Can You Cook Gourmet Food/Recipes -- In Just a Microwave?

[seoulsearch]

Hey Everyone,

I've told the story before that my mom is a not a cook. She doesn't enjoy cooking, never bakes, but always made something to keep her family fed and our family budget in check. I grew up with almost no fried food and limited sugar. We never ate out except for birthdays or special occasions, and even then, it was often McDonald's (when we later "graduated" to the Olive Garden, we saw that as "fancy.")

I remember when my family first got a microwave, which my mom saw as a direct gift from God. It made many things a lot faster, easier, and simpler (fewer dishes to wash.)I also remember the cookbook that came with the microwave, I wish I would have saved it because it had my mom's handwritten notes scattered throughout the book.

To her well-deserved credit, her simple meals kept us all healthy (thin to normal weight,) and the habits she taught us (including financial restraint) have served me well since leaving home and wandering out into the culinary and monetary Wild West!

I thought of this topic because I have a hankering for the Porcupine Meatballs my mom used to make in the microwave. Even after all these years, I usually crave simple things the most because that's what I was raised on. I've thought about trying to cook a batch in the oven, but I guess out of pure nostalgia, I always cook them in the microwave.

No, they're not gourmet, but to me, they taste like home, and that's what I'm really after.

Can gourmet food be made exclusively in the microwave??!!!

I'll be very interested to hear the debate about this!

* Do you have any favorite microwave-only recipes?

* Do you have any recipes that you "converted" -- microwave to oven, or oven to microwave? How did they turn out?

* Does the best food and recipes always have to be produced on a stove or in an oven?

* What foods/purposes are microwave best suited for? (Should they only be used to heat up leftovers?)


I know some people don't believe in having a microwave at all, sometimes for health reasons, which I totally understand.

All I ask is that we respect each other's decisions whether anyone else chooses to use one or not.

Feel free to share stories of your own microwave successes -- and failures -- and we'll be looking forward to seeing what kinds of "wavelengths" this conversation produces!

 

[shittim]

microwave is sure handy for we single men.
Gourmet? Probably not, Gordon Ramsey seems to be able to spot when a dish is microwaved, and he is not happy about it.
You miss your mom and the cookbook and recipes give you a connection to her memory?
Same here and for many of us.
blessings

 

[seoulsearch]

microwave is sure handy for we single men. Gourmet? Probably not, Gordon Ramsey seems to be able to spot when a dish is microwaved, and he is not happy about it.
You miss your mom and the cookbook and recipes give you a connection to her memory? Same here and for many of us. blessings

Lol!! I'm sure Mr. Gordon Ramsey would starve at my place -- he wouldn't find anything suitable to his standards or tastes!

And you are absolutely right, the microwave is surely a gift straight from the Lord for many of us singles, both the men and the women!!

I am blessed to still have my mom around (and try to cherish every minute I do get to see her,) but you know, sometimes we all just crave something "Mom used to make."

Thanks so much for taking the time to write this great post!

 

[Tall_Timbers]

I've never tried to cook something from scratch in the microwave. It's very handy for reheating most but not all foods, and it does a good job of reheating some gourmet dishes. The things that don't reheat well in a microwave can now be reheated in the air fryer. Being someone who appreciates delicious food, I would not try to cook something from scratch in a microwave. The heating throughout the item is not consistent so you'd get a less than optimal result.

 

[Magenta]

I would not know, as the most ambitious thing I ever made was lasagne (hours of prep)
to cook in an oven. I do not own a micro wave oven, nor do I really eat gourmet foods.
I made noodles and sauteed veg for dinner. Oh! I fried up some boneless chicken thighs too.
That was very industrious of me LOL. They were marinated in some sauce and quite tasty!

I have never heard of porcupine meatballs... I looked them up. Quite appealing!

 

[OLDBUTNEW]

I really couldn't tell you: I can't cook anything!

 

[HealthAndHappiness]

microwave is sure handy for we single men.
Gourmet? Probably not, Gordon Ramsey seems to be able to spot when a dish is microwaved, and he is not happy about it.
You miss your mom and the cookbook and recipes give you a connection to her memory?
Same here and for many of us.
blessings

Gorden Ramsey would make you feel like a germ for using a microwave.

He threw Chef Mike out the window.
Most of his videos of microwaved food can't be posted without a pg13 rating.
I think This < is the nicest one.

 

[HealthAndHappiness]

That reminds me that I need to donate or send a microwave to the land fill that is taking up space in the corner of the garage.

