Microwaving more than 1 item
 

Has anyone ever found a source that tells you how long to cook more than 1
item in a microwave oven for?

For example - a simple one - if one item takes 3 minutes - how long do you
cook 3 identical items for.

I wish there was some sort of spreadsheet for this!

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

"Sharon Derben" > wrote in message
...
> Has anyone ever found a source that tells you how long to cook more than 1
> item in a microwave oven for?
>
> For example - a simple one - if one item takes 3 minutes - how long do you
> cook 3 identical items for.
>
> I wish there was some sort of spreadsheet for this!
>
>
>

I think it depends upon what your cooking, doesn't it? I usually just
microwave things one at a time. Potatoes work out better that way, IMO.

kili

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

Sharon Derben wrote:
> Has anyone ever found a source that tells you how long to cook more than 1
> item in a microwave oven for?
>
> For example - a simple one - if one item takes 3 minutes - how long do you
> cook 3 identical items for.

A basic starting point is to double the time for two items, triple the
time for three minutes and so on, and it's not a good idea to cook too
many items at once, perhaps 3-4 at the most, depending on the size, of
say of potatoes... but a lot depends on the power of your particular
microwave oven and also items chosen (ie. potatoes, corn) are usually
not exactly identical... ultimately you need to experiment and use
common sense... and it's a good Idea to shift items part way through
cooking. And keep in mind that typically items continue to cook after
they're out of the oven, so with items like say potatoes it's recommend
that they rest for a minute before cutting... if you add an extra
minute of cooking time they will likely dry out or even begin to char
in spots as though they were freezer burned. [don't forget to poke
hole in potatoes]

A good way to initially get some idea of the cooking power and cooking
evenness of your microwave oven is to time how long it takes to boil
one cup of water and then compare with how long it takes to
simultaneously boil two separate cups of water (using the ssme type of
cups of course).

I also very strongly suggest that in your case especially that you very
throughly read and reread your microwave oven's user manual, paying
particular attention to the Safety section and all boldened text.
Everyone who owns a microwave oven really should educate themselve
about the bassics of how microwaves work... this is very important for
safety purposes... there are many such web sites one can peruse. Simply
search <how microwaves work>.

I like this one: http://howthingswork.virginia.edu

Just pop <microwave> into the search engine. Read ALL info that comes
up carefully, take notes if anything confuses... everyone who uses a
microwave oven needs to know this information, EVERYONE, with no
exceptions whatsoever.

Sheldon For

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

Thanks for the ideas - very much appreciated.

I guess what I'd like is a simple Excel spreadsheet which says "enter number
of items" followed by entering the recommended cooking time for each. The
output would be "put item A in for 1.5 minutes then put item b in for a
further 2 minutes followed by item C in for a further 3 minutes". It seems
logical to me that this would work for any power machine because you are
deciding the cooking times to enter based on the power of your machine and
the instructions for a single item for that power in the instructions on the
box.

I'm surprised I've not seen such a spreadsheet.

SD



"Sharon Derben" > wrote in message
...
> Has anyone ever found a source that tells you how long to cook more than 1
> item in a microwave oven for?
>
> For example - a simple one - if one item takes 3 minutes - how long do you
> cook 3 identical items for.
>
> I wish there was some sort of spreadsheet for this!
>
>
>

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

Sharon Derben wrote:
> Thanks for the ideas - very much appreciated.
>
> I guess what I'd like is a simple Excel spreadsheet which says "enter number
> of items" followed by entering the recommended cooking time for each. The
> output would be "put item A in for 1.5 minutes then put item b in for a
> further 2 minutes followed by item C in for a further 3 minutes". It seems
> logical to me that this would work for any power machine because you are
> deciding the cooking times to enter based on the power of your machine and
> the instructions for a single item for that power in the instructions on the
> box.
>
> I'm surprised I've not seen such a spreadsheet.

To quote one of the sigs I have seen in this NG - "You wanna measure, or
you wanna cook?" <Thanks Bubba>

--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

I'm not sure I understand your post. I'm a first class cook. Using a
microwave to heat up pre-cooked meals / food isn't an artistic process it's
a scientific one.

