MICROWAVE BASICS

MICROWAVE BASICS

What is true and possible with microwave cooking is governed by knowing six microwave basics:

1.  which foods work best for microwave cooking

2.  which foods only work best for microwave reheating

3.  which you can do both with

4.  which don’t microwave well at all

5.  Which time and temperature settings to use

6.  The proper microwave cooking container to use

The main microwave advantage:

If your time settings, temperature settings, and choice of cooking vessel are correct, simply press the start button and relax or do another task until you hear the stop signal. No watching, no stirring, no turning, or burning!!

Microwave Oven Cook Times and Temperatures

Keep in mind that one microwave heats one entrée portion when the temperature setting is on HIGH very fast, but slows dramatically as food volume increases. If you want to heat multiple entrees fast and simultaneously, use multiple microwaves. Cook times and temperatures are listed in each recipe using a micro.

All of the recipes in this book which use a microwave oven specify a temperature setting of HIGH for a period of continuous minutes. The only exception to this is when sauces are cooked in the micro. In that case the temperature setting would still be HIGH, but the total time might be specified in incremental pulses to limit over-boiling of liquids.

Microwavable Cooking Vessels

Why use them?

Any food that is micro-waved for more than one minute will rapidly dry out and lose its original texture if uncovered or unwrapped with a microwave-safe material. The food will taste terrible!

Materials which are not specified for micro use are unsafe, and can even catch on fire!

Characteristics to look for in a microwave-safe container

Containers that are designed for multiple long-term uses are either made of heat-resistant glass or heat-resistant ceramic material. They will come with a snap-on cover or glass lid. Snap-on covers seal best. Other so-called microwaveable containers are designed for single-use and will melt if foods have a high fat or oil content in them.

On the top of a snap-on cover there will be a small pop-open steam vent built in. This will function to release any excessive steam pressure that builds up during the COOK phase and retain most of the moisture in the food being cooked. Examples of reliable brands would be vessels labeled as PYREX or CORNINGWARE in the following forms:

1. Heat-treated ceramic glass with a vented cover ( such as Corningware)
2. Heat-treated glass (such as Pyrex) with a flexible vented cover
3. Heat-treated glass with a heat-treated glass cover
4. Ceramic or glass bake ware which does not have a cover and must be wrapped in microwaveable clear plastic wrap which you must vent yourself by piercing two small evenly spaced openings in its surface with a knife tip.
5. Ceramic or glass serving plates without a cover for short re-heating times of less than two minutes, which you must cover with clear plastic wrap and vent by piercing the wrap in the center with a knife tip to make a small vent hole.

Four container caveats:

1. …they must be made of glass, ceramic, or any material labeled as safe for repeated microwave use as specified by the manufacturer.
2. Use microwave cooking vessels that are slightly larger around the edge than the amount of food to be heated.
3. A vessel that is too large leaves unnecessary dead space around the food which will slow the cooking process.
4. A vessel that is too small and therefore to full will not vent properly.

Standard Oven Cook Times and Temperatures

Standard oven temperatures should be verified as accurate by testing your oven with a portable oven thermometer.

A standard oven without convection is hotter towards the top, while a convection oven maintains a more consistent temperature at all levels of the oven by circulating the air, and can thereby decrease required cook times by about twenty percent. If you are using a standard oven without convection, try to place items to be cooked in the center of the oven.

Recommended Storage Containers

Before choosing a storage container, think about how long you will need to store the contents. All stored food should be stored in a tightly wrapped or sealed container at an appropriate temperature. Consider whether the food is dry (low moisture content), wet (high moisture content), prepared, or cooked, and how long it may require refrigeration or freezing.

Prepared foods have been made ready for the application of heat. They are food items containing one or more ingredients which have not been exposed to the application of heat from a cooking device. Unless they are composed entirely of dry ingredients they must be held and stored in a refrigerator at 38 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit, or a freezer set at zero degrees Fahrenheit.

  

Cooked foods have been exposed to the application of heat. Cooked foods always store best when properly refrigerated at 38 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit or frozen at zero degrees Fahrenheit.

Place a thermometer overnight near the center rack in your fridge or freezer to accurately check average temperatures.  As of the time of this writing you can purchase a thermometer for this purpose for less than five dollars.

