Food Characteristics; Cooking Techniques - Panasonic NN-S962BC/WC 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 example, 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 or 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 (2.5 cm) strip of skin peeled before
cooking. Score sausages and frankfurters.
Browning
Foods will not have the same brown
appearance as conventionally cooked foods or
these 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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