SD


"Chatty Cathy" > wrote in message
...
> Sharon Derben wrote:
>> Thanks for the ideas - very much appreciated.
>>
>> I guess what I'd like is a simple Excel spreadsheet which says "enter
>> number of items" followed by entering the recommended cooking time for
>> each. The output would be "put item A in for 1.5 minutes then put item b
>> in for a further 2 minutes followed by item C in for a further 3
>> minutes". It seems logical to me that this would work for any power
>> machine because you are deciding the cooking times to enter based on the
>> power of your machine and the instructions for a single item for that
>> power in the instructions on the box.
>>
>> I'm surprised I've not seen such a spreadsheet.
>
> To quote one of the sigs I have seen in this NG - "You wanna measure, or
> you wanna cook?" <Thanks Bubba>
>
> --
> Cheers
> Chatty Cathy

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

Sharon Derben wrote:
> Thanks for the ideas - very much appreciated.
>
> I guess what I'd like is a simple Excel spreadsheet which says "enter number
> of items" followed by entering the recommended cooking time for each. The
> output would be "put item A in for 1.5 minutes then put item b in for a
> further 2 minutes followed by item C in for a further 3 minutes". It seems
> logical to me that this would work for any power machine because you are
> deciding the cooking times to enter based on the power of your machine and
> the instructions for a single item for that power in the instructions on the
> box.
>
> I'm surprised I've not seen such a spreadsheet.

Why am I not suprised you'd say that.

Microwave ovens are different, food items are different, everyones idea
of results are different. Most obviously cooking is not for you.

Why don't you eat at your local pharmacy, have you tried the Ensure
menu?

Sheldon

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

Sharon Derben wrote:
> I'm not sure I understand your post. I'm a first class cook. Using a
> microwave to heat up pre-cooked meals / food isn't an artistic process it's
> a scientific one.

Ahem. In your first post you stated:

Sharon Derben wrote:
> Has anyone ever found a source that tells you how long to cook more
than 1
> item in a microwave oven for?
>
> For example - a simple one - if one item takes 3 minutes - how long
do you
> cook 3 identical items for.
>
> I wish there was some sort of spreadsheet for this!
>
>
>

Learn to wing it.

And I don't know too many "first class cooks" that are scientists too...
but one never knows.

BTW, please learn to bottom-post while you are about it - it just makes
me happy.

--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

In article >,
"Sharon Derben" > wrote:

> Has anyone ever found a source that tells you how long to cook more than 1
> item in a microwave oven for?


Contact Samsung -- I think they make most of the microwaves sold. Be a
good question to ask them.

When I learned to use a microwave cooker, I was told to use about 1/2 to
2/3 again the time for one item if doing two. E.g., if one item takes 1
minute, nuke two for 1-1/2 minutes to 1-3/4 minutes. Check, stir, or
whatever after the shorter time.
--
-Barb
<http://jamlady.eboard.com> Updated 6-15-2006; Spanish Chicken and
Rice.
"If it's not worth doing to excess, it's not worth doing at all."

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

Sheldon wrote:
>
> A basic starting point is to double the time for two items, triple the
> time for three [items] and so on

This is what I thought. However, this isn't a good idea. Most people
have cheap microwave ovens that aren't particularly up to the task of
cooking for long periods of time. My own inexpensive -- heck, nearly
disposable -- microwave oven heats up like a radiator after six
minutes, so I hardly want it running for twelve. I cook just about
everything one at a time.

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

Sharon Derben wrote:
> Has anyone ever found a source that tells you how long to cook more
> than 1 item in a microwave oven for?
>
> For example - a simple one - if one item takes 3 minutes - how long
> do you cook 3 identical items for.
>
> I wish there was some sort of spreadsheet for this!

Most microwave cookbooks will explain this as will the package of whatever
you are microwaving.

