inc@fluke.UUCP (Gary Benson) (10/30/84)
Well, I finally decided I can't live without a microwave oven any longer,
but when I started looking around, I found that you can get just about any
combination of features imaginable, so the decision process has become
pretty complexified. I am asking for your help in spending about 3 or 4
hundred dollars.
Here's my situation: I am a single male who likes to cook, but hates to cook
for one; I want to speed up and simplify my time in the kitchen. I foresee
using the oven for occasional fast defrosting, and regular use in casserole
or pot roast type meals. I am an avid popcorn freak, and I also think it
would be nice to boil water in 10 seconds. I doubt I would ever do a turkey,
so cubic-footage is relatively unimportant, and I also would probably not
use any "programmable" features. Here are my questions:
1) What advantages are there to a "carousel" other than for large chunks
of meat? Do any models let you remove it and turn it off when it's
not needed? Won't the microwaves destroy any lubricant in the motor
and make it non-functional after a short time?
2) How important is a heat probe for the uses I have in mind? My
impression is that this feature is also primarily for use in cooking
turkey and ham type items, but is it useful in other applications?
3) How important is an energy-level control? Some models I've seen have
no control, others have two positions (defrost and cook), and some
have an infinite range.
4) What other features or accessories are desirable? Do those "browning
dishes" work?
5) Is there any such thing as an energy-efficient model? How much juice
do these things use?
6) Is it true that some foods taste different in the microwave? And that
some are impossible? Is it possible to boil eggs, for example?
7) Will I learn anything about microwave cooking in my first month or so
that will make me strike my head in anguish over not having purchased
some feature or other? (Or worse, anguish over spending the money in
the first place?)
Thanks to anyone who responds to this request -- I will save all notes and
summarize to the net if there is sufficient interest.
Gary Benson
--
Gary Benson ms232e -*- John Fluke Mfg Co -*- Box C9090 -*- Everett WA 98206 USA
{microsoft,allegra,ssc-vax,sun,sb1}{decvax,ihnp4,tektronix!uw-beaver}!fluke!inc
+- Paid for by the Tirebiter for Political Solutions Committee, Sector R -+nemo@rochester.UUCP (Wolfe) (11/05/84)
My wife and I got a combo convection/microwave oven about two years ago. Here are a few comments you may find helpfull. > using the oven for occasional fast defrosting, and regular use in casserole Great for heating leftovers and defrosting frozen foods prior to regular cooking. Casseroles do well, as do several kinds of veggies (esp. potatoes). Look out for veggies (and meat) drying out - dehydration is a real danger. > or pot roast type meals. I am an avid popcorn freak, and I also think it Forget roasts. The meat may be cooked, but it is closer to boiled than roasted in appearance. > would be nice to boil water in 10 seconds. I doubt I would ever do a turkey, How much water? The time is almost directly proportional to the total heat capacity of the food in the box. Boiling a pint of water takes approx. 1 1/2 to 2 minutes in our (fairly powerfull) micro. > so cubic-footage is relatively unimportant, and I also would probably not > use any "programmable" features. Here are my questions: Programmable features are nice and I use them often, mostly for low cooking for a few minutes to bring the food to luke warm, then higher to heat it the rest of the way. Also, with the convection oven, a preheat phase followed by micro and/or convec cycles is often used. > > 1) What advantages are there to a "carousel" other than for large chunks > of meat? Do any models let you remove it and turn it off when it's > not needed? Won't the microwaves destroy any lubricant in the motor > and make it non-functional after a short time? Even distribution of energy is important for most dishes. If you can stir the food, then that will suffice if you do it a couple of times while heating, but that is a problem we have had with ours (which does not rotate its food. See Consumer's reports issue on micros of summer 1982, I think) > > 2) How important is a heat probe for the uses I have in mind? My > impression is that this feature is also primarily for use in cooking > turkey and ham type items, but is it useful in other applications? I have found it useful for many applications, particularly when you don't know how long it will take to do the job. It is annoying to have to repeatedly test and set (sorry, parallel hackers) the micro just to boil water. It is very useful when heating casseroles. > > 3) How important is an energy-level