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Cooking guide
Arranging food
For best results, distribute food evenly on
the plate. You can do this in several ways:
• If you are cooking several items of the
same food, such as baked potatoes,
place them in a ring pattern for uniform
cooking.
• When cooking foods of uneven shapes
or thickness, such as chicken breasts,
place the smaller or thinner area of the
food towards the center of the dish where
it will be heated last.
• Layer thin slices of meat on top of
each other.
• When you cook or reheat whole fish,
score the skin – this prevents cracking.
Shield the tail and head of whole fish with
small pieces of foil to prevent overcooking
and ensure the foil does not touch the
sides of the oven.
• Do not let food or container touch the top
or sides of the oven. This will prevent
possible arcing.
Using aluminum foil
Metal containers usually should not be
used in a microwave oven. There are,
however, some exceptions. If you have
purchased food which is prepackaged in an
aluminum foil container, then refer to the
instructions on the package. When using
aluminum foil containers, cooking times
may be longer because microwaves will
only penetrate the top of the food.
If you use aluminum containers without pack-
age instructions, follow these
guidelines:
• Place container in a glass bowl and add
some water so that it covers the bottom
of the container, not more than
1
⁄4 inch high.
This ensures even heating of the container
bottom.
• Always remove the lid to avoid damage
to the oven.
• Use only undamaged containers.
• Do not use containers taller than
3
⁄4 inch.
• Container must be half filled.
• To avoid sparking, there must be a
minimum
1
⁄4 inch (.6 cm) between the
aluminum container and the walls of the
oven and also between two aluminum
containers.
• Reheating food in aluminum foil
containers usually takes up to double the
time compared to reheating in plastic,
glass, china, or paper containers. The time
when food is ready will vary a great deal.
• Let food stand for 2 to 3 minutes after
heating so that heat is spread evenly
throughout container.
Cooking you should not do in your
microwave oven
• Do not do canning of foods in the oven.
Closed glass jars may explode, resulting in
damage to the oven.
• Do not use the microwave oven to
sterilize objects (baby bottles, etc.). It is dif-
ficult to maintain the high temperature
required for safe sterilization.
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