What foods can not be heated in the microwave. Products that should never be heated in the microwave
Cooking pizza or other semi-finished products, “frying” an egg for breakfast or warming up yesterday’s soup is the easiest way in the microwave. No matter how much the potential harm of a given device is spoken about, giving up its benefits is not so simple. The main thing is not to forget that even such simple manipulations must be performed correctly, and not as convenient or faster. If you ignore the basic recommendations for using the device, you can spoil your favorite food or even provoke a device breakdown.
Can foil be used to heat food in the microwave?
Many housewives accompany the process of preparing popcorn with the same mistake - they pour the grains into a deep glass bowl and wrap it in foil. Regardless of how long the manipulation lasts, most often it has negative consequences. Smoke starts to pour out of the camera, sparks appear, sometimes in the apartment it even knocks out plugs, and the microwave goes out of order.
Sellers of household appliances and employees of service centers are already tired of explaining to consumers that it is strictly forbidden to heat any food in the foil in the case of microwaves. Chicken and other types of meat are not wrapped in it, clay pots are not covered, an egg should not be placed in it!
Even if the experiment, for some incredible reason, did not lead to an accident, you can safely throw out the heated food. The foil contains aluminum compounds, which under the influence of physical processes break up into components hazardous to human health. If you want to improve the quality of heating (to make it more uniform), you need to purchase special dishes or wrapping paper.
How to warm up baby food in the microwave?
Experts generally do not recommend using a microwave to warm up baby food. Relatively fresh breast milk, as well as the adapted mixture, as a result of such processing lose a significant part of the beneficial components and retain only their nutritional properties. The product strained and subjected to long-term storage generally changes its chemical composition. If you give this child such food, then this can put too much strain on the kidneys. The best option today is to place the bottle in hot water or use a water bath.
True, in such a convenient modern way it is allowed to heat ready-made baby food from the store. We place the porridge or baby puree right in the jar and without a lid in a deep container, which we put in the microwave. The design for fidelity can be covered with a lid, but leaving a small gap.
Is it possible to heat food in pots in the microwave?
A positive answer is given only if the pots are made of matt material. Despite the fact that brilliant devices perfectly tolerate very high oven temperatures, cracks can go on the surface of the microwave in the microwave.
Tip: But it is strictly forbidden to place ceramic products in a microwave oven. This material is an accumulation of numerous pores. If warm air gets into them, they will expand under the influence of electromagnetic waves and the container will explode.
To properly and evenly heat food in a pot, the device must be installed at medium power. First, we place the container in the chamber for only a couple of minutes, after which we mix the composition. Then we warm the product for a couple of minutes and mix again. Last time we heat the mass for three minutes.
How to heat milk in the microwave?
Milk, like water, is better to heat up in the usual way, especially since it does not take much time. If, for some reason, this urgently needs to be done in the microwave, you need to remember the following points:
- The amount of liquid should be small, do not try to bring the whole bowl or saucepan of the product to a boil in the oven.
- The maximum mode or prolonged warm-up is not used here. It is allowed to heat milk and water only if several approaches are carried out, otherwise all the walls and the bottom of the chamber will be dirty.
- It is best to pour both water and milk into a deep container so that the liquid does not reach even half the volume. Next, we make a few short visits and check after each result.
- When working with liquid products, you cannot use ordinary glassware. Cracks can go on it, because of which the container, if it does not fall apart, then the glass particles will definitely fall into milk or water.
How and in what you can heat food in the microwave
The annotation to the microwave oven should contain information on which dishes it is recommended to heat food, and which materials are unacceptable. For maximum convenience, safety and the preservation of taste data, food should be placed in refractory products designed specifically for microwave ovens. In addition, you need to remember a number of rules and wishes:
- It is better to heat pizza, casserole, pastries, chicken with a golden brown crust and porridge from dense ingredients (for example, buckwheat) without lids. When closed, these dishes soften very much and lose the desired texture.
