Bone And Fat Content Of Food; Quantity Of Food; Shape Of Food; Covering - John Lewis JLMWGR005 User Manual

Bone and fat content of food

As bones conduct heat and fat cooks more quickly than meat. Care must be taken when cooking bony or fatty cuts of
meat in order to prevent unevenly or overcooked meat.

Quantity of food

The number of microwaves in your microwave remains constant regardless of how much food is being cooked.
Therefore, the more food you place in the microwave, the longer the cooking time. Remember to decrease cooking
times by at least one third when halving a recipe.

Shape of food

Microwaves penetrate 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 is 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 most successfully in the microwave.

Covering

A cover traps heat and steam which causes food to cook more quickly. Use a lid or microwave cling fi lm with a corner
folded back to prevent splitting.

Browning

Meats and poultry that are cooked for fi fteen minutes or longer will brown lightly in their own fat. Foods that are
cooked for a shorter period of time can be brushed with a browning sauce such as Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce
or barbecue sauce to achieve an appetizing colour.
Note: Since relatively small amounts of browning sauces are added to food, the original fl avour of the recipe will not
be altered.

Covering with greaseproof paper

The use of greaseproof paper to cover the food may cause the food to dry out slightly.
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Microwave oven and grill