Microwave Oven Guide
Free microwave buying tips - ensuring functionality and aesthetics of your dream kitchen
The microwave oven has revolutionized home cooking. It is well known for speed of cooking and relatively ease to use, it is a useful companion to the conventional cooker. Shop around to see which power level and capacity suits you best. A compact microwave is fine for defrosting or warming small amounts of food but would not be sufficient for a cooking a family meal.
Many automatically shut off when a sensor determines that the food is cooked or sufficiently heated. The sensor is also used to automate an array of cooking chores, with buttons labeled for frozen entrées, baked potatoes, popcorn, beverages, and other common items. Design touches include softer edges for less boxy styling, hidden controls for a sleeker look, stainless steel, and, for a few, a translucent finish.
How To Choose A Microwave
Type meets your needs. Countertop models cost the least and are best for kitchens with lots of counter space. Compact models can cost as little as $30. Midsized and large models have more capacity and features, though most eat up 2.8 to 3.2 square feet of counter space. You can hang some countertop models below a cabinet, though doing so often leaves little space below the microwave oven.
You're likely to consider an over-the-range oven only if you're replacing one or remodeling your kitchen. While they save counter space, installation is an added expense and may require an electrician. What's more, they can't vent steam and smoke from a range's front burners as well as the range hoods they replace.
Safety. Child lockouts can keep little hands out of trouble, which is especially important on convection models, where the unit and dishes can get very hot.
Convenience. Some features simplify use. Presets, or shortcut buttons, automate settings for such common foods as popcorn or potatoes. There's little reason to buy a microwave without a sensor, which shuts off oven power when it senses the food is hot.
Consider convection. Paying extra for a convection mode is worth it if you use your microwave as a second oven, but it might not be necessary otherwise. Combination convection and microwave cooking saves time, although these units seldom brown and crisp food as well as conventional ovens and toaster ovens, which you probably own already.
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