control? Some models I've seen have > no control, others have two positions (defrost and cook), and some > have an infinite range. Consumer reports sez that ten levels are necessary and sufficient. We have 100 levels (you know -- this digital stuff) but rarely cook at say, 72 % power. I would agree with their assessment. > > 4) What other features or accessories are desirable? Do those "browning > dishes" work? > > 5) Is there any such thing as an energy-efficient model? How much juice > do these things use? I don't know about the relative efficiency of the magnetron, but the efficiency of the microwave oven is that practically all the energy goes to heating the food. Its economy over conventional means is best for relativly small amounts of food (eg: roughly a pound or less if watery, a few pounds if oily). Wrt wattage, ours runs about 1600 W., which means that when we use it, we have to be sure that no other appliances are being used on the same 15 amp circuit. > > 6) Is it true that some foods taste different in the microwave? And that > some are impossible? Is it possible to boil eggs, for example? NEVER NEVER NEVER try to cook eggs in their shell in a microwave. Heed this advice and save yourself the painful task of trying to get microscopic pieces of fluffy egg out from impossible places. Even in a cup of water it doesn't work (<-- voice of sad experience). In general, be sure to prick the surface of anything which might contain the steam which will be generated inside the food while it cooks. In particular, oils (like the yolk of an egg) will heat up fast and will generate steam if in a moist food. Microwave cooking does seem to have an effect on texture (it may make cheese sort of grainy) and it certainly won't brown things up, which gives many roasted foods that "browned" caramelized flavor. > > 7) Will I learn anything about microwave cooking in my first month or so > that will make me strike my head in anguish over not having purchased > some feature or other? (Or worse, anguish over spending the money in > the first place?) In retrospect, we wouldn't have gotten the convection oven with the micro as a package. Convection ovens are great, but with the cavity dimensions and using the overhead fan (which also disperses the micro- waves), we have a hard time getting heat to the bottom of a dish. The probe and programmable features have been very handy, but you can get a bottom-of-the line model with ten levels for ~$300, so they may not be worth the extra dough. Nemo
chuqui@nsc.UUCP (Zonker T. Chuqui) (11/05/84)
In article <433@tpvax.fluke.UUCP> inc@fluke.UUCP (Gary Benson) writes: >Well, I finally decided I can't live without a microwave oven any longer, > >Here's my situation: I am a single male who likes to cook, but hates to cook >for one; I want to speed up and simplify my time in the kitchen. I foresee >using the oven for occasional fast defrosting, and regular use in casserole >or pot roast type meals. I am an avid popcorn freak, and I also think it >would be nice to boil water in 10 seconds. I doubt I would ever do a turkey, >so cubic-footage is relatively unimportant, and I also would probably not >use any "programmable" features. Here are my questions: Welcome the the club. I don't think I could easily live without my microwave any more. I use it for a number of things-- vegetables, cooking pasta, reheating (I have never learned to cook for one, so I keep leftovers around instead-- at least until I find someone else to help me eat them), defrosting. I don't cook popcorn in it because I don't like the taste for some reason-- I prefer an air popper. I will cook casseroles and some meats in it, but I'm still rather old fashioned in some ways-- roasts and things taste better in a real oven and I'd rather use the microwave for steaming my veggies. I also tend to bake in a real oven-- breads just don't cook right. > 1) What advantages are there to a "carousel" other than for large chunks > of meat? The problem is one of hot spots. Some ovens deal with hot spots with carosels. Mine (a quasar) uses a rotating spreading bar between the tube and the food. If you have a carousel, use it all of the time-- it is more important than you might think. > 2) How important is a heat probe for the uses I have in mind? I haven't used mine once, and I've had this microwave four years. Unless you cook large chunks of meat I haven't found a use for it. > 3) How important is an energy-level control? Some models I've seen have > no control, others have two positions (defrost and cook), and some > have an infinite range. If you're primary purpose is boiling water, it is useless. I use mine a fair amount-- some foods break down if you zap them too quickly. It is pretty much like having an oven that cooks at 375 