Expert: Donovan Fandre - 6/26/2008

Question
Why does it take twice as long to cook 2 potatoes as one potato in a microwave, and yet the time in a conventional oven is the same for one or more?


Answer
Hey Mary, a microwave oven produces billions of microwaves each and every second that it is on. These microwaves are totally absorbed by any thing containing water or fat, ie food. So, if one potato is placed in the oven all the energy will be absorbed by that potato. If 2 potatoes are placed in the oven they share the microwave energy equally so it takes almost twice as long to cook 2 potatoes and almost 3 times as long for 3 potatoes and 4 for 4 et cetra.. In a conventional oven the heat is in the oven and not in the food as in a microwave so all objects absorb the heat equally so 1 potato takes as long to cook as 10 potatoes. When cooking large quantities the microwave may not be the most efficient appliance to use. But for convenience, energy saving, healthy cooking you can't beat a microwave. Use it for what it does best like; poultry, vegetables, rice and grains, casseroles, fish, roasts, sauces, fruits, reheating and defrosting.