Microwave Cookware - Plastic Microwave Bakeware
Modern kitchen demand convenience and time saving offered by microwave cookware. Learn about safe glass and plastic microwave cookware available online.
Find, Compare, and Buy Microwave Safe Cookware - View Other Kitchen Items
Microwave cookware can be made of glass, ceramic, or plastic. However, not all glass, ceramic, and plastic microwave cookware is safe. Aluminum foil and certain other metalware can be used under some circumstances as microwave cookware. The primary issues are whether the container heats up in the microwave oven and whether the material can withstand the temperature of the food it contains.
Purpose designed microwave cookware will be safe when used appropriately. Typically, safe plastic microwave cookware includes disposables as well as all-purpose food containers and specialty items like steamers, corn poppers, and bacon grills.
You can use heat-resistant glass constructed microwave cookware - either tempered glass or flameproof borosilicate glass such as Corning Pyrex - but don't use ordinary glassware that is not heat resistant. You can use unglazed ceramics as microwave cookware so long as the glazed ceramics are labeled safe.
Plastic microwave cookware is okay to use (those marked dishwasher-safe, for example); but many plastics soften and sag when they get hot, making them unsuitable as microwave cookware.
How do you determine whether a material is okay as microwave cookware? You should test any type of glazed ceramic you want to use, as well as any questionable plastic container (don't even bother with Styrofoam, which is always inappropriate in a microwave oven). Test by placing an empty sample container in the microwave oven alongside a cup of water in a known safe container. Run the oven on high for a minute. If the water is hot but the empty container is cool to the touch, it is safe to use. If it is warm or hot to the touch, it is not safe as microwave cookware.
Choose round or oval containers for your microwave cookware, whether or not the oven has a turntable. Food in the corners of a rectangular dish can overcook. Choose wide containers with low sides in preference to narrow, deep dishes.
You can safely use aluminum foil shielding to keep parts of the food from heating. You can also use small skewers in the microwave oven. However, in both cases you must be careful to keep the metal at least an inch away from the wall of the oven.
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