- Pizza can be heated in the same box in which it was sold. But only on condition that this permission is registered on the package.
- To prepare an egg, it is better to break it on a plate or in a bowl. If you put the product in a microwave in an inshell or a container of water, the consequences can be most unpredictable.
- Garnish in the form of spaghetti and vegetables, as well as porridge, it is preliminary recommended to sprinkle with lemon juice, water, milk or wine (depending on the dish). Then they warm up more evenly and do not stick together.
- If you need to heat fish or meat, for example, chicken, we put small pieces on the edges of the plate, and place large ones in the center.
You should not try to heat canned food, pancakes or other semi-finished products in their “native” packaging. Better put everything on a plate of the appropriate volume.
Microwave Warming Rules for Honey
In a microwave oven, you can heat not only food, but also components that are used to prepare home-made cosmetic compositions, for example, honey. Fans of a fragrant product also will not hurt a few practical tips. First of all, you need to learn that honey must first be mashed, otherwise it will melt or warm unevenly. Next, set the device to medium power and heat the product several times for 20-30 seconds, kneading after each round. It is important to remember that at temperatures above 60 ° C, honey loses most of its beneficial components.
As in any other business, successful work with the microwave requires practice. If you act in accordance with the instructions given and not be afraid to experiment, you can learn how to turn the most ordinary chicken egg into an exquisite omelette, diversifying your diet to the maximum with even familiar products.
Want to lose weight?
Excess weight is not just an aesthetic problem, it is a health problem. Proven by doctors - every 10 kg. excess weight reduces a person’s life by 3-5 years. It is also proved that everyone can lose weight, they are only necessary ...
Many refuse to use microwaves, motivating them with the fact that microwaves make food tasteless, provoke the growth of cancer cells in the blood, create carcinogens in milk, destroy the digestive system and, in general, are more like killer machines than a cooking tool.
Let's try not to give in to panic and see how justified such conclusions are.
How it all started
Cooking becomes much less tedious if there is a microwave in the kitchen: it heats and thawes and bakes and grills, and most importantly - it does all this at the speed of light and does not create additional trouble for us, the housewives. We owe all these miracles to the American engineer Percy Spencer, who back in 1945 noticed that microwave radiation can heat objects.
It is noteworthy that the very first microwave oven (growing from a person) was used only for quick defrosting of products, and not for cooking, and the first household microwave oven, as we know it today, was introduced to the world more than 50 years ago, and the demand for this device with since then does not fall today.
The principle of operation of the microwave
The more incomprehensible to us some thing, the more hostility and fear it causes. To some people, microwave ovens seem creepy just because they don’t know anything about the principle of their work, which, in general, is not so complicated. The heart of any microwave oven - a magnetron - is a source of radiation of special high-frequency radio waves (microwaves), which, in turn, heat our food. More precisely, they make the food molecules disperse and rub against each other, generating heat. Although these microwaves do not have any radioactive properties, the microwave is designed so that the microwaves do not go outside and burn us: for example, between the plates in the microwave door there is a special multilayer grid that reflects the microwaves back into the oven.
Conclusion: if you don’t stick your hands in the microwave and remember that every day we experience the radio waves coming from telephones, televisions and computers, we don’t suffer from this at all, then cooking in microwave oven It will be a convenient way to save time while preserving the useful properties of products.
Microwave benefits
In addition to super-speed and tremendous versatility, microwave ovens evenly and efficiently heat food, without requiring oil for this, as in the case of heating food on the stove. Microwaves take up little space and are equipped with a bunch of different additional options, from skewers to sound alerts.
Many manufacturers equip their stoves with a stylish design, the "Child Protection" system, special recipes books, lower and upper grills, a timer and an amazing number of operating modes that know how to make soup, popcorn or even muffins. Do not neglect to read the instructions for your microwave: there you will find individual tips for caring for her and safety tips.