I use a stainless pan for quick heating/cooking.
Microwaves actually change the protein in food to an unhealthy composition. To heat fast, use a fat or water depending on if it's a fried/baked reheat or a moist food. For frozen meats, I set them out upon waking. By lunch the burger, etc is thawed enough to use.

 

[HealthAndHappiness]

I really couldn't tell you: I can't cook anything!

Is your wife head of that department?

 

[HealthAndHappiness]

I would not know, as the most ambitious thing I ever made was lasagne (hours of prep)
to cook in an oven. I do not own a micro wave oven, nor do I really eat gourmet foods.
I made noodles and sauteed veg for dinner. Oh! I fried up some boneless chicken thighs too.
That was very industrious of me LOL. They were marinated in some sauce and quite tasty!

I have never heard of porcupine meatballs... I looked them up. Quite appealing!

Sounds good!

 

[OLDBUTNEW]

Is your wife head of that department?

@HealthAndHappiness : She sure is, bro!

Hey, and I'm glad to hear that you're starting to feel a bit better, too!

 

[HealthAndHappiness]

@HealthAndHappiness : She sure is, bro!

Hey, and I'm glad to hear that you're starting to feel a bit better, too!

That's good that you have a gal to take care of the important things like cooking.
My Dad taught me that meals are the way a woman shares her love for her family.
I'm a bachelor so I have to cover that base on my own. Lol

Thanks for your prayers.
The Lord is hearing from you and answering.

 

[OLDBUTNEW]

That's good that you have a gal to take care of the important things like cooking.
My Dad taught me that meals are the way a woman shares her love for her family.
I'm a bachelor so I have to cover that base on my own. Lol

Thanks for your prayers.
The Lord is hearing from you and answering.

That's great, Bro!!

 

[Eli1]

I’ve never cooked anything in the microwave but I heard that even chefs like @JohnDB cook in the microwave from time to time.

 

[JohnDB]

I’ve never cooked anything in the microwave but I heard that even chefs like @JohnDB cook in the microwave from time to time.

Yeah....to melt butter or heat water in a minute....it's awesome.

Reheating leftovers it works okayish.

I made some Dutch apple pie....reheating the leftovers is ok....all the crunch is gone but it still is OK with some ice cream.

 

[seoulsearch]

I would not know, as the most ambitious thing I ever made was lasagne (hours of prep)
to cook in an oven. I do not own a micro wave oven, nor do I really eat gourmet foods.
I made noodles and sauteed veg for dinner. Oh! I fried up some boneless chicken thighs too.
That was very industrious of me LOL. They were marinated in some sauce and quite tasty!

I have never heard of porcupine meatballs... I looked them up. Quite appealing!

The most extravagant things I've ever made was butternut squash ravioli, with the filling and pasta all made from scratch, without any machines or gadgets. MAN that was a lot of work. The filling turned out great, but I didn't roll the pasta thin enough by hand, so they turned out like dumplings!

I also made fettucine alfredo all from scratch and by hand once, grating 3 different cheeses, etc. I was exhausted by the end of the day, and that just isn't how I'd want to spend most of my time.

I know these recipes would be child's play to some but for me, I just wanted to see if I could make them.

I've had some foodies make fun of my rudimentary cooking and food experience , but I don't mind.

As I've gotten older, health is my main priority. I'm in stores where a lot of people fight over who gets the last motorized scooter.

I tried on a pair of jeans this past week that I bought around 2013. They're a little more snug than they used to be, but they still fit. It's times like these that I'm thankful for my Mom's simple meals. Not because of weight itself, but because I know it's because of her examples that I put in a lot of work to try to be healthy.

A higher weight generally means higher risks for a greater number of healthy problems.

If I could meet a fabulous cook that could teach me how to make incredible food that isn't too fat or calorie-dense (and has enabled both themselves and the people they feed to achieve a healthy weight,) that would definitely be my slice of heaven.

 

[Magenta]

The most extravagant things I've ever made was butternut squash ravioli, with the filling and pasta all made from scratch, without any machines or gadgets. MAN that was a lot of work. The filling turned out great, but I didn't roll the pasta thin enough by hand, so they turned out like dumplings!

I also made fettucine alfredo all from scratch and by hand once, grating 3 different cheeses, etc. I was exhausted by the end of the day, and that just isn't how I'd want to spend most of my time.

I know these recipes would be child's play to some but for me, I just wanted to see if I could make them.

I've had some foodies make fun of my rudimentary cooking and food experience , but I don't mind.

As I've gotten older, health is my main priority. I'm in stores where a lot of people fight over who gets the last motorized scooter.

