Food Characteristics & Microwave Cooking - LG SolarDOM MA3884VQS Owner's Manual

Food characteristics &
Microwave cooking
Keeping an eye on things
The recipes in the book have been formulated with great care, but your success
in preparing them depends on how much attention you pay to the food as it
cooks. Always watch your food while it cooks. Your microwave function is
equipped with a light that turns on automatically when the oven is in operation
so that you can see inside and check the progress of your food. Directions given
in recipes to elevate, stir, and the like should be thought of as the minimum steps
recommended. If the food seems to be cooking unevenly, simply make the
necessary adjustments you think appropriate to correct the problem.
Factors affecting microwave cooking times
Many factors affect cooking times. The temperature of ingredients used in a
recipe makes a big difference in cooking times. For example, a cake made with
ice-cold butter, milk, and eggs will take considerably longer to bake than one
made with ingredients that are at room temperature. All of the recipes in this
book give a range of cooking times. In general, you will find that the food
remains under-cooked at the lower end of the time range, and you may
sometimes want to cook your food beyond the maximum time given, according
to personal preference. The governing philosophy of this book is that it is best
for a recipe to be conservative in giving cooking times. While overcooked food
is ruined for good. Some of the recipes, particularly those for bread, cake, and
custards, recommend that food be removed from the oven when they are slightly
undercooked. This is not a mistake. When allowed to stand, usually covered,
these foods will continue to cook outside of the oven as the heat trapped within
the outer portions of the food gradually travels inward. If the food is left in the
oven until it is cooked all the way through, the outer portions will become
overcooked or even burnt. You will become increasingly skilful in estimating
both cooking and standing times for various foods.
Density of food
Light, porous food such as cakes and breads cook more quickly than heavy,
dense foods such as roasts and casseroles. You must take care when
microwaving porous food that the outer edges do not become dry and brittle.
Height of food
The upper portion of tall food, particularly roasts, will cook more quickly than
the lower portion. Therefore, it is wise to turn tall food during cooking,
sometimes several times.
Moisture content of food
Since the heat generated from microwaves tends to evaporate moisture,
relatively dry food such as roasts and some vegetables should either be
sprinkled with water prior to cooking or covered to retain moisture.
Bone and fat content of food
Bones conduct heat and fat cooks more quickly than meat. Care must be taken
when cooking bony or fatty cuts of meat that they do not cook unevenly and do
not become overcooked.
Quantity of food
The number of microwaves in your oven remains constant regardless of how much
food is being cooked. Therefore, the more food you place in the oven, the longer
the cooking time. Remember to decrease cooking times by at least one third when
halving a recipe.
Shape of food
Microwaves penetrate only about 2 cm into food, the interior portion of thick
foods are cooked as the heat generated on the outside travels inward. Only the
outer edge of food in cooked by microwave energy; the rest is cooked by
conduction. The worst possible shape for a food that is to be microwaved is a
thick square. The corners will burn long before the centre is even warm . Round
thin foods and ring shaped foods cook successfully in the microwave.
Covering
A cover traps heat and steam which causes food to cook more quickly. Use a lid
or microwave cling film with a corner folded back to prevent splitting.
Browning
Meats and poultry that are cooked fifteen minutes or longer will brown lightly in
their own fat. Food that are cooked for a shorter period of time may be brushed
with a browning sauce such as worcestershire sauce, soy sauce or barbecue
sauce to achieve an appetizing colour. Since relatively small amounts of browning
sauces are added to food the original flavour of the recipe is not altered.
Covering with greaseproof paper
Greaseproofing effectively prevents spattering and helps food retain some heat.
But because it makes a looser cover than a lid or clingfilm, it allows the food to
dry out slightly.
Arranging and spacing
Individual foods such as baked potatoes, small cakes and hors d'oeuvres will heat
more evenly if placed in the oven an equal distance apart, preferably in a circular
pattern. Never stack foods on top of one another.
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