Panasonic NN-S550 Operating Instructions Manual

Also see for NN-S550: Operating instructions

Food Characteristics Cooking TechniquesBone and FatBoth bone and fat affect cooking. Bones maycause irregular cooking. Meat next to the tips ofbones may overcook whiie meat positioned undera large bone, such as a ham bone, may beundercooked. Large amounts of fat absorbmicrowave energy and the meat next to theseareas may overcook.DensityPorous, airy foods such as breads, cakes or rollstake less time to cook than heavy, dense foodssuch as potatoes and roasts. When reheatingdonuts or other foods with different centers bevery careful. Certain foods have centers madewith sugar, water or fat and these centers attractmicrowaves (For ex., jelly donuts). When a jellydonut is heated, the jelly can become extremelyhot while the exterior remains warm to the touch.This could result in a burn if the food is notallowed to cool properly in the center.QuantityTwo potatoes take longer to cook than one pota¬to. As the quantity of the food increases so doesthe cooking time. When cooking small amounts offood such as one or two potatoes, do not leaveoven unattended. The moisture content in thefood may decrease and a fire could result.ShapeUniform sizes heat more evenly. The thin end of adrumstick will cook more quickly than the meatyend. To compensate for irregular shapes, placethin parts toward the center of the dish and thickpieces toward the edge.SizeThin pieces cook more quickly than thick pieces.Starting TemperatureFoods that are room temperature lake less timeto cook than if they are chilled or refrigerated orfrozen.PiercingFoods with skins or membranes must be pierced,scored or have a strip of skin peeled before cook¬ing to allow steam to escape. Pierce whole eggyolks and whites, clams, oysters, chicken livers,whole potatoes and whole vegetables. Wholeapples or new potatoes should have a 1-inch stripof skin peeled before cooking. Score sausagesand frankfurters.BrowningFoods will not have the same brown appearanceas conventionally cooked foods or these foodswhich are cooked utilizing a browning feature.Meats and poultry may be coated with browningsauce, Worcestershire sauce, barbecue sauce orshake-on browning sauce. To use, combinebrowning sauce with melted butter or margarine:brush on before cooking.For quick breads or muffins, brown sugar can beused in the recipe in place of granulated sugar, orthe surface can be sprinkled with dark spicesbefore baking.14