I had a microwave (fantastic! I loved it!) that had a shelf for faster
cooking items and the slower cooking items went on the bottom. It also had
a temperature probe for meat or cooking anything by temperature. It also
had settings where I could turn it on just before I got home and start at
medium temp then drop or raise the cook setting. Programmable for
everything I wanted, up to 99 recipes. I adored that microwave.

Unfortunately, as technology has advanced, microwave technology seems to
have degraded. The microwave oven regressed back to the "you can boil a cup
of water in it in 60 seconds" stage, rather than being able to use it to
cook a meal. I *hate* my newfangled microwave :( It doesn't do shit except
reheat stuff.) Welcome to the 1967 Amana Radarange all over again. Oh, but
the new ones have a popcorn button on them. Wooo hooo! Well, everyone
needs that. Crappy microwave popcorn, yeah. That's a meal!

Jill

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

Sharon Derben wrote:
>
> I guess what I'd like is a simple Excel spreadsheet which says "enter number
> of items" followed by entering the recommended cooking time for each. The
> output would be "put item A in for 1.5 minutes then put item b in for a
> further 2 minutes followed by item C in for a further 3 minutes". It seems
> logical to me that this would work for any power machine because you are
> deciding the cooking times to enter based on the power of your machine and
> the instructions for a single item for that power in the instructions on the
> box.

If you had such a spreadsheet you would still have to do what you do
without the spreadsheet, namely, run the machine, take the food out and
check it. Then put it back in if it's not hot/done enough for your
liking. It's *not* science, it's an approximation. Has to be because
you can't enter all the variables -- not only size, but density and
heat conductivity of the item, how much liquid content, how much fat
content, how much air, not to mention how long are you going to let it
sit after removing it from the oven.

Actually, if you had such a spreadsheet I suspect you wouldn't read it.
You seem not to have read the manual that comes with every microwave
oven .

> I'm surprised I've not seen such a spreadsheet.

Most people can do simple arithmetic and ballpark estimating in their
head. -aem

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

jmcquown wrote on 22 Jun 2006 in rec.food.cooking

> Unfortunately, as technology has advanced, microwave technology seems
> to have degraded. The microwave oven regressed back to the "you can
> boil a cup of water in it in 60 seconds" stage, rather than being able
> to use it to cook a meal. I *hate* my newfangled microwave :( It
> doesn't do shit except reheat stuff.) Welcome to the 1967 Amana
> Radarange all over again. Oh, but the new ones have a popcorn button
> on them. Wooo hooo! Well, everyone needs that. Crappy microwave
> popcorn, yeah. That's a meal!
>

People don't cook anymore...It is all pre packaged foods. Except for us old
hangeroners. Mom has at least 1 job, dad has one too. They clean the house
on the weekend and live outa boxes most of the week. My 33 yr old daughter
has many friends who just don't know how to cook basic stuff.

--
-Alan

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
...
>
> I had a microwave (fantastic! I loved it!) that had a shelf for faster
> cooking items and the slower cooking items went on the bottom. It also
> had
> a temperature probe for meat or cooking anything by temperature. It also
> had settings where I could turn it on just before I got home and start at
> medium temp then drop or raise the cook setting. Programmable for
> everything I wanted, up to 99 recipes. I adored that microwave.
>

I had a microwave with the probe, and it was terrific. I never cooked meat
to speak of in the microwave, but there were a lot of things I cooked by
temperature. Mine didn't have the shelf, but I think I would have loved
that, too.

> Unfortunately, as technology has advanced, microwave technology seems to
> have degraded. The microwave oven regressed back to the "you can boil a
> cup
> of water in it in 60 seconds" stage, rather than being able to use it to
> cook a meal. I *hate* my newfangled microwave :( It doesn't do shit
> except
> reheat stuff.) Welcome to the 1967 Amana Radarange all over again. Oh,
> but
> the new ones have a popcorn button on them. Wooo hooo! Well, everyone
> needs that. Crappy microwave popcorn, yeah. That's a meal!

I use mine for cooking vegetables. I don't do corn on the cob in the
microwave, and I'm not crazy above 'waved baked potatoes, so I do those only
when I'm crunched for time (which is often). Often I'll start the potatoes
in the 'wave and then finish them on the grill with the steaks or whatever
to crisp them up a bit. All other veggies usually get microcooked.

