Questions
and Answers
(continued)
Food
Question
Answer
What is wrong when baked foods have a
A hard, dry, brown spot indicates overcooking.
Shorten the cooking
hard, dry, brown spot?
or reheating time.
Why do eggs sometimes pop?
When baking, frying, or poaching eggs, the yolk may pop due to
steam build-up inside the yolk membrane. To prevent this,
simply pierce the yolk with a wooden toothpick before cooking.
CAUTION:
Never microwave eggs in the shell.
Why are scrambled eggs sometimes a
little dry after cooking?
Is it possible to pop popcorn in a
microwave oven?
Eggs will dry out when they are overcooked,
even if the same
recipe is used each time. The cooking time may need to be varied
for one of these reasons:
• Eggs vary in size.
• Eggs are at room temperature
one time and at refrigerator
temperature another time.
• Eggs continue cooking during standing time.
Yes, if using one of the two methods described below:
(1) microwave-popping
devices designed specifically for microwave
cooking
(2) prepackaged commercial microwave popcorn that is made
for specific times and power output needed
Follow exact directions given by each manufacturer
for
its popcorn popping
product and do not leave the oven
unattended
while the corn is being popped.
If corn fails
to pop after the suggested time, discontinue cooking.
Overcooking
could result in an oven fire.
CAUTION:
• Never use a brown paper bag for popping
corn or attempt
to
pop leftover
kernels.
• Do not pop prepackaged
commercial
microwave popcorn
directly on the glass turntable. To avoid excessive heating of
the glass turntable, place the popcorn bag on a plate.
Why do baked apples sometimes burst
The peel has not been removed from the top half of each apple to
during cooking?
allow for expansion of the interior of the apple during cooking. As in
conventional cooking methods, the interior of the apple expands
during the cooking process.
Why do baked potatoes sometimes
If the cooking time is too long, fire could result. At the end of the
burn during cooking?
recommended
cooking time, potatoes should be slightly firm.
CAUTION:
Do not overcook.
Why is a standing time recommended
Standing time allows foods to continue cooking evenly for a few
after microwave cooking time is over?
minutes after the actual microwave oven cooking cycle. The
amount of standing time depends upon the density of the foods.
Why is additional time required for
As in conventional cooking, the initial temperature of food affects
cooking food stored in the refrigerator?
total cooking time. You need more time to cook food taken out of a
refrigerator than for food at room temperature.
17