For some people, cooking meals can be an added drudgery after getting off from an eight hour work shift. This usually is the reason why workers go straight to the restaurant or the bistro nearby to satisfy the palate. But then again, eating out everyday can cost you an arm and a foot at the very least. The idea of being broke may pinch you to cut-back and start dining at home. Most people would resort to ordering pizza or opening a can of tuna, not very appealing. Still nothing beats a hot meal at the end of the day. What to do? Get yourself a microwave oven and gain the advantage of eating warm meals at home in minutes or even a fraction thereof without the hassle of preparing and cooking.



The first microwave was invented by accident by Percy Spencer at Raytheon. While developing magnetrons, Spencer was surprised to observe that the radars sets he experimented with melted the chocolate bar that he kept in his pocket. Innovations and more discoveries later, the microwave oven was devised and made up of these basic parts as follows: a high voltage transformer, a control circuit for magnetrons, a cavity magnetron, a waveguide and of course, a cooking chamber.

A microwave oven, by its name itself, makes use of microwaves. These waves give off electromagnetic radiation, to heat or even cook food. The water, fat, sugar and other substances that are in the food are absorbed and taken in by the energy created by the microwaves. This process is known as dielectric heating. The cooking chamber is created with conducting material as such is intended to trap and keep the microwaves from escaping out. A layer of conductive mesh is also appended to the oven door as an added shield.

Food is actually cooked through the outside layers of the container as opposed to the false impression that it is heated "inside out." Perhaps, this erroneous belief came about because of the fact that the microwaves can infiltrate and pass through the non-conductive containers. Although, please take note that microwaves reflect on metal so it is strictly directed that anything metallic should not be placed inside the oven.

Albeit this kitchen appliance has been vastly used worldwide, there are still doubts and hesitations on whether its use is really safe and healthy. Let us discuss its strengths and disadvantages.

The most obvious advantage that a microwave oven offers is perhaps the convenience of time. With the benefit of the trapped electromagnetic radiation inside the chamber, food is heated faster and half the time as compared to using a conventional casserole. The possibility of getting burned is also lesser. The containers used in microwaves are significantly much cooler than your pots and pans as the heat from the waves are directed towards the food. In addition, there is the advantage of getting minimal carcinogenic char and tarts which may be produced in the surface of pan during the heating process.

The disadvantage of microwaves may be on uneven heating. This could result because of a shorter span of cooking. The varied energy absorption levels in the ingredients of the food could cause unequal distribution of heat. The danger of improperly cooked food could result to bacterial contamination and other illness.