The food is ready at a pretty quick time in the microwave owen. However some find the whole machine an extra care idiot box while cooking their favourite dish for an important occasion. Ductless Air Condition . oven repair atlanta . Here are some tips and thumb rules to help you convert your favourite recipes into microwave. Before we begin, let us understand how the microwave works. A microwave oven is a device in which food is cooked by the heat produced out of the absorption of microwave energy from water molecules in the food. Microwave ovens operate by agitating the water molecules in the food, causing them to vibrate, which produces heat.

Microwave cooking evaporates less moisture from the food. So reduce the liquid specified in your conventional recipe by ¼ th cup of water from each glass to adapt to microwave. For instance if you are supposed to use 4 cups of water, you’ll need only 3 in the microwave. Arrange food in dish so that the thicker part is on the outside and the thinner part inside for more even cooking. Microwave cooking increases the flavour of herbs and spices. Therefore, make sure to reduce half the amount of spices specified.

Foods containing liquid, sugar and fat cook faster in the device. So reduce the cooking time by 1/4 of conventional cooking and then gradually increase until you obtain the desired result. hawaii foudation repair . It also enhances the salt flavouring in food. So reduce the amount of salt by one-third. You can add salt even after the food is cooked.  Keep your microwave clean from inside as if left unclean it may spoil your food ,

Never microwave the dishes covered in Alluminium foil or any metallic material . It may generate sparks.  The microwaves can only penetrate food 1- 1/2 inches so larger dishes need the vibrating molecules to move from the outside edges to the center of the food for it to be cooked.  To distribute heat evenly, use a dish with a cone in the center.

Arrange food in dish so that the thicker part is on the outside and the thinner part inside for more even cooking.  Add low fat cheese and other toppings near the end of cooking to keep the top from becoming tough or soggy.

While cooking in the microwave make sure that the dish is covered properly with a lid or plastic wrap.  Always make provisions for the steam to escape from the covered dish. So you can make holes on the plastic wrap or loosen the lid while cooking.

A thumb rule in microwave cooking that you must follow is the ’6 minutes per pound rule’. According to this rule 6 minutes per pound will cook most foods including meat, poultry, fruits and vegetables. Seafood gets cooked pretty fast in the microwave owen.

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Summer is here and if you are anything like me, you don’t want to turn on your oven or stove unless absolutely necessary. I do most of my cooking in the microwave during the summer months. It helps keep my home cooler and cuts down on my cooling bill.

I have found that many people don’t like to cook meat in the microwave. I was once one of those people. Chicken would come out like rubber and I always worried that ground beef didn’t cook thoroughly. I have since found that the trick is to use the right cooking utensils.

There has also been some hype about how it’s not safe to use plastic to cook meat or anything else in the microwave. This is only half true. Certain types of plastic have chemicals that are activated with the extreme heat of the microwave and these chemicals can get into your food. For more details visit to www.cheese-cake-recipes.com Hence, the key to cooking in your microwave is, once again, to use the correct cooking utensils. Basically, use containers that are specifically designed for cooking in the microwave.

My preference in microwave cooking is Tupperware. Their cookware is specifically designed for the microwave so you don’t have to worry about the chemicals. Their Oval Cooker is designed to retain the moisture of your meat so that your meat doesn’t come out dry and rubbery. It also has a colander so you can brown your meat and let the grease drip to the bottom. That makes it easy to dispose of the grease drippings or use them for gravy. Tupperware also backs it cooker with a lifetime warranty so if it breaks I can just replace it with a new one, which seems like a good investment to me.

So the instructions I am providing below apply to the Tupperware Oval Cooker. If you feel confident using a different type of microwave cooker, of course, try that, but please make sure you follow the guidelines I stated above.

Cooking Ground Beef

Place the ground beef with your favorite seasoning in the colander of the cooker. Cover and cook for 6 minutes per pound. Let sit a few minutes then remove from the microwave. By using the colander all the grease will drain to the bottom of the cooker.

Cooking a Whole Chicken

If using the Oval Cooker you will need to use the extender piece for your average size chicken. Then place the chicken in the cooker. Pour about half a cup of water on the bottom of the cooker. For more details www.atkins-diets-recipes.com  Sprinkle your chicken with your favorites seasonings. Place the cover on the cooker and cook for 6 minutes per pound. I think you will be surprised at how moist your chicken comes out.

Cooking Cut Up Chicken

After cutting up your chicken use the same instructions for cooking a whole chicken. Determine by how high the chicken stacks if you will need to use the extender or not.

Cooking Chicken Pieces

You can use the colander to cook chicken pieces. Cut the chicken into bit size pieces. I usually use chicken breast cutlets for this. Place the cutup chicken pieces in the colander. Season with your favorite seasonings. south carolina foundation repair . Place the cover on the cooker and microwave for 6 minutes per pound.

Cooking Pork

I have not yet tried cooking pork in the microwave. Pork is tricky and my family doesn’t eat pork so that is one reason I have never tried cooking it in the microwave. However, there are plenty of beef and chicken recipes out there, so I hope the above suggestions will help you keep your kitchen cooler during the hot summer months.

