Microwaved Water
This has been sent to me by email from a friend.
I know there are a lot of urban myths going about and friends pass them on with all good intentions, but according to snopes, this one is true.
http://www.snopes.com/science/microwave.asp


A 26-year old man decided to have a cup of coffee. He took a cup of water and put it in the microwave to heat it up (something that he had done numerous times before). I am not sure how long he set the timer for, but he wanted to bring the water to a boil. When the timer shut the oven off, he removed the cup from the oven. As he looked into the cup, he noted that the water was not boiling, but suddenly the water in the cup 'blew up' into his face. The cup remained intact until he threw it out of his hand, but all the water had flown out into his face due to the build-up of energy. His whole face is blistered and he has 1st and 2nd degree burns to his face which may leave scarring.

He also may have lost partial sight in his left eye. While at the hospital, the doctor who was attending to him stated that this is a fairly common occurrence and water (alone) should never be heated in a microwave oven. If water is heated in this manner, something should be placed in the cup to diffuse the energy such as a wooden stir stick, tea bag, etc, (nothing metal).



Be careful out there.

read this too.. http://usahitman.com/microwave-test/

Wow, that was interesting. Thanks.

This is common knowledge. It is in all of the user manuals. You NEVER try to drink from anything that has been heated in a microwave without carefully putting a spoon or similar in it first. There may be superheated steam in the liquid!
Pete

Agreed - very dangerous

As for this...

Snopes is your friend here as well.

1. Epic failure of scientific method and knowledge.

2. Apart from the badly performed experiment - the rest of the article is nonsense.

I am not a scientist but I do read a lot and also surf the net a lot. I have owned a microwave of one kind or another for around 40 years.
Over the years there have been many urban myths reported and also a lot more research has been done.

Although there has been lots of research done on the detrimental effects of microwave cooking on nutrients the jury is not out yet. The consensus though is that there is no more detrimental effects than with other forms of cooking, and in some cases, especially with fresh vegetables, the vitamins and nutrients are less harmed with the rapid cooking times of microwave cookers.

The boiling of plain water only should be avoided without the addition of a stick or small spoon. The reason for this is the bubbles. When water boils normally, ie on the stove or kettle, bubbles form during the boiling process. In microwave ovens this is not always the case and the water can be heated above it's boiling point. When the water is removed, the agitation can allow the bubbles to form rapidly and so displacing the boiling water. This is a very similar reaction to allowing water to enter boiling oil, it sinks, immediately turns to steam, increases its volume 1300 times and thereby displaces the boiling oil.

Dense sugary and/or fatty items such as Christmas puddings or the making of sweets or toffee should not be left unattended as the propensity for them to catch fire is greatly increased. Having said that if the directions are followed and the foodstuffs are inspected at regular short intervals, good results are achieved especially with toffee products that need to reach very high temperatures. These temperatures are sometimes difficult to achieve on the hob without burning the sugar.

I use the microwave oven mainly for cooking fresh vegetables and fish. I put the vegetables in a suitable container with a small amount of water and cover them. Within a few minutes they are cooked to perfection with all the colour, flavour and, I believe, most of the nutrients intact. It is easier to get the vegetables to your liking ie al dente or mushy. Cook your jacket potatoes first for 5 minutes and them put them in the oven at higher than normal temperature and you will get the same result as normal jacket potatoes quickly and more energy efficient.

Salmon & mackerel are particularly good, although I prefer my tuna pan fried or grilled.

I am a big fan of the microwave oven and I do not use it just to defrost frozen pizza and the like. If used correctly it can be an asset in your kitchen alongside conventional cookers.

Of course Steve.
However the phrase " If used correctly" should have been in capitals, and that is the point of the thread.
Pete

I always give things like beetroot and carrots a spin for a minute in the microwave before putting in the fridge, no furry growth occurs , beetroot always gets a beard if you leave it

just remember that the frequency used by a microwave is in the same band as those used by mobile phones, just the latter radiate less power.

Yes but microwave ovens have built in radiation shields - phones do not.