Microwave Cooking: What You Need to Know to Keep From Getting Very, Very Sick

It's been estimated that 90% of our kitchens... as well as some unknown number of dorm rooms and break rooms across the land contain a microwave cooking oven.

These marvels of modern ingenuity have made it possible to prepare all kinds of foods -everything from popcorn and side dishes to full blown meals - in much less time (and with much less mess) than the dinosaur of the cooking world... the conventional oven.

But just last week, the US government issued a new warning about frozen chicken dinners being cooked in a microwave oven after 32 people in 12 states got sick.

This comes on the heels of scares in 2007 concerning microwaving pot pies and frozen pizzas that had also made people sick.

Frozen food manufacturer's have since revamped the cooking instructions on these and other products to be sure they allow enough cooking time to kill off any lingering bacteria.

But you do need to know the wattage of your microwave to use the directions so that you and your family stay safe. The higher the wattage a microwave has, the faster it cooks; smaller ovens may also not deliver enough wattage to cook some items properly. You can find the wattage of a microwave by:

- Checking the inside of the oven door for the wattage.
- Looking on the serial number plate on the back of the unit.
- Checking the owner's manual you got with the oven.
- Doing a "Time-to-Boil" test to estimate the wattage.

You also need to understand that for all their sleek looks and high tech ways, microwaving is an uneven cooking method - heat penetrates only an inch to 1½ inches into the surface, leaving cold spots that can harbor bacteria like E. coli, salmonella or listeria. Nasty, contagious little monsters, these organisms enter your digestive tract and leave you feeling as sick as you've ever been for several days at best, a week or more at worst.

Last year over 325,000 people were admitted to hospitals with food related illnesses cause by these organisms. That old fashioned oven isn't looking so bad now, is it?

"I think most food safety experts probably would have said it's not a good idea to microwave anything that's from a raw state." said Michael Davidson, a University of Tennessee microbiologist. Microwaving foods like raw meat, eggs or poultry is a recipe for trouble.

But, if you're not ready to rip out your trusty microwave just yet, here are some things to keep in mind to prepare food safely:

- Look at packages to see if frozen meals are precooked - you might think they are, they may look like they are, but in fact are not cooked at all. Look for "Cook thoroughly" on the front of a package.

- Heat microwaveable foods thoroughly and be sure to adjust your cooking time based on the wattage of the microwave you're using. Lower wattages need more cooking time.

- Follow the package instructions carefully, and be sure the microwave you're using is the proper wattage identified in the recipe.

- Use only microwave safe dishes and utensils, and cover foods with a lid or plastic wrap that's allowed to vent.

- Stir foods (or turn) halfway through cooking time, this helps eliminate cold spots where bacteria can linger.

- Use a food thermometer in more than one place, to check the temperature of anything prepared in the microwave. Be sure to allow the food to stand, if needed, for the full length of time stated in the package directions before taking the temperature.

By following these common sense suggestions and teaching everyone in the house to do the same, you'll significantly reduce the chance of suffering food poisoning from undercooked foods as a result of microwave cooking.