or an oven that cooks at a range of temperatures. You can cook ANYTHING at 375, but it might not come out perfect. > 4) What other features or accessories are desirable? Do those "browning > dishes" work? I much prefer to brown things in a real oven. Browning dishes are a real hassle. My model has an auto-cook feature. It samples the humidity in the oven to check how well cooked specific items are. It works great for things like quiches, baked potatoes, etc... I don't need to try to figure out how long to cook 5 potatoes instead of 4, it does it for me. it is also smart enough to slightly undercook things so I can finish them to my taste. > 5) Is there any such thing as an energy-efficient model? How much juice > do these things use? Significantly more efficient than the alternatives. Ovens tend to cook the kitchen at least as much as the food. I've found their energy use negligible. > 6) Is it true that some foods taste different in the microwave? And that > some are impossible? Is it possible to boil eggs, for example? Hmm... haven't tried eggs. As I said, baking doesn't work well. You can cook cakes and breads in a microwave but the texture is off. Things with sugar tend to carmelize. You have to modify your cooking for some things-- cheeses tend to get stringy if you aren't careful, so you tend to add them in at the last minute if possible. > 7) Will I learn anything about microwave cooking in my first month or so > that will make me strike my head in anguish over not having purchased > some feature or other? (Or worse, anguish over spending the money in > the first place?) Probably. You ought to pick up a couple of the specialty cook books for microwaves and see how the pros recommend using it. They'll give you a good idea of how to modify your recipes as well. These books tend to be written to a fairly low denominator, but it should be obvious how to use the special features you are considering, and whether they are worth what they cost. chuq -- From the Department of Bistromatics: Chuq Von Rospach {cbosgd,decwrl,fortune,hplabs,ihnp4,seismo}!nsc!chuqui nsc!chuqui@decwrl.ARPA I'd know those eyes from a million years away....
jj@rabbit.UUCP (11/06/84)
I've got two comments on Chuq's comments. The first is that the temperature probe has actually proven to be quite useful to me, mostly to make hot water/soup/cocoa/and the like. It can be used to almost boil water (210 degrees F) without boiling water all over the oven. Likewise, it can heat up milk without scorching it by setting it to 150 or so. Preparing frozen soup is a breeze, first you get it mostly melted, break it into small lumps, set the power to 1/3 to 1/2, set the porbe to 170 or so, and push the button. Ditto for spaghetti sauce (Hmmm, maybe we should have a pasta cook-off. <everybody looses because we all have to diet afterwards...> The second is boiling eggs. My oven came with a specific warning that eggshells are strong, and the STEAM created inside the egg won't break them until there is a LOT of pressure inside. <as in kaBOOOOOOOOM> I think that eggs are best cracked open and cooked some other style in the zapper. -- BE KIND TO SOFT FURRY CREATURES, THEY OFTEN HAVE LARGE, WHITE, TEETH. "And it's 1, 2, 3, ..." (allegra,ihnp4,ulysses)!rabbit!jj
llfe@hound.UUCP (L.FENG) (11/06/84)
> 1) What advantages are there to a "carousel" other than for large chunks > of meat? If you don't have a carousel, remember to rotate the meat often (both in circles and end-over-end. Otherwise, you will have a spot that is cooked to the consistency of beef jerkey. Same prinicple applies to all other foods. > 2) How important is a heat probe for the uses I have in mind? I have found it useful in getting the water just the right temp for yeast bread, boiling water (or any set temp), etc. > 4) What other features or accessories are desirable? Do those "browning > dishes" work? Browning dishes don't work well and are difficult to use. Besides, the taste out of an oven is better. Ovens are great for "finishing" somethings. > 6) Is it true that some foods taste different in the microwave? And that > some are impossible? Is it possible to boil eggs, for example? Eggs tend to explode. Literally. Scrambled eggs are okay, but you'll need to stop and stir them every 30 sec. or so. Not worth the time, if you ask me. Overall, I think that they are very handy to have. -- From the lunch hour of hound!llfe.
rusty@sdcc3.UUCP (Rusty Wright) (11/11/84)
one of the things i would also strongly urge is to go to the public libray and dig out the back issue of consumer's reports that reviewed a bunch of microwaves. they also start the article by pointing out particular features that are very nice to have, peculiarities of the products in general, misfeatures to watch out for, etc.