Porcelain, ceramics, glass - the best dishes for heating everything that is possible in the microwave. Be careful with porcelain - it should not have drawings, with polyethylene and cling film - they need to be pierced in several places before use, and with plastic - it must be indicated on such containers that they are suitable for microwave and made safe material. By the way, linen and cotton napkins are best for warming bread and baking.
Try using a microwave: for example, warm citrus fruits for 15 seconds to get all the juice out of them, or speed up the soaking of the beans, pouring them with water and heating for about 10 minutes.
Never, under any circumstances, try to cook the eggshell in the microwave: the explosion will be impressive, and it will take a very long time to wipe the stove and the surfaces closest to it. Metal and objects containing it, such as a gold rim on dishes or foil, should also not get into the microwave oven in any case.
Disposable plastic containers for carrying food, plastic bags and even brown paper bags should be removed from food before being warmed up. Be careful not to start an empty microwave: this will not only ruin the stove itself, but even in the event of any malfunction, you can cause an accidental fire.
Microwave care
In order for the microwave to last longer, you should take special care of it, like any item in the kitchen. Cook food in a sealed container to prevent food from splashing the walls and door of the oven. Make it a rule to wipe the walls of the microwave immediately after cooking: use a simple soft cloth. If you thawed a fish or something with the same strong smell, try boiling a glass of water with a slice of lemon in the microwave: this will help get rid of the smell.
For large-scale cleaning, cleaning products designed specifically for microwave ovens are suitable. Remember that with proper use, the microwave is your main assistant in the kitchen, which can not only, but also be used for cooking
received by mail.
A microwave is one of the most beloved appliances in the kitchen of most of us. After all, it is very convenient and quick to heat, defrost and even cook food in it. However, scientists argue that not all products can be subjected to heat treatment in the microwave. For example, garlic. And it's worth remembering.
Percy Lebaron Spencer is considered the inventor of the microwave oven, because it was he who first noticed that microwave radiation can heat objects. There are several versions of how this happened. According to one of them, Percy accidentally put his sandwich on a magnetron and then discovered that it was warm, and on the other, while working with a magnetron, a chocolate melted in his pocket. This happened in 1945, and already in 1946 the first patent for the manufacture of microwaves was issued.
some facts about the first microwave.
Height - about the height of a person
Weight - 340 kg
Power - 3 kW (approximately twice the power of a modern microwave)
Price - $ 3,000
The first microwave ovens were used only for quick defrosting of products in military hospitals; their mass production began in 1949.
why in the microwave heats up and cooks so quickly.
At a time when the heat in a conventional oven gradually penetrates through food, the energy in the microwave immediately penetrates 2.5 centimeters into the product, accelerating the heating and cooking.
that you can’t put in the microwave.
Despite the controversy over whether microwave ovens are harmful to humans or not, there is no official evidence for this. However, there are scientifically proven warnings for several foods that should not be put in the microwave.
breast milk.
The Journal of the American Academy of Pediatricians conducted tests on 22 samples of frozen breast milk, which was heated in a microwave oven at low and high temperatures. In the first case, the results showed an increased growth of E. coli in milk, namely, 18 times more than in milk heated without a microwave.
In milk samples heated at a low temperature in a microwave oven, a significant decrease in the activity of lysozyme, an enzyme with antibacterial properties, which prevents the growth of bacteria, was found.
broccoli.
Any heat treatment destroys the beneficial substances in foods, especially vegetables and fruits. For broccoli, the most gentle way of cooking is steam treatment, since during it the smallest amount of flavonoid antioxidants is destroyed (after usual cooking in water - 66%). While cooking or heating in the microwave with a small amount of water leads to the destruction of up to 97% of the useful substances of the vegetable.
frozen fruits.
