Food Characteristics; Cooking Techniques - Panasonic NN-S262 Operating Instructions Manual

Food Characteristics

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
centres be very careful. Certain foods have centres made
with sugar, water, or fat and these centres attract
microwaves (For e.g., 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 centre.
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 centre 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, refrigerated, or frozen.

Cooking Techniques

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 sausages and frankfurters.
Browning
Foods will not have the same brown appearance as
conventionally cooked foods or those foods which are
cooked utilizing a 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.
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