I tried on a pair of jeans this past week that I bought around 2013. They're a little more snug than they used to be, but they still fit. It's times like these that I'm thankful for my Mom's simple meals. Not because of weight itself, but because I know it's because of her examples that I put in a lot of work to try to be healthy.

A higher weight generally means higher risks for a greater number of healthy problems.

If I could meet a fabulous cook that could teach me how to make incredible food that isn't too fat or calorie-dense (and has enabled both themselves and the people they feed to achieve a healthy weight,) that would definitely be my slice of heaven.

I have never made my own pasta from scratch.... but I like the sound of dumpling-like pasta, heh, kind of like gnocchi!

I don't think I have even ever made a loaf of bread, either... of course I have made many loaves, along the coffee cake lines, and oh it was not too long ago that I was baking some type of cake almost every week, apple cinnamon or blueberry banana, throw in some nuts or seeds and chocolate chips, my goodness, I was making a lot of pizza then too, home made, haha I used the same recipe for my pizza dough as my cakes and loaves, the only difference being the sweetness via sugars and fruit, and chocolate chips too. It was very basic, two cups of flour and baking soda and baking powder, a dash of salt and a little water... I think I used to put apple sauce instead of oil, I would use those little individual servings. I did also many years ago enjoy making what I called a heart stopper, white chocolate cheesecake with fresh raspberries on top then covered with a sour cream and melted chocolate concoction. I swapped out the graham cracker base with mixed crushed shortbread cookies and chocolate wafers. It had a kilogram of cream cheese in it, a cup of butter, four eggs, and 12-16 ounces of white chocolate. People loved that cake. ..It was a lot of work to make compared to most other cakes I'd ever made but well worth the effort for special occasions.

I also make an effort to get healthy into my diet... that is why I had mixed veg with my noodles last night .

That is pretty impressive that you have maintained your weight, also!

 

[Lynx]

That reminds me that I need to donate or send a microwave to the land fill that is taking up space in the corner of the garage.

I use a stainless pan for quick heating/cooking.
Microwaves actually change the protein in food to an unhealthy composition. To heat fast, use a fat or water depending on if it's a fried/baked reheat or a moist food. For frozen meats, I set them out upon waking. By lunch the burger, etc is thawed enough to use.

Heat changes protein structure. Microwaves change it because they are heating the food.

If it did not change the protein structure, cooking food would not do any good at all.

You know what microwaves are really good at? Killing that bacteria you got from the dandelions.

 

[Lynx]

Hey Everyone,

I've told the story before that my mom is a not a cook. She doesn't enjoy cooking, never bakes, but always made something to keep her family fed and our family budget in check. I grew up with almost no fried food and limited sugar. We never ate out except for birthdays or special occasions, and even then, it was often McDonald's (when we later "graduated" to the Olive Garden, we saw that as "fancy.")

I remember when my family first got a microwave, which my mom saw as a direct gift from God. It made many things a lot faster, easier, and simpler (fewer dishes to wash.)I also remember the cookbook that came with the microwave, I wish I would have saved it because it had my mom's handwritten notes scattered throughout the book.

To her well-deserved credit, her simple meals kept us all healthy (thin to normal weight,) and the habits she taught us (including financial restraint) have served me well since leaving home and wandering out into the culinary and monetary Wild West!

I thought of this topic because I have a hankering for the Porcupine Meatballs my mom used to make in the microwave. Even after all these years, I usually crave simple things the most because that's what I was raised on. I've thought about trying to cook a batch in the oven, but I guess out of pure nostalgia, I always cook them in the microwave.

No, they're not gourmet, but to me, they taste like home, and that's what I'm really after.

Can gourmet food be made exclusively in the microwave??!!!

I'll be very interested to hear the debate about this!

* Do you have any favorite microwave-only recipes?

* Do you have any recipes that you "converted" -- microwave to oven, or oven to microwave? How did they turn out?

* Does the best food and recipes always have to be produced on a stove or in an oven?

* What foods/purposes are microwave best suited for? (Should they only be used to heat up leftovers?)


I know some people don't believe in having a microwave at all, sometimes for health reasons, which I totally understand.

All I ask is that we respect each other's decisions whether anyone else chooses to use one or not.

Feel free to share stories of your own microwave successes -- and failures -- and we'll be looking forward to seeing what kinds of "wavelengths" this conversation produces!

I just looked up porcupine meatballs. How is this different from meatloaf?

You fraud! You like meatloaf and just won't admit it.

 

[Magenta]

I just looked up porcupine meatballs. How is this different from meatloaf?

You fraud! You like meatloaf and just won't admit it.

Meatloaf does not have rice in it... and is a loaf, not balls sauteed in a sauce LOL