Microwave Reviews

BEFORE CHOOSING YOUR MICROWAVE OVEN

Long have gone the traditional oven which allowed the basic functions of baking cookies, cakes and heating frozen food and they have been effectively replaced with the latest and modern microwave oven. Microwaves have travelled a long road and are firmly establishing in many modern kitchens. Right from warming a dinner to cooking the most intricate and delicious delicacies, these microwaves stand beside solidly just for this purpose. When related to expense, microwave is not just another ordinary addition of kitchen appliances. So before choosing the right microwave which would suit the needs and choices, it is rather best to go through their features and determine what they are ready to offer.

These modern microwaves are based on the principle of using microwaves to best heat the food. They are in fact nothing but radio waves which at a frequency level of over 2500 MHz or megahertz. The fat, sugar and water content in the food is totally absorbed by these waves and directly converted to heat to cook them.

A conventional oven spreads the heat from outside where as the microwaves kind of excite the food from inside and cooking is handled more efficiently. Without a grill option, the microwave oven’s inside is just room temperature and crusting or crispness is a lessened possibility. Metals reflect microwaves and tend to create a spark or fire. So use of ceramics or glass and special plastics is commendable.

TYPES OF MICROWAVE OVEN

The three types categorized on fitting are the built-in ovens with drawers which are generally specially designed to fit into a kitchen unit and appear trendy. There is also the free standing which can be placed inside a kitchen top, plugged and used. The over the range model avoids clutter and gives more space inside a kitchen.

Standard or Solo model

Based on the functionalities and fittings, microwave ovens can be broadly classified over 3 types in each. The standard solo model is mainly useful in warming or reheating food, defrosting and easily cook food items like a jacket potato.

Combination model

Combination microwave ovens have the grill option as well as the convection heating which uses a fan to spread the hot air. They are larger in size and allow lot of food to be cooked. Steaming is yet another function in some of the combination microwaves.

Grill model

Grill microwaves allows cooking food crispier and browner. Microwaving and grill can be used simultaneously. There is the heating element installed in grill which is the key factor in the process of grilling.

Convection microwave oven

The process of convection uses circulation of hot air by means of a fan to suck the moisture and speeds up the cooking. This gives the crispness and brown air to the food prepared. An oven of this model uses both the heat energy and the microwave energy for the cooking process. It uses the energies either separately or in combination and when combined with the grilling feature is the best and versatile model for any size of the family and occasion.

SIZING

The very size of the microwave should correlate with the size of the kitchen and the size of the family. There are always various sizes available in the market and one could contemplate on the issue before purchase. Not only the size of the microwave oven matters but also the size of the kitchenware that would be used inside should be taken into account. The size normally ranges between 1 cubic feet to 2 cubic feet which is ideal for huge family as well as a compact one.

When moving on to the size of the family a small and compact family could suffice with the size of 0.5-0.8 cubic feet while a medium size family definitely needs an oven with the capacity of 0.9-1.3 cubic feet. The larger the family, a full sized oven of 1.8-2.0 cubic feet is definitely needed.

In other terms the best suggested oven for all optimal purposes would be a 20 litre capacity using an average of 900W power with a heat rating of E to it.

POWER

The power used in a microwave is measured and indicated in watts. It is well known that always higher watts energy cooks food faster and with efficacy. Even the recipes for cooking in a microwave suggest power of a minimum 800 watts for even cooking. Appliances with higher watts save time and fuel equally. There are models that range between 700W to 1500W available for purchase.

Also, a rating is found for the heat emanated which is from A to E in which A is the lowest and E stands for fast rate of heating.

FUNDAMENTAL FEATURES TO NOTE

Updated version of the originals today is highly innovative and has lot of special features to it. There is a notable function like the pre-set timing which allows the user to time frame the cooking with the required amount of time and temperature. Special heating allows the cooked food to possess a golden tinge and makes it extra crispy. Also there are cooking sensors which makes it possible to check the water level of the food. The halogen bulbs found in some of the microwave ovens helps the convectional microwaves to offer a thorough cooking. This is otherwise known as the speed cook or rapid cooking facility.

It is also a key recommendation to go for an oven which will be put to use rather than buying one with extra options for a higher price which may stay without using all the special settings and programmes.

AVAILABLE COOKING FEATURES

The basic function of the microwave is to warm frozen food. The automatic defrosting and heating setting actually calculates the weight of the set food and decides upon the required time to safe cook it. For this, the data has to be entered in to the control panel.

The usage of random pulses of the radio wave energy actually reduces a lot of defrosting time and is hence names chaos defrosting . The multiple sequence setting changes the power levels that is required for first defrosting and cooking automatically.

Few of the models come with preset programmes built in and does the guess cooking on its own depending upon the nature and requirement of the food. Sensor cooking in a microwave detects the humidity of the oven and the moisture level of the food content. It safely adjusts the power and timing as per the needs. When the sensor sounds the oven automatically shuts down the cooking. When baking beans or heating soups a power boost is supplement to indicate turbo reheat setting in the microwave.

EXTRA ADD-ONS

The most important of the necessary extras is the child lock features which prohibits the accidental initiation or interference in the cooking process. It permits a code to start the operating of the microwave.

The drop-down floor found in the appliance facilitates placing and removing food in an easy manner and provides additional spacing to rest the dishes upon. Good models of microwaves have pyrolytic liners or a catalytic which is easy to clean. They prevent build-up of grease and food matter which may result in micro organism to spread.

Manufacturers of recent microwaves sometimes include browning dishes and trays in their accessories which have a metal bottom that give that added crispiness to food like French Fries. Also the timers which are dual mode reflect the cooking time of the food as well as serves as a timer for the kitchen.

There are microwaves which have instant-action keys or easy touch buttons which are programmed for common types of cooking like popcorn, soup, or potatoes. They may number up to a maximum of 15. The language or weight option setting in a few models provide a translation of cooking direction in other languages than English and differentiate the weight in kilogram and pound.

The turntables that are available inside the oven help the food to rotate and cook evenly. It comes usually in glass and almost all the manufacturer adds it to their models. Along with glass, other materials which can be used inside the cavity of the microwave are pyrex or microwave safe plastic. Nonporous china and ceramic is also best used. Definite avoiding of metal or metal rimmed containers is recommended as they many trigger sparks which may lead to a fire.

TIPS TO MAINTENANCE

Following are a few points which are best noted while using a microwave oven.

• All type of covered food when placed inside the oven should be vented or opened up for circulation and steam release.
• Stirring midway is essential when cooking large quantity of food to avoid and reduce cold spots which may lead to food poisoning.
• Allowing a 2-minute grace period allow heat accidents as even after the cooking process stops, there will be spreading of heat throughout the food.
• Careful handling of the containers is certainly advisable as the food may be extra hot than the container.
• Keeping the microwave clean is an absolute need for health and hygiene. The interiors can be cleaned with non abrasive materials.
• Do not start the microwave when empty, as the radio waves tend to bounce of the interiors and create serious damage.
• Definitely sterilization of utensils and baby bottles should be avoided.
• Last but not the least is to consult with the doctor if the user has a pacemaker fitted. Latest and new pacemakers adapt to the microwaves and there is not much interference but older models tend to have some adverse effects when in close proximity to the microwave oven.