A first recipe - microwave nostalgia

"In the few short decades since we first started buying them they have morphed from a cutting edge piece of kit which complemented conventional cooking methods to a replacement for ovens and an excuse for culinary laziness." Catherine Phipps - The Guardian

Working backwards through my cook book shelves I have arrived at a couple of copies of a series of booklets called Microwave Know-How. Do they still have this sort of thing? A series of booklets or magazines on a particular topic I mean. I also collected a series on photography called Photo I think. I still have all of those and although the technology therein is now completely redundant there is still a lot of useful advice about composing good photographs. As to the microwave series I think I collected lots from it. Now I have just two.

The microwave as a form of cooking was apparently invented just after World War 2 in 1947. There were a few attempts at more large-scale implementation in the 50s and 60s but it wasn't really until the 70s when they became a big thing for the home cook. I think we acquired our first one in the early 1980s in Adelaide. I know this because it was stolen shortly after we had bought it. It's the only time in my life (touch wood) that I have ever been burgled and they didn't take much - the microwave and a small radio I seem to remember. It was replaced by the insurance of course. I also think that that first one we had was also able to be used as a conventional oven. The other thing I remember about it is that a friend came to visit and, proud of our recent purchase, we reheated , in the microwave, a curry I had made for our dinner. It took almost as long as it would have taken to reheat it on the stove. So that was the first bit of disillusion about microwaves.

Anyway I persisted and soon was buying these magazines, which I see were published in 1985, although it seems that a lot of the content was written in the 1970s. I tried actually cooking a few things in it, but on the whole was very unsatisfied with the results. But it does do a few things well and so we have always persisted in having one in our kitchen. I gather sales of microwaves have plateaued but I would guess the plateau is at a pretty high level. Just about everyone I know has one. And of course they are used a lot in the restaurant and catering industries. Mostly not very well I have to say.

Just to get the first recipe thing out of the way though before I ramble on - the first recipe in this edition is for a Black Forest Gateau. Interestingly in spite of marketing phrases like: "Their delicious fresh-cooked texture will probably ensure they are eaten quickly", the authors also make several crucial admissions about baking cakes in the microwave.

"Those with a built-in topping are particularly suited to microwaving, as a coloured or textured surface makes up for the fact that the cakes do not brown in the microwave.

Microwaved cakes do not keep well."

Well they have got over the appearance problem here by the cake itself being a chocolate cake, and then decorating it with lavish quantities of cream. Then you place it on a pretty plate, surround it with a suitably chic table setting and it looks quite good. So good, in an old-fashioned kind of way, that you could even be tempted to have a go.

I don't remember ever making a cake in the microwave, but it is possible that I did. It's certainly not something I do now, so very probably my attempts were not well received.

The reason I have kept this particular edition though is because it includes how to microwave jams, which is something I still do. It's the only thing I actually cook in the microwave. I think microwaving jam was first suggested to me by my next-door neighbour of the time because she said that the jam had a better colour. And I think it does. I also think it retains the flavour of the fruit better. According to the writers there are multiple benefits to making jam in the microwave:

"The short microwaving times and smaller quantities of jams allow the fruit to retain all their fresh flavour and vibrant colours. There is no chance of the jam burning or scorching, as it can do in a conventional preserving pan. Microwaving is altogether a cleaner way of making jam, because there is no splattering. Condensation during cooking is reduced too, and odours and heat in the kitchen are minimal,"

Well I'm not sure about the 'cleaner'. Sure it doesn't splatter, but if you've got too much in your bowl and you are not watching carefully it could boil over the top and all over the oven. Believe me this has happened.

But it is pretty simple. The only drawback is that you can't make vast quantities. But when you have a surplus of fruit, or when, for example, strawberries are so cheap you can't resist buying more than you can eat before they go off, then I make a batch of jam in the microwave. I suppose I get about 5 jars out of it. It's not as quick as the 'matter of moments' that the writer's say is all it takes though. It still takes a while for the jam to set. Well that's what I have found anyway. Maybe about half an hour - which is still not long. No good for marmalade - well not the way I make it, though you could make cumquat marmalade this way I guess because that doesn't require you to cook the peel and the fruit separately at first. And of course, if you can make jam you can also make chutneys.

I do use my microwave - but it's a tool not a method of cooking. It does some things really well. I use it to melt chocolate and butter, to cook bacon enough for a quiche, to soften vegetables for a quiche, to soften potatoes for baking before finishing in the oven, if I haven't left myself enough time to do it all in the oven. And to defrost, when I have forgotten to take my freezer stuff out in time to thaw naturally, and to reheat of course. Which I gather is why the foodies are appalled by microwaves and the tendency for people to just throw a frozen or chilled meal in the microwave for their children's dinner. Here is an example of that sentiment.

"When you cook it should be an act of love. To put a frozen bag in the microwave for your child is an act of hate." Raymond Blanc

Somewhat extreme but deep down there is a grain of truth in there. Not the hate bit, but certainly a lack of care.

On the back of each of these magazines there was something called Microwave Secrets. The secret on the back of this one is how to make spun sugar. Well caramel really. So maybe I should give that a try. After all it's a bit like making jam in that there would be less danger from splattering and getting burnt. When I tried to make my tarte tatin the other day, my first attempt at the caramel was a complete disaster - for some reason the sugar just became rock hard. So yes I might give that a go next time I need caramel.