Forget reheating coffee and nuking cold pasta. These hi-tech gadgets can do everything from stews to roast chicken... 1. Panasonic This feature-packed microwave (NN-ST479S) comes with sensor cooking, turbo reheating and 18 cooking programmes. The automatic programme for vegetables and the defrosting function are particularly impressive and there's plenty of room for large dinner plates. £159.28, johnlewis.com 2. Next Available in a range of funky colours and with a matching toaster and kettle, this excels at microwave basics – heating up food quickly, spreading the heat across the food and not leaving your food shrivelled up. Other handy features include a delayed start button. £68, next.co.uk 3. Kenwood This isn't very roomy inside but more than makes up for that with its two-stage cooking option (where you defrost your food, then cook it). The K20MSS10 is quick to heat, great at defrosting and there are plenty of auto-cook programmes. £54.99, currys.co.uk 4. Whirlpool Jet Chef This combination microwave provides convection, grill and microwave cooking options and has some really clever features and accessories. It offers superb defrosting and grilling and you can see your food clearly as it cooks, although the child lock is worryingly easy to deactivate. £290, appliancesonline.co.uk 5. Sainsbury's Despite the low price tag, this microwave reheats and defrosts food evenly. It's also very energy efficient and has a surprising number of useful features for an own-brand model, including a quick-start button and auto-reheat buttons for foods including pizza and soup. £39.99, sainsburys.co.uk 6. Neff Built-in microwaves are always top dollar, but this machine (C57M70N3GB), which can heat, defrost, bake and grill, is well worth the extra dosh if you can afford it. Quite simply, it excels at everything it does, as well as boasting an oven-style pull-down door, a huge inside space, a self-clean mechanism and a digital display that automatically dims at night. £740, appliancesonline.co.uk 7. Fagor Spoutnik Named after the first ever satellite launched into Earth's orbit, this machine certainly looks space age. The spherical shape lends itself to foods such as whole chickens and you get a 360-degree view of your food while its cooking, as well as easy access to the internal cooking area. £198.92, amazon.co.uk 8. Sharp Steam Wave If you like food in a hurry, this is the microwave for you. It's incredibly fast, as well as offering impressive results, particularly for grilling and steaming. Unlike many other microwaves, you can also heat several meals in a row without losing temperature. £286.99, go-electrical.co.uk 9. Dunelm Mill This takes longer than most microwaves, but features include a delayed start, child lock and multi-step programming and it enables you to reheat everything from pizza to popcorn. It's also good at maintaining power output. £49.99, dunelm-mill.com 10. Whirlpool MAX 35 Mood A long-standing favourite among consumers, thanks largely to its rounded back that allows it to fit easily into corners. This limited edition model comes in a vibrant colour that Whirlpool calls sensual rouge (red, to the rest of us) and it crisps and browns as well as reheating meals. £179.99, argos.co.uk Source:- http://www.independent.co.uk/life-s...wave-ovens-8515680.html?origin=internalSearch
I prefer my microwave to be simple. A bit of power under the bonnet, yes and an adequate size. Other than that, the basics for me please.
And for me............... I have one and I use to defrost stuff, mainly. Sometime I do cook/boil potatoes in it, for speed rather than convenience. It has one of those grill thingy and some other features which I find rather confusing. Too late anyhow, as her indoors, tidied the place up so well that I can't find user instructions to any single appliance in the whole place anymore...
I don't use a microwave that much really, but I recently bought a microwave steamer and always use that for vegetables and corn-on-the-cob. It's so quick and the veggies taste great and the texture is just the way it should be. I also stick jacket potatoes in the microwave to soften them up them put them in a very hot oven for about 15 mins to get the skins nicely dark and crispy. I don't think I've ever used a microwave for re-heating food. So I'm a little torn really. As I only use one for very basic functions maybe just a basic simple microwave is best for me. Or, if I had a unit with better/more functions would I discover new uses and improve our eating experience. Hmmm. I've got a cooking 'blowtorch' and only ever use it for Crème brûlée. I've got a Tefal Actifry and only ever cook chips in it. I've got a Slow-Cooker and only use it for casseroles and certain curries I think I need to expand my cooking horizons. But perhaps not with a microwave
My boss made some creme brulees from scratch, a couple of christmas's back and used a blow torch on the topping. They were fantastic. I don't bother with the fancy french graves and circumflexes btw. I just dont bother with them. Cedillas and all.
