OK TF'ers... do you use a microwave?

[Thystle]

Ok vote... do you use a microwave, as in there is one in your house and you use it. Only say yes if you have one right now, or use one somewhere currently.

[Toolip]

yes, but I use it for things other than food mostly. But I do heat food.

[rhiandmoi]

I use one, probably once a week or less. Usually to heat up porridge, or melt butter for popcorn.

[ursusarctos]

We have one in our house... under a pile of boxes There's no room for it in our tiny, tiny kitchen, but I wouldn't want to use one anyway. I'm just suspicious. Plus I don't like microwaved food, it's not as good as food heated in an oven/on the stove.

[Brown Lioness]

yes, only because hubby wouldnt let me get rid of it.

[stephienoodle]

Originally Posted by Brown Lioness

yes, only because hubby wouldnt let me get rid of it.

We have a built-in in this house, and I hate it. We're hoping to move in the next year or two, and I'm really hoping for no built-in and that I can prevent DH from putting up a freestanding one. He uses one for his lunch everyday at work. I can't figure out how to work things so he doesn't... cold lunches just don't work for him in the winter.

[elleystar]

We own one, somewhere buried in the basement. We used to use it as a glorified bread box with a clock on it, lol. We'd put bread etc. in it so the cats wouldn't tear into it. When we moved it got stuck in the basement, since we have a pantry now. I have used it once in the last few years--to dye playsilks with koolaid.

Originally Posted by stephienoodle

We have a built-in in this house, and I hate it. We're hoping to move in the next year or two, and I'm really hoping for no built-in and that I can prevent DH from putting up a freestanding one. He uses one for his lunch everyday at work. I can't figure out how to work things so he doesn't... cold lunches just don't work for him in the winter.

I have a small Thermos soup container that I use to send leftover soup & stew in. DH is happy with a cold sandwich when there's a hot soup to go along with it. I heat the soup up really hot in the morning, and also preheat the thermos with hot/boiling water. This keeps the food nice and hot till lunchtime. The one I have only holds 8 ounces though so it doesn't work for things like hot dishes, it just wouldn't hold a large enough serving. So I'm on the lookout for another larger one.

[blueridgewoman]

We don't have one in our house- the builder was aghast when it wasn't in our kitchen plans, and my parents tried desperately to talk us into at least having a place for one. But we don't need it at all. I just use my sister's microwave (she lives next door) to sterilize sponges.

[SuburbanHippie]

We haven't had one in about 2 years now. It's awesome!

[Sara Badger]

My MIL can't stand it that we don't have one! She has now bought us 3! I have given them back or to others! We did finally get a super small one for rice heat pads. It is not for food!

[rhiandmoi]

Out of curiousity what is the concern about using the mcrowave? I am not against using the microwave it just doest usually fit with my cooking or eating style. But if I want to heat up leftovers for lunch I'll use it. That is just not usually the case.

[Rasa]

Back when we were doing dairy, and switched from ultra-pasturized, lactose-free organic 2% milk to non-homogenized local lightly pasturized whole milk (and cream and butter), we noticed a complete change in our 'tolerance' for milk and milk products. Meaning, we COULD tolerate non-homogenzied milk products whereas our previous milk gave us (adults) pretty immediate intestinal problems (even lactose-free milk).

BUT I noticed that whenever we microwaved some of our new 'better' dairy-containing products, our intestinal problems returned. The high localized heat of the microwave (I think) was just blasting the heck out of the milk, causing the same digestive problems as 'homogenization' for us. This made me stop using the microwave for anything that I think of as being fatty or with protein in it. I do use it to heat up water and for very short bursts of time for various other things, but mostly we're not using the microwave anymore.

[Sihaya]

Originally Posted by SuburbanHippie

We haven't had one in about 2 years now. It's awesome!

We moved into a house with two ovens about a year and a half ago and everyone just assumes the top one is an old-school microwave.

[MyLilPwny]

We have a built-in microwave in this house but in the 3 years that we've lived here, no one in my family has ever used it. Only guests have used it.

[Magelet]

We don't have one. We deliberately decided no microwave when we moved in together. We use our toaster oven, stove, and oven for reheating.

I do sometimes wish we had one for rice packs, but honestly, I'd rather not have it in the house. I'm hoping to get some of those quantum heat packs to use instead. I do miss reusable hot packs for my period and cold nights.

[Sihaya]

We heat our rice packs in the oven. Is there a reason I'm missing that other people can't do this?

[elleystar]

DH and I got invited to a 'Passion Party' once and while that kind of thing is not exactly...up our alley, we went anyway. When we saw an item called a 'hot heart' we both looked at each other thinking the same thing, lol! It's a liquid filled plastic heart and you snap a little metal disc in it to start a chemical reaction, it heats up instantly. It's supposed to be used as a massager but we just stick it in the bed when it's cold to keep our toes warm, or for random pain/cramps. To reset it you just have to boil it in a water a few minutes.

[425lisamarie]

I use one sometimes. Reheat coffee, sanitize sponges and dishrags. I don't know what I love about cooking rags

I really would like to have a more commercial quality vent over my cook top and I think I'd do some kind of microwave drawer or smaller one. I do use it occasionally for certain things and DH would definately want one

[Toolip]

http://www.snapheat.com/

I have these, they're awesome and are the same idea with the metal disk that you snap. However, I still love my rice pack and I'm not comfortable warming it in the oven and the heat isn't as moist when I have tried it

[MountainMamaGC]

I am starting to use it less and less but I still use it. I never put plastic in the microwave and I dont eat microwave popcorn as it is really really bad for you. I didnt ever think to sanitize a dishrag or sponge in there.