Fruit freezing is one way to keep nutrients in them longer. But it turns out that they should never be thawed in the microwave. Back in the 70s, Russian scientists proved that thawing fruits in the microwave leads to the conversion of beneficial glucoside (a derivative of glucose) and galactoside into carcinogens. And in the early 90s, a Russian study confirmed the immunological effects of microwaves on the body (as a result of exposure to a non-thermal radio-frequency electromagnetic field, increased antibody formation was observed in rat brain cells).
frozen meat.
In order to thaw a piece of meat in a microwave oven, it will take a lot of time (about 15-30 minutes), and if the piece is too large, then its edges will have time to prepare before the middle unfrozen.
At the moment when the temperature reaches 60 degrees Celsius, bacteria begin to multiply actively in the meat, and if you are not going to cook it right away, then thawed meat will turn into a source of microbes.
In addition, Japanese researchers found that about half of vitamin B12 is destroyed in meat that has been microwaved for more than 6 minutes (the results of this study were published in the journal ScienceNews in 1998). It is believed that the best way to defrost meat is to put it in the refrigerator overnight or put it under a stream of cold running water.
garlic.
Negatively affects the heat treatment and anti-cancer properties of garlic. According to research conducted in 2001 by a group of scientists from Pennsylvania State University, 60 second microwave processing (or 45 minutes in an oven) can inhibit the ability of garlic to bind in vivo a carcinogen in the mammary gland of animals. It was also noted that a 10-minute “rest” of crushed garlic before processing in the microwave for 60 seconds prevents a complete loss of anti-cancer properties.
In addition, you should also pay attention to general precautions that most of us, although they know, do not adhere to while using the microwave.
Protein products.
Scientists recommend using a microwave oven to a lesser extent for the preparation of protein products. A recent Australian study confirmed that microwaves lead to higher destruction of protein molecules than their preparation in an oven.
Food in plastic containers or cling film.
Using such convenient plastic containers in the microwave, we add a portion of carcinogens to food, as some toxic substances pass from plastic to products.
High water and coated products.
Also, it is impossible to put products in a microwave oven in a dense shell and with a high water content inside (for example, tomatoes or eggs), since as a result of a sharp increase in temperature, the volume inside increases sharply and the food simply explodes. Recall unsuccessful egg experiments:
About 30 years ago, microwave ovens first appeared in our kitchens, and we immediately became dependent on the rapid heating of food. The younger generation, most likely, cannot even imagine how to cook oatmeal, hot chocolate or popcorn without it. Still, many of us use the microwave incorrectly. Of course, we know that it is impossible to put aluminum foil, metal or plastic in it, but there are no less dangerous risks associated with heating certain products.
To begin with, it is worthwhile to understand that a microwave oven does not heat food evenly, and this often means that any bacteria present in it can survive. There is still a problem with the appearance of carcinogenic toxins. In order to minimize the risks associated with the microwave, do not be tempted to use it to cook or heat these six foods.
Hard Boiled Eggs
If you try to heat a hard-boiled unpeeled egg in a microwave, the moisture inside it will create steam, like in a miniature pressure cooker. You risk an egg exploding! Even more scary, this will not happen inside the microwave during heating, but later. This means that an egg heated to a boiling point may burst in your hand, on a plate, or even in your mouth. In order not to turn your lunch into a steam bomb, cut it into small pieces before reheating or, better yet, do not put in the microwave.
Breast milk
Many young mothers freeze and store breast milk for later use. This is a good idea until you decide to heat it in the microwave. As already mentioned, microwave ovens heat dishes with food unevenly, and the same thing will happen with a bottle of breast milk. Uneven heating creates “hot spots” that can seriously burn the baby’s throat and mouth. In addition, there is a danger associated with carcinogens that comes from reheating plastic. Breast milk is best thawed and reheated in a saucepan on the stove or using hot tap water. As a temporary solution, you can heat a cup of water in a microwave and then lower a bottle of breast milk into it.
