cjy (12/13/82)
We have owned a microwave oven for years ( maybe 10 ). Most of the claims that were made for it were kind of spectacular, at the time and most have never materialized. It was purchased when both my wife and I worked and it was hoped that it would put a hot meal on the table in record time. Well, yes it did help in meal preparation, but not in the way first thought. For defrosting meat and for warming leftovers it is super ( you have to work at it in order to get the thing to burn food ). For cooking meat, its O.K. if you want it grey and very well done. Also in order to get it to uniformly heat food, you have to stir and rotate the dish every few minutes. This tends to take time away from other activities that you may want to undertake while the meal cooks. In short, the main uses for a microwave in our house are: 1. Warming leftovers 2. Hot appetizers 3. Making a melted cheese and lunchmeat sandwich 4. Heating hot dogs 5. Boiling water 6. Heating yesterday's coffee 7. Heating canned soups 8. Warming freshly prepared foods so that they may be served piping hot. ( Stuff that has cooled while something else was cooking. ) 9. Cooking bacon I have, at times, wondered if there are recipes/techniques that I haven't tried that would make the thing more useful. Perhaps people out there might contribute some uniquely microwave things... Chuck Young .......ihps3!ihuxi!cjy
wpw (12/14/82)
I have a microwave oven and really love it. I agree that it can't be used for a lot of stuff but it still has many uses. I primarily use it for cooking frozen packaged meals (a lot have microwave directions on them), for warming leftovers, for warming bread, and for cooking potatoes. I don't find it a lot of use when I am cooking something from scratch. It is really great though if you come home from work really hungry and want something quick. Wendy
wsp (12/14/82)
Re: Microwavery I don't have a MW, but I find the one at work really useful and I am considering buying one for my home. After running in the mornings, I go to work to clean up and have breakfast. Most mornings I cook scrambled eggs and serve them in pita bread. Sometimes, I will throw in cheese or some browm-n-serve sausage. The bread I keep frozen in the freezer at work; I defrost it in the MW. All in all, it is cheap, nutritious (pace the on-going cholesterol argument) and quick. I would like some recommendations on the type or brand of MW to buy. Reply by mail, please, as we seem to miss a substantial portion of the news. Peter Benson ittdcd-west (619) 578-3080
mclure@sri-unix (12/14/82)
#R:ihuxi:-26200:sri-unix:4600001:000:347 sri-unix!mclure Dec 14 08:48:00 1982 My microwave has been used for all the various things recently mentioned here, but I also use it for a lot of defrosting/warming. Every few months, I make about 15 pints of spaghetti sauce (the real stuff, not ragu) and freeze it in single-serving 1 pint containers. Then, to prepare a delicious dish of spaghetti takes about 10 minutes. Stuart
randyd (12/14/82)
Many people have discovered that Microwave cooking is not the answer to all cooking problems. Many things must be done differently in a microwave than they are in a frying pan or oven. One of the most common mistakes is to cook things too hot (full power) and then wonder why things turned out tough or (yuk) "burned and raw". Most "microwave" cook books do not help much either as they are usually conventional recipes converted to microwave by conventional cooks and recomend cooking too hot. Just stop and think before you cook your roast at 100% full power "How would this turn out if I cooked it in a 500 deg. oven ?". The best suggestion is to experiment a bit keeping in mind that an under cooked dish can be zapped a bit longer but a Three Mile Island Special must be tossed. After all how long did it take you to learn to cook the first time? Randy Dietrich Tektronix inc. tektronix!tekmdp!randyd
wpw (12/15/82)
In response to what you do or do not need in a microwave oven, it is true that you don't need all the gadgets, however, they are very useful if you have them. I originally set out to buy a really simple one but got talked into one that stops just short of mixing the ingredients itself and am really glad I bought it. It has humidity sensing which I thought was a real waste when I bought it but now I use it all of the time (it saves you from determining how long something needs to be cooked ... it determines it by itself!). My microwave oven is a Quasar and it's been working just fine (for those of you trying to decide whcih brand to buy). Wendy Weill
randyd (12/15/82)
One feature that we find very useful is a temperature probe. Not only is it a MUST to cook meats (roast, meatloaf) but comes in handy for many other things. The current favorite is hot apple cider. Put the cider in a mug, throw in the temp probe, zap it to 150 deg (or more if you are into HOT). The oven tells you when it's ready, not luke warm or boiling. As far as general adjustments for microwave cooking, generally you need to reduce liquid in conventional recipes which are simmered or baked for very long. About 25% of the liquid seems to work out for me (water if possible). Another broad guideline; most vegetables cook 6 min/lbs (at full power) for that 'just cooked' texture. I would recomend using a kitchen scale until you get a feel for how much a pound of whatever is. Let them sit for a few min. after cooking to equalize the temperature and 'carry over' cook. As far as brands of ovens; we have a GE Spacesaver (over the range) which we have been quite pleased with. The choice was mostly based upon lack of counter space. Randy Dietrich textronix!tekmdp!randyd
ken (12/16/82)
There is no better way to cook vegetables than in a microwave. The flavor is great, texture is superb, color is vibrant, and nutrition is high.
mclure@sri-unix (12/16/82)
#R:ihuxi:-26200:sri-unix:4600002:000:454 sri-unix!mclure Dec 16 06:42:00 1982 No, the features *are* useful. At one time, I bought a bunch of frozen "gourmet" dinners at a bistro down in L.A. and hadn't the foggiest notion of how long to cook them. With my Quasar oven/humidity sensing, it was simple. I popped the frozen entree into a covered microwave dish, punched a single button, and N minutes later out pops a perfectly warmed dinner. Also, the time varied with the type of food. Stuart (Sounds like a commercial, eh?)
drv@eisx.UUCP (Dennis Vogel) (01/03/85)
I've used the term "waving" to refer to the process of cooking/heating something in a microwave. Dennis Vogel - AT&T Information Systems - South Plainfield, NJ