Your Microwave's Most Underrated Button | Techniquely with Lan Lam

This is the absolute BEST explanation of how to use a microwave properly while beautifully explaining the "why" ... which helps me greatly. LOVE this!

Chef Lan mentioned it quickly in the beginning, but it wasn't shown - microwave is also great for dry toasting nuts. Just put them dry on a flat surface and microwave for one minute. The result is great, the whole process is hassle-free and you can easily avoid burning the nuts :)

I use my microwave all the time like most people, and I’ve just realised I had no real understanding of how it works, and that I’ve essentially been using it wrongly all my life - essentially just blasting everything on ‘high’ setting. The fact that microwaves don’t work on pure ice is astounding to me, and has completely changed my appreciation for why lower power modes are important, and how the heat transfer within frozen foods works. I’ve always known that fats are affected by microwaves, but the fried capers and shallots in the microwave is very novel to me. FASCINATING! A brilliant video.

Who is this woman?!!! That's the best explanation ever! Better than my physics teacher!

I didn't realize that solid ice doesn't react to microwaves like liquid water. That explains so much! Thank you for making this video.

She is amazing. That was very impressive. Keep her on staff at all costs.

I've never seen this mentioned before (maybe because I came up with it :) but here's my topology based microwave tip for reheating food evenly: If you're reheating leftovers that are malleable, like a curry, or noddles, or pasta, make a hole in the center of them. This changes the geometry from a spheroid to a toroid, so instead of having a singular point in the middle that is the farthest point from the surface where heat comes in, it's now the circle in the middle of your donut shaped food. The average distance to this center circle is a lot less, so your food will be heated much more evenly!

We bought our first microwave, and it was BIG, back in 1978 for a whopping $500. My husband and I both signed up for microwave cooking classes and learned quite a bit. I remember baking a homemade carrot bundt cake for his family in that microwave. They loved it so much that they went out and bought their own microwave! I still use our microwave at all the different cooking levels for different needs. But I’ve never used it for frying anything. Can’t wait to fry some shallots tomorrow! Thanks so much for such an informative video. 😊

Lan Lam, as an Electrical Engineer, that is the best explanation of microwave cooking on the Internet. You spoke with such confidence and force, I thought for a second I did not finish my homework and hand it in. Incidently, after World War II, there was a great expansion of radar and rhen microwave communication equipment. Technicians in the military found out accidently they could reheat their coffee by sticking it into a microwave transmission antenna horn that was actively running. Engineers took note. They realized the water molecule bonds were literally vibrating when the right exact frequency was passing through. And the rest is history. You are hard core. Cooking is science!

Thanks for this. One addition: Unlike conventional microwaves, inverter microwaves don't cycle the power on and off. If you set an inverter microwave at 50% power, it transmits at 50% power through the entire selected cooking time; a conventional microwave would be on 50% of the time and off 50%. Currently, Toshiba and Panasonic sell the inverter type.

As a fellow chemist, I can say with some confidence that Lan Lam is probably the most scientifically proficient cook on YouTube (or, if equalled, unsurpassed), and a terrific communicator to boot. She's a stupendous badass, with good taste no less.

I’m an old lady and you just taught me plenty! Thanks!

Making fried garnishes in small batches!? This is such a game changer. 💚

Never messed with the power level on my microwave. Never thought about it. Gosh, i am such a typical consumer. Good info.

As a retired professional cook I'm depending more and more on my microwave. Simpler meals that allow me to conserve my energy for the many other things I need to do to take care of myself. Thank ATK/Cook's Illustrated for educating me.

Frying - and that caramelizing - in the microwave - wow. So useful and far more precise than burning pans

Very informative! Soon after my beloved wife passed a bit over 6 years ago, I had our grandkids come over for "popcorn / movie" night. I melted the butter much as you describer (I wanted it melted, but not BOILING). I put 2 sticks of butter in a bowl, hit "start". Not much later, I opened the door to check on it's progress. There, in the center of the 2 side-by-side sticks, was a little puddle of melted butter, IN A PERFECT HEART SHAPE! I'm not ashamed to say, I lost it. My grandkids came into the kitchen to see what was up, then comforted me. I realize it was more likely random chance rather than her trying to reach me to say that she's happy and loves us, but what the hell, I'M ROLLING WITH IT!

There's one more important tip for using a microwave. Avoid placing the food item in the center of the microwave. Instead, place the food off to one side. The platform is rotating for a good reason. Faster rotation speed is good and the center of the platform has the least rotational speed so is the least good place to put food. The area inside the microwave is full of hot spots and cold spots. The microwaves are bouncing around inside and creating areas where the waves cancel out and produce no heat. So to even things out the platform moves the food through the spots to insure there's no cold spot in the middle of your food for the entire time.

I feel like this should be shown in every home economic class or just by everyone in general who owns a microwave. This is excellent!

Thank you. Never knew you could fry in the microwave and the use of the power button 👏👍😀