Processed meat
It contains chemicals and preservatives that extend its shelf life. Unfortunately, a microwave can worsen the effect of these substances on your body. Heating the processed meat in a microwave promotes the formation of cholesterol oxidation products, which are known to be more damaging to arteries than pure cholesterol. They are also directly related to the development of coronary heart disease. Compared to other cooking methods, heating the processed meat in the microwave is much more likely to lead to problems.
Rice
Using a microwave to cook rice can easily lead to food poisoning. Raw rice contains bacterial spores that can survive in the microwave. After you remove the rice from it and leave it at room temperature, spores can multiply and cause diarrhea and vomiting.
Hen
All poultry meat, including chicken, may contain salmonella, so you must carefully prepare it to eliminate all existing bacteria. Since the microwave oven cannot cook all parts of the meat evenly, it is likely that the surviving bacteria will remain in it. Moreover, chicken has a very high protein density, so it is very important to cook it at the same temperature. If some of the proteins break down more slowly than the other in the same food, this is likely to lead to an upset stomach.
Greenery
No matter how much you store celery, cabbage or spinach, to eat your lunch later, it is better to throw it away than to heat in the microwave. Nitrates in greens are very toxic if heated. During heating in the microwave, naturally occurring nitrates become nitrosamines, which are carcinogens. The same is true for reheating nitrate-rich beets and turnips!
In today's review, we will list 12 products and items whose heating in the microwave will be a mistake, because the consequences can be burns, explosions inside the oven, loss of product quality and even fires. Follow these tips to stay out of trouble and stay healthy.
1. Breast milk
Studies have shown that heating breast milk in a microwave is dangerous not only because of the probable uneven heating of the liquid, which is dangerous for the baby’s sensitive mouth. Most importantly, such high-temperature heating can destroy immunostimulating proteins of breast milk, which significantly reduces its beneficial properties.
2. "Safe for heating in the microwave" dishes
Even if the label on the new plastic container or utensil tells you that it can be heated in the microwave, we advise you to be careful with this. The fact is that for such statements, the manufacturer is not obliged to officially test how safe his products are after heating, which is why you may have burned your fingers more than once by removing such dishes from the microwave.
3 eggs
Don't let the internet fool you: the idea of \u200b\u200bboiling eggs in the microwave is doomed to failure. In the best case, you simply burn your fingers when you try to get them, in the worst case, expect a big explosion inside the oven and get ready to wash away its consequences. The quick heat from the microwaves creates a lot of steam inside the egg, which accumulates under the shell and behaves quite unpredictably.
4. Plastic containers
According to research, many types of plastics contain estrogen-like substances that can penetrate food when the plastic is heated in a microwave. Officially, these studies say that 95% of plastic products released these substances after they were preheated in a microwave and then washed in a dishwasher.
5. Your old mug
Some old mugs made before the 60s were made using materials that could contain lead and other heavy metals. Sending such dishes to the microwave is quite a dangerous activity. However, just drinking from it is not recommended - it is better to put it on a shelf and make an exhibit of your collection of dishes.
6. Meat
Frozen pieces of meat are quite difficult to thaw in a microwave: thin edges begin to bake, and a thicker middle remains icy. And if your microwave oven does not even have the function of rotating the stand during cooking, it can also lead to an uneven distribution of heat, which will allow harmful bacteria to grow inside the meat. The safest way to defrost meat is to shift it overnight in the old fashioned way from the freezer to the refrigerator.
7. Styrofoam containers
In such plastic containers with thick walls, they often like to take away food, as this material has sufficient strength and is able to retain heat inside. But as a type of plastic, polystyrene is not the safest material, since it is capable of releasing harmful chemicals into food when heated in a microwave.
8. A glass of water
9. Containers from Chinese restaurants
Some authentic Chinese restaurants will offer you to pack your favorite noodles in a paper box with a thin metal handle. As you may have guessed, it is the pen that is the main reason that such containers cannot be heated in the microwave, as this idea is quite fire hazardous. It is better to transfer the contents of the box to safer dishes before reheating.