GENERAL GUIDE LINES
18
Since microwave cooking to some extent is different from
traditional cooking, the following general guidelines should
be considered whenever you use your microwave oven
If the food is undercooked
Check if:
• You have selected the correct power level.
• The selected time is sufficient-the times given in the
recipes are approximate. They depend on initial
temperature, weight and density of the food etc.
• The container is appropriate.
If the food is overcooked,i.e. dried out or burnt
Before you cook again, consider whether:
• The power level was too high.
• The set time was too long-the times in the recipes are
approximate. They depend on initial temperature, weight
and density of the food etc.
Points to remember when defrosting
• 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.
• 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.
Starting temperature of food
The lower the temperature of the food which is being put into
the microwave oven, the longer time it takes. Food at room
temperature will be reheated more quickly than food at
refrigerator temperature.
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 sponge cakes.
Size and shape
Smaller pieces of food will cook more quickly than larger
pieces and uniform pieces of food cook more evenly than
irregularly shaped foods.
With unevenly shaped food, the thinner parts will cook faster
than the thicker areas. Place the thinner chicken wings and
legs to the centre of the dish.
Stirring, turning of foods
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 avoid over-
cooking at the outer edges of the food.
Covering food helps:
• To reduce spattering
• To shorten cooking times
• To retain food moisture
All covering, which will allow microwaves to pass through
are suitable-See page 5 “Which utensils can be used in 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
release the pressure and to prevent bursting, as steam
builds up within them during cooking. This applies to
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 food continues to cook even when the
microwave energy is turned off. It is no longer cooking by
microwaves, but still being cooked by the conduction of the
high residual heat to the centre of the food.
The length of 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
standiing time may be as long as 10 minutes. During
‘standing’, the internal temperature of the food will rise by as
much as 8˚C and the food will finish cooking in this time.
Arranging food
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.
