woman using microwave in the kitchen
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Over 40 uses for a microwave

Lots of people are turning to air fryers at the moment due to their reported lower running costs than a normal oven. Using a microwave more could also be cheaper, and faster alternative, for many uses. I couldn’t believe it when someone in a Facebook group I’m in stated they never use their microwave. I mean, I know there are people who don’t have them. But to have one and not use it, I was a bit mindblown. There are so many uses for a microwave. I would struggle to not have one.

I do now have an airfryer and I use it for reheating some foods that can go a bit dry when reheating in a microwave (chicken or sausages). But I use our microwave regularly (and more frequently).

The OH would happily gain the space back, but I’d struggle without one. We do have an aga, so defrosting things without a microwave is faster than just leaving things at room temperature. But I use our microwave for a lot of short cut cooking and heating. 

One of the great things, other than the low running costs, are that you don’t have to spend a lot to buy one.  Ours tend to last a long time as well.  I’m not sure where it appeared from, but on my recipe book shelves, I have an old 1970s microwave oven recipe book which has some classic old fashioned recipes in.  I’m not sure I’d cook many of the meals they suggest in the microwave, but there’s a few tips in there which work fine.

microwasve uses

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Microwaves are also really good for single portions. Shorter time to cook, and you can just cook or heat through as and when you need a single portion.

There was some chatter on twitter asking what people use their microwaves for, and whether they’re worth it. So if you’re one of those people who don’t use one but are debating getting a microwave, here’s some of the uses.

Uses for a microwave oven

Reheating.  If you batch cook and freeze, you can defrost and heat through in the microwave.  Reheating leftovers is also good.

Heating up canned food. Just decant into microwavable dishes for soup, custard, baked beans etc. Easier to wash up than pans, and less chance of burning if you’re like me and get distracted while cooking lots of things at once. Glass is better than plastic if you want to reduce staining (especially with

Defrosting. If you’ve forgotten to defrost something in time, you use your defrost setting. It reduces the time it takes defrosting in the pan if you’ve forgotten to take it from the freezer early enough.

Warming going stale croissants/pastries through – not so long that they go soggy, but enough to soften them slightly. Just sprinkle over a little water first, and they’ll only need 10 seconds. (works well with leftover pizza crust too!)

Steaming veg – with a tablespoon of water in the bottom of a microwavable bowl, cover and cook for a few minutes.

‘Steamed’ sponge pudding – rather than spending hours steaming a pudding on the hob, instead microwave sponge puddings with jam or syrup. A fast last minute store cupboard pudding ready in around 5 minutes (with 5 minutes of prep)

Porridge – Easy to cook, and fast, plus a pyrex or other microwavable jug is likely to be easier to clean than a pan. Some say it has to be done on the hob, but I don’t agree.  1 part porridge, 1 part milk, 1 part water, optional bit of sugar (or I use agave) at the end to taste. Cook for 1-2 minutes depending on how thick you like it/microwave power, keeping a watch to stir and check it’s not overflowing. Fast and delicious.

Scrambled eggs – the bonus is that the bowl’s easier to clean, and less active cooking needed. You do need to keep an eye on the eggs to avoid drying it out too much, but also cooking it enough. I always do scrambled eggs in the microwave.

Poached eggs – poached takes more practice, and timings will depend on the wattage of your microwave oven. I use Gu pots to poach eggs. They do take a little testing to work out the timings for your own microwave, but a little water, add the egg, cover with cling film, then microwave for 20-30 seconds. Too long and they’ll ‘explode’, so check at the 20 sec stage. Then drain and add to your dish.

Jacket potatoes – fast, and you can then crisp the skins up after giving a first blast in the microwave. If you don’t like crispy potato skins, then microwaving them are the way to go. So start them off with 5-8 minutes depending on the size in the microwave, then move to the oven or air fryer to crisps the skin.

Salmon – put salmon in a dish with some butter, cover with cling film, and microwave for a few minutes until cooked through.

Rice – I tend to boil in the bag on the rare occasion I cook rice. Although it still takes quite a while compared with on the hob, I find it’s more consistent to get the right texture.

Buttered leeks – so easy and tasty. Use a microwavable dish, and gently cook sliced leeks in butter.

Tortillas – warm them through on a plate covered with cling film for 20-30 seconds

Bacon – one of my recent discoveries. This makes great crispy streaky bacon for salads, or adding to sandwiches. Cook rashers between kitchen paper for around a minute until it’s as you like it, checking regularly. You might need to change the paper to continue soaking up the fat fat. It’ll never replace cooking in a pan or under a grill for a fry up, but for faster toppings or sandwich bacon needs, it works well.

