Generally, I don’t promote microwave cooking, because that leads to eating frozen meals or pre-packaged stuff. But, I have to admit, some things are either better in the microwave or yield equal results, and therefore makes sense because it’s easier and quicker.
Lon asked me to do this post and at first I hesitated because I can’t give exact recipes. The problem is that microwaves vary greatly, more than any other kitchen appliance I can think of. Our current microwave could blow something up in minutes, while Lon’s old microwave took close to 8 minutes to make a bowl of oatmeal. After much discussion, I agreed with Lon, this is still valuable information and I should share it.
Corn-on-the-Cob
I almost always heat corn-on-the cob in the microwave. I know lots of people like the flavor of grilled corn, including myself, but with that charred goodness, you forgo some moisture. With the microwave corn-on-the cob, you get juicy kernels that burst with every bite. I also have a habit of eating my corn-on-the-cob kernel by kernel. That’s my idea of fun and this method makes it easier:
Remove most layers of husk, leaving just 1-2 layers of leaves. Wet a paper towel and ring out the excess. Wrap it around the corn. Depending on the size of the corn,
I microwave it for 1-2 minutes on each side, but remember that I have a powerful microwave.
Beets
Even though I love beets, I didn’t make them all that often because roasting takes a long time. Then I found out that beets could be microwaved (explained in James Peterson’s book, Vegetables). How long depends on how many beets and the size of the beets, but just to give you a guideline, I tend to microwave 4 mid-sized beets for 2-3 minutes, in a covered tupperware container. Then let it rest for 2 minutes. Turn the beets over and microwave again for 2-3 minutes. Let it rest for another 2 minutes and then test with a pairing knife to see if it’s tender.
Eggs
This does not include all eggs by any means. This method is just better when you want to make an imitation of the McDonald’s Egg McMuffins. It’s similar to a poached egg, but fits perfectly round on an English Muffin. You just crab and egg into a small bowl and microwave on the lowest setting possible.
Butter
Some baking recipes call for melted butter. I prefer to melt butter in the microwave because doing it on the stove may separate more milk solids.
Microwave Reheating
~Some things are easier to heat in the microwave than on the stove:
- rice (add a drop of water into a microwave safe container and heat covered)
- pita bread (dampen a paper towel and drape on top)
- bao (Chinese steamed buns)
- mashed potatoes
- baked potato
- steamed vegetables
i recently discovered how marvelous microwaved corn is, and it has saved me so much time. i think it tastes even better than boiled corn (but nothing tops grilled corn…). 🙂
Hmmm…it never occurred to me to make corn in the microwave–I always boil it. I’ll have to try your method!
Grace, it’s really for different purposes.
Asianmommy, you’ll save time and nutrients.
When I was cleaning out my grandmother’s house after she passed, I found a “Gourmet Microwave Cooking” book. I love using the microwave, but the horrors to be found there!
And I microwave beets virtually the same way! Sometimes I just cook them and then slather some butter on them and eat them. Must be the Midwestern penchant for dairy products that drives me…
Dr. Food, I’m going to have to try them with butter…haven’t ever thought of that.
I always microwave my corn too. So easy and fast, but I think the best result is still by steaming. Sometimes mircrowaving draws a lot of moisture out of the corn. 🙁
Anonymous, I think it’s better than steaming as long as you don’t put it in the microwave for too long.
Microwaves in india are sold on the pltform that you can cook using them. It would be difficult to sell them on just a reheating platform as india is a value driven market and we still are not into frozen meals. i have used the micro extensively for cooking as we don’t have an oven. Some of the things that we make include: daal (Indian lentil soup), Indian chicken curry, tandoori chicken, a mayo based casserole chicken, choc souffle, choc bread based cake, potatoes sauteed in whole Indan spices, tomato and onion
Knife, your comment is really interesting to me! I have noticed that just about every South Asian (Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, etc.) restaurant in NYC (at least not the super fancy ones) use a microwave openly. They all use it for reheating, but it’s out in the open and there’s no shame for them.
Most other restaurants probably use them as well, but hide the microwaves in the back.
Lon…ditto with most restaurants here at Bombay whose kitchens I have been able to peek into and definitely in all the cake shops (for the salty stuff) and coffee shops where it is quite in the open and at times I even specify the duration for which I want my croissant heated
Hey i didn’t heard of corn in the microwave. It sounds much tasty.
I’ll give it a try. And if you want to have good recipes plz click the link below.
Pakistani Recipes