Anny

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

Cathy,

Creating new dishes is a combination of art and science. Duplicating the
same dish a second time is pure science.

One of the greatest chefs currently in the UK considers himself a scientist.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article...9-2128271.html

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/foodm...145616,00.html

I asked for help on the relationship of reheating multiple dishes in a
microwave - as I've found no such guidance in any of the manufacturers
guides I've seen.

Thanks for those that offered help.

SD


"Chatty Cathy" > wrote in message
...
> Sharon Derben wrote:
>> I'm not sure I understand your post. I'm a first class cook. Using a
>> microwave to heat up pre-cooked meals / food isn't an artistic process
>> it's a scientific one.
>
> Ahem. In your first post you stated:
>
> Sharon Derben wrote:
> > Has anyone ever found a source that tells you how long to cook more
> than 1
> > item in a microwave oven for?
> >
> > For example - a simple one - if one item takes 3 minutes - how long
> do you
> > cook 3 identical items for.
> >
> > I wish there was some sort of spreadsheet for this!
> >
> >
> >
>
> Learn to wing it.
>
> And I don't know too many "first class cooks" that are scientists too...
> but one never knows.
>
> BTW, please learn to bottom-post while you are about it - it just makes me
> happy.
>
> --
> Cheers
> Chatty Cathy

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

Sharon Derben wrote:


> I asked for help on the relationship of reheating multiple dishes in a
> microwave - as I've found no such guidance in any of the manufacturers
> guides I've seen.

Sharon,

In your original post you asked for help on how to "cook" multiple items
in a MW, not "re-heat" them. That's two totally different things, in my
book.

I don't use my MW for "cooking" much anyway.... but then I am not a
"first-class cook". I use it mainly to defrost leftovers and then to
re-heat them. But I don't need a spreadsheet to do that.

Maybe this is what you need:

The Science of Cooking (Hardcover) by Peter Barham


http://tinyurl.com/hm7w3


HTH and HAND.

--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

In article >,
"Sharon Derben" > wrote:

> Thanks for the ideas - very much appreciated.
>
> I guess what I'd like is a simple Excel spreadsheet which says "enter number
> of items" followed by entering the recommended cooking time for each. The
> output would be "put item A in for 1.5 minutes then put item b in for a
> further 2 minutes followed by item C in for a further 3 minutes". It seems
> logical to me that this would work for any power machine because you are
> deciding the cooking times to enter based on the power of your machine and
> the instructions for a single item for that power in the instructions on the
> box.
>
> I'm surprised I've not seen such a spreadsheet.

Because its not possible. The time for microwaving food depends much
more on the total volume of food and its density and fat content than
the number of items you're cooking at the same time. For example,
microwaving two pieces of chicken would require different time than two
hot dogs, or one hot dog and one piece of chicken. The spreadsheet
you're looking for would be so huge that it would exceed the 57,000 or
so rows that Excel allows.

The best way to learn how to use your microwave is to use it. Put the
items you want in and learn by trial and error. Reading the manual that
comes with the microwave oven might also help.

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

In article >,
"Sharon Derben" > wrote:

> I'm not sure I understand your post. I'm a first class cook. Using a
> microwave to heat up pre-cooked meals / food isn't an artistic process it's
> a scientific one.

Perhaps; however, not everything in this would can be nicely quantified
in a spreadsheet.

Microwaving more than 1 item
 

God, I wish I were clever! Correct. Not everything can be nicely
quantified in a spreadsheet. 3 identical items in a microwave can be
though.

Thanks for stating the obvious.

"Stan Horwitz" > wrote in message
...
> In article >,
> "Sharon Derben" > wrote:
>
>> I'm not sure I understand your post. I'm a first class cook. Using a
>> microwave to heat up pre-cooked meals / food isn't an artistic process
>> it's
>> a scientific one.
>
> Perhaps; however, not everything in this would can be nicely quantified
> in a spreadsheet.