That magical little heat box in your kitchen? Yeah, it can do so much more than just heating your leftover foods or melt chocolate for your baking activity. So, without further ado, let’s find out!
1. Peel Garlic
Peeling might take some time to get a head start on your cooking and you may get frustrated for having the smell on your hands. Well, use the microwave to heat up the head of the garlic for about 20 seconds, then you can easily peel it off!
Garlic → Microwave (20 seconds) → Peel it off
2. Squeeze more lemon/lime juice
Squeezing the lime or lemon juice might also be a frustrating activity and you might have the juice in your eyes, and have an even harder time in the kitchen. Well, heat it up in the microwave for 20 seconds just like the garlic and then you’ll get even more citrus to come out!
Lemon → Microwave (20 seconds) → Juice it out
3. Reduce onion tears
Oh, everyone’s favorite vegetable to add but so-not the favorite to cut because you’ll just end up crying on your chopping board and we don’t want that. First, start to trim off the ends of the onions. Microwave for at least 30 seconds before chopping it up like usual.
Onion → Microwave (30 seconds) → Chop it up
4. Clean Your Microwave
We’ve provided the easiest tip before on how to clean your microwave and remove the odour after your countless times of heating food. You can check it out here!
5. Soften Ice Cream and Frosting
Ice cream too hard and frozen to even bite? I get ya. Well, if you’re in a hurry for a movie night then get your rock-hard ice cream in the microwave and let it heat for at least 15 seconds intervals. That’ll get it to soften it up. This works for frosting too! Heat it up until you’ve achieved your desired texture or consistency.
Ice Cream/Frosting → Microwave (15 second intervals) → Soften
6. Poached Eggs
I’ve been wanting to try this one out because poached eggs look DELICIOUS! It’s even better to find out you can just do it in the microwave. So, let’s experiment! Grab a mug, pour ½ of room temperature water and crack an egg into the water (make sure it’s a microwave-safe mug!). Poke a hole in the yolk with something sharp like a toothpick before covering the mug up with a plate. Then, microwave it for 30 seconds first to see if the egg white is cooked, if it’s not, you may have to microwave again until it is for about 10 seconds. It’s important to not microwave the egg after 30 seconds at a time. Once you’ve achieved it, wait several seconds before removing the plate and voila!
7. Make Crispy Potato Chips
Bored at home and in need of a snack? Slice up some potatoes and place in a bowl of cold water before stirring for a while and drain it. Do this a few times until you can see that the water is clear and the starch is removed. Dry up the potato slices. Line a parchment paper with paper towels and arrange the slices on top, making sure it does not bump or touch with each other. Lightly brush with some oil and sprinkle some salt on top and microwave for 3 minutes. Once it’s done, flip them over and microwave again for 3 minutes. You can cook them until they’re golden brown.
8. Testing Your Containers
Did you know you can test out to see if the containers you have are microwave-safe? Usually, you have to check under the container to see if it has a specific symbol for microwaves which is important because you can’t just go ahead and microwave a container, it may cause problems. But, if you’d like to find out, fill it up with 1 cup of water and microwave for 1 minute. If the container is warm or hot after heating and the water is cold, then it’s not microwave-safe. Microwave-safe dishes/containers are cool to touch and the water is warm.
9. Decrystallize honey
Bring it into a liquid form just by uncovering the jar of honey and microwaving for 30 seconds to 1 minute. After that, it’s ready to be used.
Uncover a jar of honey → Microwave (30 seconds – 1 minute) → Ready to use
10. Soften Brown Sugar
Your brown sugar can be rock-hard sometimes so pour it in a microwave-safe bowl, heat it for 30 seconds with a moist paper towel covering it, and you’re done!
Put in a microwave-safe bowl → Microwave (30 seconds) with a moist paper towel on top covering the bowl → Ready to use
11. Remove Stamp from Envelope
Now, this isn’t food related but it’s absolutely interesting especially if you love to collect stamps or perhaps you accidentally pasted the wrong one on an envelope. You can remove it by patting a few drops of water onto the stamp and heat it for 20 seconds. Try 10 seconds first to see if it works if you’re unsure. Make sure the important letter inside the envelope is removed first before you start to experiment!
Other than the microwave being your magical heating box, try out these hacks to make your life and activities easier. Best to read up on more about the tips to be sure when you’re doing it as well as knowing more about your microwave and how it works. Also, be sure to clean your microwave every now and then!
Check out these other hacks we have on the website!
