| Cookery Term | Description |
| 100 % Power | Refers to the default power level settings / the maximum power level attainable in your microwave oven. Most cooking is done at this power level. |
| Auto Cook | Refers to a set of pre programmed / pre set functions that enable you to cook at the touch of a button. Details for this feature are usually available in the product user manual and a list of recipes is pasted on the top panel of the oven cavity. |
| Auto Defrost | Refers to a set of pre programmed / pre set functions that enable you to defrost food at the touch of a button. Details for this feature are usually available in the product user manual. |
| Auto Reheat | Refers to a set of pre programmed / pre set functions that enable you to reheat food at the touch of a button. Details for this feature are usually available in the product user manual. |
| Baking | Refers to cooking food using variable temperature settings (usually ranging from 110? C |
| Basting | Refers to brushing vegetables, meats, pies, tarts etc with oil, ghee, butter or egg during grilling / baking to enhance their colour and prevent them from drying out. |
| Beating | Refers to incorporating air into liquid ingredients using an electric beater or fork / spoon. |
| Blanching | Refers to the removal of skin from nuts like almonds, fruits and vegetables. In a microwave oven food is allowed to cook on microwave power for a few seconds, then plunged in water and skinned. |
| Boiling | Refers to bringing liquids like milk, water, stock, soups, sauces etc from room temperature to 100? C. |
| Browning | Refers to the rich brown colour that appears over grilled meats, vegetables, cakes, pies, tarts, desserts etc. this term is often used to signify the grill function. |
| Chopping | Refers to cutting food into smaller pieces. |
| Combination Cooking | Refers to cooking food using microwave energy as well as browning it using the grill. This helps in cooking and crisping foods faster than conventional grills. |
| Convection Cooking | Convection cooking is similar to cooking in a traditional oven using variable temperature settings. This feature is used for baking, roasting, grilling, barbecuing and toasting. |
| Convection Microwave Ovens | Convection microwave ovens have a fan that circulate hot air uniformly inside the oven cavity and are ideal for baking cakes, cookies, pizzas, pies, tarts etc. |
| Covering | Covering is essential in microwave cooking to prevent foods from drying out. A cling film (with a small vent on one side) or a loose fitting lid microwave proof may be used for this. |
| Creaming | Refers to beating ingredients (like butter and sugar for baking) into a smooth creamy texture. |
| Crisp Pan | Refers to a specially designed microwave dish that heats upto 210? C giving foods a rich brown colour at the bottom and a crisp texture in a shorter time (just like a tawa / fry pan). However this feature is only available with in Whirlpool microwave ovens. |
| Crushing | Refers to pounding food using a pestle and mortar. |
| Crusty Plate / Multi Tawa | Refers to a specially designed metal plate that may be used in grilling / convection cooking modes. It is used for browning the bottom surface of food. LG, Samsung and a few other brands offer this feature. |
| Deep Dish | A 4 |
| Defrosting | Refers to bring food frozen at -18? C to room temperature. |
| Garnishing | Refers to decorating a dish before serving. |
| Grill Cooking | Refers to placing food under a hot grill / heater to give them a rich brown colour and a crisp texture. |
| Grill Microwave Ovens | Grill microwave ovens are equipped with a |
| Grilling Rack | A metal rack provided with your microwave oven. May be used for placing food either directly or dishes containing food for grilling / baking/ roasting. |
| Kneading | Refers to bring together dry ingredients with a little liquid to form a dough (atta). |
| Microwave + Convection Combination Cooking | Refers to cooking food using the microwave mode (usually preset) plus variable temperature settings that may be set manually. This function may be used for baking cakes, cookies, pies, barbecues, roasts etc. |
| Microwave + Grill Combination Cooking | Refers to cooking food using the microwave mode (usually preset) plus the grill. This function may be used for making tikkas, kababs etc. |
| Microwave Cooking | Refers to cooking food using the microwave / power mode. |
| Microwave Cookware | Refers to dishes that may be used for cooking food in the microwave / power mode. Glass, ceramic and some plastics are most suitable. However do check the cookware label for suitability. |
| Microwave Safe Carafe | An oven proof glass kettle with a plastic handle. |
| Microwave Safe Plate | Stoneware and glass plates that may be used in grill and convection modes. However do check the cookware label for suitability. |
| Microwave Steamer | A specially designed plastic microwave steamer that may be used for steaming meats, vegetables, dumplings, dilis, dhoklas etc. |
| Piercing | Steam may build up inside the skin of meats, fruits, vegetables and poultry while cooking them using the microwave mode causing the skin to burst during cooking. It must therefore be pierced in several places with a fork or knife before cooking. |
| Power Level | Refers to the amount of microwave energy required for cooking food using the microwave mode. The principal of power levels is similar to that of gas stove cooking where certain foods need to be cooked on high heat (100% power in a microwave oven); some need to be simmered (60 |
| Preheating | Refers to heating the empty oven cavity before food for baking or roasting is placed. Most microwave ovens have a preset time for preheating. To preheat manually set the time as 5:00 minutes at the desired temperature. |
| Pureeing | To churn fruits, vegetables etc in a blender usually to make a soup or sauce. |
| Reheating | Refers to bringing cooked food (at room temperature or chilled) to 80 - 100? C making it suitable for consumption. |
| Reposition | Refers to rearranging / shifting pieces of food placed on the grilling rack so that no one piece receives excess energy from the grill heater. |
| Roasting | Refers to cooking meats and vegetables using the convection mode usually at a temperature of 150 - 220? C. |
| Rolling Out | Shape into a desired shape on a floured surface using a rolling pin (belan) |
| Rotisserie / Spit | Some microwaves have a detachable rotisserie / spit that come in handy for cooking meats. The food is skewed onto the rotisserie and placed inside the |
| | oven cavity. It rotates automatically giving your tikkas and roasts a uniform, rich brown colour. |
| Sensitive Ingredients | Sensitive ingredients refer to eggs, cream, cheese, chocolate etc. that may curdle, or coagulate when cooked on high power levels. These ingredients must always be cooked at a Mmedium (50%) power level. |
| Sensor Cooking | Some microwaves come with advanced weight, humidity and temperature sensors that can detect the weight and / or doneness of food. The microwave automatically switches off once the food reaches the desired doneness levels. However the categories of food that can be cooked using the sensor mode are usually predefined. Please refer to the product user manual for details. |
| Shallow Dish | A shallow glass dish approximately 1 |
| Shape, Size & Cuts | Since microwave cooking uses a precise quantum of heat to cook food, the shapes and sizes and cuts are important. Large pieces for eg would take longer to cook than smaller pieces and vice versa. |
| Shielding | Shielding is the technique of protecting vulnerable / delicate parts of food from overcooking. Use small pieces of aluminum foil for this purpose. |
| Shredding | Refers to chopping meats, poultry and vegetables into thin strips. |
| Sifting | Refers to passing dry ingredients through a sieve (channi) in order to remove impurities and also to incorporate air into the ingredients especially for baking. |