will I blow up the microwave????

spaghetti_monster

Hi!
I don't have very much experience with microwaves (don't have one at home) and I'm at OH's place at the mo (ordinary gas oven is broken).

Anyway, all he seemed to have in his kitchen yesterday was about 2 kilos of about-to-go-off apples, so I made a couple of pies.

He doesn't exactly know how his microwave works - but I think I've figured out it doubles as an oven. There is a bit at the top with settings up to 850, which I guess is the microwave part.

Underneath are more settings - three symbols (fan, grill and both together) and temperature settings up to 250 (I think).

The first pie I made in a ceramic dish and cooked last night - on the fan setting at about 200 - and it came out fine.

The second I put in a metal cake tin without thinking. Haven't dared to bung it in yet as I thought that metal would blow up a microwave???? Maybe it wouldn't if it really is on an oven setting??

Does anyone have a similar machine and could advise??

Thanks!

Alex x

MonstersMummy

I have microwave oven and have used all of my trays that will fit in there with no problems. If its just a standard metal baking type tray and it really is an oven setting then it should be fine.
My machine has labelled buttons though and you select convection before pressing anything else to use it as an oven. If your first pie has cooked and browned as it would in a normal oven then I would say it was an oven setting.
Sorry cant be more specific!
Has he not kept any of the user manuals?

dannahaz

You have a "combination oven", which means it can work as a microwave or fan oven or grill (or sometimes a combination of them).

As long as you are using the fan oven setting, not the microwave setting, then you can use your metal dish.

spaghetti_monster

I very much doubt he could find them if he had!........ and they could well be in Dutch....
The previous pie did brown nicely on the top however.

I'll go and see if I can find the manual and get him to translate!

MonstersMummy

If it browned then it definitly was not microwaved!

nicki_2

Speaking of microwaves.... would a combination microwave be cheaper to run on an oven setting than a normal electric oven? Seems a waste to heat up the entire oven just to put a small apple crumble or something in My oven also doesn't like cooking multiple things at once...so I found out on Christmas Day :mad:

thekid_2

On a technical note, metal is fine in a microwave, the trouble(sparking) is with those plated cups etc.(you know, the ones with the gold rims) and is actually caused by small gaps in the plating(the charge jumps the gaps and you see sparks).

Metal by itself isn't usually a problem.

btk

moonrakerz

thekid wrote:

On a technical note, metal is fine in a microwave, the trouble(sparking) is with those plated cups etc.(you know, the ones with the gold rims) and is actually caused by small gaps in the plating(the charge jumps the gaps and you see sparks).

Metal by itself isn't usually a problem.

btk

Yes - and No !

A lump of metal in a microwave will not explode, spark or do anything spectacular but the metal will reflect the microwave energy, unlike your ready meal which absorbs it. Some of this reflected energy will go back into the magnetron and cause that to heat up more than normal. This will shorten the life of the magnetron.

culpepper

Mines a combination.
You can have microwave then convection in one go ,convection,microwave and grill each seperately. It advises no metal on the first setting or on the microwave only setting but says it's fine for the grill only or convection only.

AndyR_3

If you know the make, try googleing for an instruction manual.

spaghetti_monster

Thanks for all the useful replies!

I'm now back home but OH cooked the pie and it came out fine!

Come to think of it there is a metal grid on legs that's in there all the time.....:doh:

Hopefully soon we'll be replacing the broken gas oven. I've done a few things on the convection settings of the microwave oven (lasagne, cauliflower cheese bake) and they seem to take forever (and you can only fit in one thing at a time)

Thanks!

Alex x