Adjust the temperature setting knob in increments until you achieve the optimal temperature on the thermometer.

Cooked foods rapidly lose freshness after three days in a refrigerator.

Cooked or raw frozen foods begin to lose freshness to the surrounding air in a freezer within two weeks.

Dry Food Containers using screw-top or snap-lock lids with soft plastic or silicone rubber gaskets seal best.

They will keep your dry goods fresh for weeks or months. They are the best long-term solution for storing dry ingredients with low moisture content such as flours, sugar, grains, nuts, and dry spices. Visually inspect the gasket before sealing. Make sure that there are no food particles between the gasket and the internal surface of the container at the point of contact. Lids that do not have some form of gasket seal will freely transfer air, moisture, bugs, and rapidly lose ingredient freshness. Periodically check gaskets for wear.

Vacuum Sealed Containers and Bags have many advantages for extending food life, flavor, texture and color. They are also very useful for microwave reheating of foods from refrigerator temperature. Here are the major advantages:

1. They are best for fresh, prepared, or cooked foods that must stored more than three days under refrigeration.
2. They have the distinct advantage of removing most of the surrounding air which would otherwise speed the decomposition of foods.
3. Foods in a marinade will fully absorb the flavors of the marinade.
4. They can extend the safe storage of meat and cooked foods up to one week in a refrigerator set at 38 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
5. Any food which needs to be stored in a freezer, will retain full freshness, and will not discolor or get freezer burn for up to six months of storage.
6. With proper procedure (described in the recipes) many previously cooked items such as roast rack of pork portions, can be frozen, thawed and later be reheated in a micro to their original cooked freshness directly in the vacuum sealed bag.

Procedure, Ingredients, and Measurement

Proceed patiently and plan ahead.

Cooking is work, but it will also be pleasurable and joyful if you stay organized and plan ahead.

1.  When you use a recipe, gather all of the utensils and ingredients that you will use at the outset.
2. Make an effort to keep your work area organized and clear of food scraps, tools, and containers that are no longer needed as you proceed.
3. Use economy of motion in the kitchen by doing the most in the smallest number of trips or steps.
4. Clean up what you can as you proceed. Your work area will stay organized with everything in its place when you need it.

Use fresh ingredients with minimal processing.

Whenever possible, stick to the preferable path of using the finest raw ingredients, harvested in their raw natural state.

To the greatest degree possible use unprocessed or minimally processed foods which are free of chemical and additives and preservatives. If you do this you will get the most flavor and nutrients from your food.

When purchasing “store-bought” ingredients, seek the best unit pricing posted on the store shelf, and consider the finished yields you want to produce over time. The largest container is not always the cheapest or the amount you will use before optimal quality is lost.

Use the freshest herbs, and spices available.

Fresh naturally moist herbs retain superior flavor and aromatic oils which are less present in their dried state. They are readily available from most food markets in their harvested state or as plants that you can transplant to your own garden, and are easily stored under refrigeration for several days. Grind whole spices in an inexpensive hand-held coffee grinder reserved for that purpose.  

You can achieve any desired grind or degree of coarseness right down to a powder. If dried spice pieces are bigger than ¼ inch in diameter, first use your Chef’s Knife to chop them into smaller pieces, or for large quantities use a Food Processor with a chopping blade and a pulse function to pulse-chop the dried spice into smaller pieces. Keep the grinder clean. Thoroughly wipe out your spice grinder with a dry cloth or paper towel when you finish using it. You don’t want to combine traces of different aromatic spices! Whole spices fully release all of their aromatic oils when they are ground. Your results will be most flavorful and gourmet!

Calculate the total number of individual servings you will need before proceeding. The average adult will eat one six ounce entrée item, and four to eight additional ounces of any combination of foods.

Adjust the Yield. Many of my recipes may yield amounts that are too large for the home cook. If you want to reduce the “yield” of any of these recipes, simply reduce the ingredient quantities consistently. For example: if you want to decrease the yield to half the amount simply multiply the numerical quantity for each ingredient by ½ to get ½ the amount, 1/3 to get 1/3rd the amount, ¼ to get ¼th the amount, and so on, to produce the yield you can best utilize.