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HINTS & TIPS
SOME IMPORTANT TIPS FOR
MICROWAVE COOKING
To help equalize energy in the food so that it
cooks evenly follow these helpful tips.
1. Arrange foods with varying size
ends, such as chicken drumsticks and
broccoli with the thicker or tougher part
positioned to the outside of the dish.
This ensures the parts that require more
cooking will receive more energy, so the
food will cook evenly.
2. Covering the dish during cooking
holds in the heat and steam to speed up
cooking time. Use a microwave safe lid
or plastic wrap that has been vented by
turning back one edge at the side of the
dish to form a narrow vent to release
excess steam.
3. Choose cooking dishes that are shallow
and preferably have straight sides.
Shallow dishes enable the food to cook
faster and straight edges prevent the
edges from being overcooked.
4. Arrange individual items such as
ramekins or whole potatoes around the
outside of the turntable. Making sure to
leave space between items so the energy
can penetrate from all sides.
5. Use round shaped microwave dishes.
Round shapes cook more evenly than
square or rectangle dishes which absorb
most of the energy in the corners
causing food to overcook and toughen.
6. Shield areas which attract the most
energy such as wing tips of chickens
and corners of square dishes by covering
them with small pieces of foil. This
will reflect microwaves and prevent
overcooking and food drying out.
7. Heat breads, biscuits or oily food on
paper towel. This prevents the build
up of steam between food and carousel,
keeping surfaces crisp and dry.
Cover foods with paper toweling to
prevent splatters.
8. Stir foods from the outside to centre of
the dish once or twice during cooking to
equalize heat and speed microwaving.
9. Turn medium to large food items over
once during microwaving. This enables
even exposure to microwaves.
10. Elevating some types of food such
as cakes, roast vegetables and dough
products can be advantageous. It allows
more energy to penetrate the food from
all sides, base and top. Use a microwave
safe plastic or ceramic rack. If a rack is
unavailable, use an upturned bowl or
cup may be used to elevate plates
of food.
11. Do not elevate any special browning
dishes, jugs of sauce or custard, small
quantities of food or mugs of beverages.
12. Internal temperatures of foods continue
to rise so that they continue cooking
even after they have been removed
from the microwave oven. It is better
to undercook food as it will continue to
cook once removed from the microwave.
MICROWAVE UTENSILS
• Containers, plates, dishes, etc. used in
the microwave oven should always be
microwave-safe. Check if stated on the
underside of the utensil or contact
the manufacturer.
• To test if a container, plate or dish
is microwave-safe, place it into the
microwave oven with 1 cup of cold water
(in a microwave-safe cup) and heat on
High (100%) Power for 1 minute. If the
container is hot and the water is cold, the
container is not suitable for microwave
oven use. If the container is cold and
the water is hot, then the container is
suitable for microwave oven use.
• Metal containers and utensils should not
be used in the microwave oven.