No doubt, cooking in a microwave is fun and its number one advantage is that it makes the cooking fast. Isn’t it great when you can cook your favorite dish by investing less energy and less time? For many of the people, the answer would be yes; however there are some who find the microwave to be a curious and not-so-easy-to-use machine. They may find the instructions for it to be too cryptic for them to understand or too many for them to remember. But it is probably the best and most hassle-free way to cook. Practicing these tips while using a microwave will help you in cooking your most favorite dish with ease and élan.

But before beginning the discussion on how to use it, let’s first see how the microwave works. Basically, it is a device which uses the microwave energy of water molecules in the food to cook food. The water molecules of the food get agitated and begin to vibrate, thus heat is produced. This heat is used for the cooking.

The Golden Rules of Microwave Cooking:

Clean your microwaves from inside after cooking each meal. Unclean microwaves can be a cause of diseases as well as lead to spoiling of the food that is being cooked.

A conventional recipe mentions the water to be added keeping in consideration that the cooking needs to be done on a stove. Since microwave cooking evaporates less water so keep the water as a 3/4th cup of each glass. As an example, if water needed is 4 cups, you need to add only 3 in the microwave.

It takes less time to cook in a microwave, especially for foods that contain liquid, fat or sugar. Hence you should reduce the cooking time by 1/4th of the time (or until cooked to desired degree) that the recipe takes when cooked conventionally.

Put lesser amount (approximately half) of herbs and spices. Microwave cooking enhances their flavor.

Set the timer at 1 minute in order to reheat it.

Putting metallic vessel or even aluminum foil covered food inside the microwave as this may generate sparks.

Keep the low fat cheese and other such topping for the near end of the cooking to prevent it from getting hard.

Cover the dish being cooked with a lid or plastic wrapping, but also make provision for some steam to escape. Just Energy . Also, equal distribution of heat to the food can be ensured by using a dish with a cone in the center.

Most food weighing around one pound will cook in 1 minute. Seafood will take even lesser time. Though this is a general rule, the specific cooking time will be determined by the type of food being cooked.

These are just a few of the basic tips of using a microwave but these will get you started. A microwave can become your best friend in the kitchen and it helps to get acquainted to its handling and usage rules.

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For cut vegetables make sure pieces are of equal size for equal cooking.

If you are cooking an assortment of vegetables, arrange large or tougher vegetables (carrots, cauliflower, broccoli etc.) toward the outside of the plate and small or tender ones (peas, mushrooms, capsicum etc.) in the center so they finish cooking at the same time.

Never pile food one on top of the other. In a microwave food always cooks evenly when spaced apart.

Turning is necessary to ensure even distribution of microwaves through the food. Especially food such as large potatoes and cauliflower need to be turned over during cooking.

Round dishes give more even cooking results than squares or rectangles.

Ring shaped dishes are infact the best for cooking foods which cannot be stirred during microwave cooking. Improvise a ring shaped bowl by placing a small round bowl in the center of a large round dish.

An omelet is best cooked at 50% (medium). If cooked at 100% (high) the edges may be done before the center and become leathery by the time the whole omelet is done.

Food continues to cook when removed from the microwave cooker, by the heat generated within it. So always take into account standing time. Large or dense vegetables and fruit need standing time rather than more microwave time.

If the food has been cooked with a cover leave it covered for the standing time. foundation contractors . If it was cooked uncovered add a loose covering of foil to retain the heat.

Covering

A cover holds in the steam to tenderize the food, keep it moist and shorten cooking time.

A tight cover is ideal for foods that have little or no added water, like when steaming vegetables. Use a dish with a tight lid or cover with cling film.

For foods cooked in liquid, or which create a great deal of juice, make a gap in the cling film cover by rolling back one edge. alabama foundation repair . This allows excess moisture to escape. Or use special microwave lids, which have slits in them.

Cover the dish with tissue paper while preparing “temper” or frying seeds like cumin, mustard etc. The tissue paper retains the seeds while allowing the moisture to escape.

While reheating patties, kachori or mathri, place absorbent kitchen paper underneath to prevent them from turning soggy. Absorbent paper stops fat splattering and absorbs excess moisture.

Not all cling films are micro-safe. If you are going to use cling film in the microwave be sure that it is marked as micro-safe.

Use a fork to pierce or prick whole vegetables, like potatoes and squash, which are cooked in their skins to allow excess steam to escape. If this is not done steam will build up inside, causing the skin to burst.

Avoid using alcohol in puddings, which have to be microcooked, since it may catch fire.

Season vegetables with salt after cooking them in microwave. Salting before hand could leave brown spots.

You cannot fry in the microwave, as cooking fat in large quantities is dangerous.

When cooking rice in the microwave don’t add all the water at one go, as it will boil over.

Milk based foods tend to boil over so use a larger and deeper container.

Keep half a glass of water next to the dish while cooking too small a quantity of food.

Increase microwave time in the same ratio as the amount of food to be cooked.

Always start off with the shortest cooking time listed in the recipe, this way vegetables will not be overcooked. You can always cook it for some more time if required.

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