Roasted garlic – if you’re making your own garlic puree or roasted garlic, sason your garlic bulb, cover it with plastic wrap in a dish, microwave it for around 7-8 minutes.

Omelette – cook in a plastic shallow container (you can buy omelette trays).

Cheese sauce – I love making cheese sauce in the microwave. It can be faster, and as long as you keep an eye on it boiling over, there’s no taste difference, and less faffing preventing it burning in a pan.

Blancmange – go retro. Yes, that 70s dessert (similar to chocolate pudding for the Americans reading). Watch out for the milk overflowing, but otherwise so much easier than standing stirring a pan on the hob, and easier to clean the jug. It’s great for using up a glut of milk – we go all out with a bit of double cream poured over too.

Fudge – it’s so easy to make microwave fudge with just chocolate and condensed milk before setting it. You can check out my fudge recipe variations.

Meringues – ok, so they’re not like proper meringues, but they work fine crumbled in Eton Mess, or over fruit salad for added texture.

Rice pudding – just heat all the ingredients together, until rice absorbs the milk. You can always transfer to an ovenproof dish and finish under the grill if you want a crispy skin.

Get more juice from citrus fruits – heat for 20 seconds,and you’ll get more out.

Popcorn – no need for bags of microwave popcorn, you can make it from kernels either in a paper bag (make sure it’s folded over well), or in a large bowl covered with a plate.

Heating up milk – for hot chocolate, to add to coffee, make sauces. If you have a tendency to burn milk while warming it on the hob, try it in the microwave. 

Warm up cold tea or coffee – I know people who do this multiple times a day at work

Melting chocolate – less messy than melting in a bain marie, just do it in short bursts to avoid burning it. And underheat it so the last bit you’re stirring into the warmed chocolate rather than blasting it all. (white chocolate is more temperamental, but I rarely use that anyway).

Melt butter for cakes – sod waiting for room temperature butter, just soften it in the microwave on a low/medium heat to speed things up. I’ve never had a cake go wrong yet because I’ve melted the butter fully.

Soften peanut butter and chocolate spread – our larder is really cold in winter, so help make spreads spreadable by a low heat in the microwave. I do the same for coconut oil.

Decrystallise honey – remove the metal jar lid, pop in the microwave for a minute or so until soft and runny again.

Dry your fresh herbs – between kitchen paper, then remove from stalks, and crush then store.

woman using microwave in the kitchen

Warm milk in the morning for cereal

Making hot chocolate – proper hot chocolate with milk, not water.

Make lemon curd – ready to set in under 5 minutes.

Nachos – melted cheese while the crisps stay crispy

Mug cakes – if you want a fast single pudding, a mug cake is a perfect solution. They’re fast and can be made in the mug.

Warming tortillas – just to heat through for fajitas, or you can even heat a wrap in the microwave for a short time to melt cheese filling. Try my pizza wraps. 

Non food microwave uses

Heating wheat bags/microwave warmers  – don’t worry about hot water bottles, if you’ve a wheat bag or warmer, a microwave will heat them through fast. 

Warming plates – when our aga isn’t on to heat plates, I use the microwave.

Repurposing candles – you can melt down old bits of candles to reuse again, just keep an eye on the temperature of the wax, and work in stages.

Re-setting dehumidifying bags – I have one in my car to try and avoid condensation. After a few weeks during winter, they need resetting, and the microwave is the way to do it. 

Make lip balm.

If they fit, you can disinfect plastic chopping boards and sponges by soaking them in some lemon juice and heating them in a microwave for a minute.

My favourite dishes to use in the microwave

Final tips for using a microwave

I’m still training my son to do this, but my tip for using the microwave for any foods that are ‘liquidy’ or kind of glue leftovers to the sides of the cooking jug, always leave to soak in hot water and washing up liquid before you put in the dishwasher, because they can be hard to get everything off (porridge, scrambled eggs etc)

Obviously don’t put metal in them.

Watch out for heating anything plastic. You don’t want to be heating single use plastic in them – e.g shop packaging, because they can’t withstand the heat, and end up shrinking away.

Don’t forget to keep an eye on any liquids that might overflow, and lightly cover (don’t screw lids on). And obviously don’t put metal in a microwave.

What else do you use your microwave oven for?

Try these other microwave friendly posts

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8 Comments

  1. I have been thinking about getting an air fryer but we don’t really have the space either. I use our microwave at least a couple of times a day, it’s a really handy thing to have with so many uses. x

  2. I love my microwave and always use it for my porridge in the morning – only takes 2 minutes! I prefer eggs in a frying pan but I will occasionally do them in the microwave, too. I didn’t know you could use one to melt down bits of candle, though! Not sure I’d trust myself not to cause an explosion haha!

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