interior of the apple expands during the cooking process.
If cooking time is too long, food can burn in the oven. At the end of the
recommended cooking time, potatoes should be slightly firm.
CAUTION: Do not overcook.
Standing time allows foods to continue cooking evenly for a few minutes
after the actual microwave oven cooking cycle. The amount of standing time depends upon the density of the foods.
As in conventional cooking, the initial temperature of food affects total cooking time. You need more time to cook food taken out of a refrigerator than for food at room temperature.
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