Getting The Best Cooking Results; Testing Your Dinnerware Or Cookware - Kenmore 88522 Use & Care Manual

Getting
e
est cooking results
Testing your dinnerware or cookware
Test dinnerware or cookware before using. To test a dish for safe use, put it into
oven with a cup of water beside it. Cook at 100% cook power for one minute. If the
dish gets hot, do not use it.
Some dishes (melamine, some ceramic dinnerware, etc.) absorb microwave energy,
becoming too hot to handle and slowing cooking times. Cooking in metal containers
not designed for microwave use could damage the oven, as could containers with
hidden metal (twist-ties, foil lining, staples, metallic glaze or trim).
To get the best results from your microwave oven, read and follow the guidelines below.
,, Storage Temperature: Foods taken from the freezer or refrigerator take longer to
cook than the same foods at room temperature.
• Size: Small pieces of food cook faster than large ones, pieces similar in size and
shape cook more evenly. For even cooking, reduce the power when cooking large
pieces of food.
,, Natural Moisture: Very moist foods cook more evenly because microwave energy is
attracted to water molecules.
,, Stir foods such as casseroles and vegetables from the outside to the center to
distribute the heat evenly and speed cooking. Constant stirring is not necessary.
,, Turn over foods like pork chops, baking potatoes, roasts, or whole cauliflower
halfway through the cooking time to expose all sides equally to microwave energy.
Place delicate areas of foods, such as asparagus tips, toward the center of the dish.
,, Arrange unevenly shaped foods, such as chicken pieces or salmon steaks, with the
thicker, meatier parts toward the outside of the dish.
,, Shield, with small pieces of aluminum foil, parts of food that may cook quickly, such
as wing tips and leg ends of poultry.
,, Let It Stand: After you remove the food from the microwave, cover food with foil or
casserole lid and let it stand to finish cooking in the center and avoid overcooking the
outer edges. The length of standing time depends on the density and surface area of
the food.
,, Wrapping in waxed paper or paper towel: Sandwiches and many other foods
containing prebaked bread should be wrapped prior to microwaving to prevent drying
out.
USA-MD5 DE68-00367F IBindb 9 2009-03-31 4:01:06