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Food
Characteristics
Cooking Techniques
Bone
and
Fat
Both
bone and
fat
affect
cooking.
Bones
may
cause
irregular
cooking.
Meat
next
to
the
tips of
bones
may
overcook
while
meat
positioned
under a
large
bone,
such
as a
ham
bone,
may
be
undercooked. Large
amounts
of
fat
absorb
microwave
energy and
the
meat
next
to
these areas
may
overcook.
Density
Porous,
airy
foods such as
breads,
cakes
or
rolls
take
less
time
to
cook
than heavy,
dense
foods such as potatoes
and
roasts.
When
reheating
donuts
or
other
foods
with
different
centers
be
very
careful.
Certain foods
have
centers
made
with
sugar,
water
or
fat
and
these
centers
attract
microwaves
(For
ex.,
jelly
donuts).
When
a
jelly
donut
is
heated, the
jelly
can
become
extremely
hot while the
exterior
remains
warm
to
the
touch. This
could
result
in
a
burn
if
the
food
is
not
allowed
to
cool properly
in
the
center.
Quantity
Two
potatoes take longer
to
cook
than
one
potato.
As
the
quantity
of
the food increases
so
does
the
cooking
time.
When
cooking
small
amounts
of
food
such as
one
or
two
potatoes,
do
not leave
oven
unattended.
The
moisture
content
in
the food
may
decrease and a
fire
could
result.
Shape
Uniform
sizes
heat
more
evenly.
The
thin
end
of
a
drumstick
will
cook more
quickly
than the
meaty
end.
To compensate
for
irregular
shapes, place
thin
parts
toward
the center
of
the
dish
and
thick
pieces
toward
the
edge.
Size
Thin pieces
cook more
quickly
than
thick
pieces.
Starting
Temperature
Foods
that
are
room
temperature
take
less
time
to
cook
than
if
they are
chilled
or
refrigerated
or
frozen.
Piercing
Foods
with
skins or
membranes
must be
pierced,
scored
or
have a
strip
of
skin
peeled before cooking
to allow
steam
to
escape.
Pierce
whole egg
yolks
and
whites,
clams,
oysters,
chicken
livers,
whole
potatoes
and
whole
vegetables.
Whole
apples
or
new
potatoes should
have
a
1
-inch
strip
of
skin
peeled
before cooking.
Score sausage and
frankfurters.
Browning
Foods
will
not
have
the
same
brown appearance
as
conventionally
cooked
foods
or
these foods which
are
cooked
utilizing
the
browning
feature.
Meats and
poultry
may
be
coated
with
browning sauce, Worcestershire sauce,
barbecue sauce
or
shake-on browning sauce.
To
use,
combine
browning sauce
with
melted
butter or
margarine;
brush
on
before cooking.
For
quick
breads
or muffins
brown sugar can be used
in
the
recipe
in
place
of
granulated sugar,
or
the surface
can be
sprinkled with
dark
spices before baking.
-17-
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