I want to get rid of the microwave

[Beamazing]

But how do I heat up say, leftovers? Any non microwave users that could give me some tips? Also, jacket potatoes which my children like, will take forever! Thanks

My microwave is in a cupboard with an electrical point. So it's all hidden. I eat a ton of spinach, the frozen whole baby leaf kind. Microwave is perfect, but so glad it's in the cupboard!.

We use ours for baked potatoes.My DD uses it for popcorn,porridge and cake in a mug.It lives in the utility room as it is so rarely used.

I use mine all of the time. My friend hasn't had one for at least 5 years. Every time I stay over I notice she uses extra pans to warm up beans/hot chocolate/soup. Everything takes longer especially jacket potatoes. Instead of 15 minutes they take at least an hour in the oven.

I didn’t have one until about 3 years ago. It’s totally fine without one but if you have the space they are really useful. I probably use mine most days for soup, veg, milk, butter or something.

Mine since I moved house is a combi thing that’s also an oven so it’s a really handy thing to have, if that’s an option. If I ever put a kitchen in again I’ll definitely have this set up.

I posted the same thing about a year ago! It’s gone, I don’t miss it and I love the extra worktop space. Still have jacket potatoes we just plan ahead and bake them completely. Much tastier actually! I also bought a really weeny saucepan for when I just want to heat up a small portion of milk, soup, whatever.

The snobbery about microwaves on hete is astonishing

Ours gets used a lot, often several times a day. They aren't just for ping meals.

ours blew up, i missed it, for reheating and defrosting.
i got another one.

I didn’t have a microwave until 2001, when I was 30 and married. Didn’t grow up with one. Life is perfectly manageable without one, you just need to think ahead. For defrosting - get stuff out of the freezer the previous day. For jacket spuds, put them in the oven sooner - or cook them on a low heat over a longer period and out them on before you go out. My life was revolutionised when I discovered that my electric oven has a timer!

The snobbery about microwaves on hete is astonishing

Do you mean people who don't have one (any more) and don't want one? I've really not seen much / any snobbery.

Reheating - again, oven. Just takes longer. I often set my oven to be warm when I come in from work, and then put the food in to warm up.

or when I make the caramel layer of a millionaires shortbread!

I need to know more about this!

We have one, but it's behind a closed door.

I use it frequently enough that I would miss it if it were gone. It's great for quick wins like softening butter, making popcorn, cooking frozen veg, porridge (although that can easily been done on stove top).

I do have my limitations - DH uses it for making cheese on toast and even cooking bacon. Never in a million years. I will usually use the oven to re-heat leftovers, but the microwave is definitely handy.

DH makes scrambled eggs in the microwave, the charlatan

I didn’t want a microwave. My MIL bought us one for Christmas one year. She used/uses her microwave for everything. I can’t understand why it’s said to be easier for heating soup. If she’s heating soup for more than one person she puts it in a plastic bowl in the microwave so washing up a plastic bowl or a pan is surely the same? And it makes it taste different too IMO.
I used it to warm up bedtime milk for our DDs when they were toddlers. I also started baked potatoes in it then finished in the oven. That’s it.
One day ours dramatically lit up, not in a good way, and had to be dumped. 20 years on and I don’t miss it all.

You obviously use it regularly so why get rid? Far more energy efficient than using the oven to heat leftovers.

I think a lot of people don't know what you can use a microwave for. This is what I use mine for:

Melting butter
Melting chocolate
Making chocolate fudge icing
Making the odd mug cake (Actually it is DD who does this)
Making porridge
Making custard if using custard powder
Reheating/defrosting frozen meals that I have cooked
Heating baked beans snap pots
Reheating tea/coffee/hot chocolate that has cooled down too much before I finish drinking them
Making popcorn
Disinfecting dishcloths and wash up sponges
Softening butter for baking
Warming tortillas
Toasting nuts and sunflower seeds
Starting off baked potatoes to reduce cooking time in the oven
Heating wheat bags

It is far more economic to use a microwave than the oven, especially for heating tortillas. Besides which my oven takes ages to heat up. And there is less washing up.

Why get rid of an energy saving device though?.

I use ours often.

Do a lot of batch cooking. I have five d. All meals a day - at least three of those are meat/fish plus rice and veg. No way am I doing all that from scratch.

Reheating cups of coffee from the cafetiere.

Porridge (sometimes twice a day and small pre measured amount of oats)

Scrambled eggs. No butter so a saucepan would be hellish to scrub.

Pre cooking jackets/wedges

Steam fish, veg.

And micro popcorn . Sponge pudding for emergency dessert for visitors

Ours is a combi microwave so once I worked out how to use this one (new kitchen) I should be able to pre cook said potatoes then set it to bake them.

Wouldn't be without.

I would love to get rid of our but DP won't let me.
I have an induction hob so people saying it's great for melting butter and so on the induction does a fast job of that. In fact any re heating is just as efficient on an induction.

I never have jacket potatoes so a non issue, porridge is made on the hob. I don't like drinks reheated in a micro nor do I do chocolate fudge or mug cakes.
I would prefer the space in my kitchen but I guess relationships are about compromise so it's staying!!

I can tell you it's a godsend when your oven decides to blow up and you need a million different tradesmen in to fit a new one due to the bodge kitchen fit that was done prior to you moving in.

True, and when you are having a new kitchen fitted.

Reheat things in a pan and buy frozen potatoes which take 45 minutes in the oven. I’ve lived without a microwave for 10 years after our cheapie one packed up and never missed it!

I use mine quite a lot, for defrosting and heating soup, milk, baked beans, frozen veg., frozen burger buns and rolls, etc. I start jackets off in it for 10 minutes before transferring to the oven for 15 minutes. However, I always make porridge on the hob.

I make lemon curd and strawberry jam and white sauce. I heat up milk in my mug then filter coffee directly into the mug. I cook asparagus. I start baked potatoes. I cook frozen peas and edenamame and sweet corn because I over cook them in on the hob. I warm wheat bags. I make risotto which is almost as good as the constantly stirred version. I hear up tortillas. Loads and loads of stuff. I love my microwave. And I am very posh and have an Aga.

I’ve never tried risotto in the microwave- might give it a go!

Recipe downthread. I use butter and Parmesan instead of goats cheese. And I don’t use Waitrose vegetables!