Warming up food without a Microwave?

[Star]

I'm planning on getting rid of my microwave but I'm stuck, trying to figure out how to warm up food, such as cold leftovers. For instance, what if I have cold meat, such as turkey? I can't picture putting it in a pot and warming it up on the stove that way. I do plan on getting a convection oven/toaster oven. Could I use the toaster oven part to warm up leftovers? I'd appreciate feedback from you mamas who don't have a microwave!

[rabbithorns]

I was going to say I just eat it cold, but then I noticed you're up in Canada while I'm in Arizona! When I lived in Alaska, I had a propane cookstove/oven. I only used one 5 gallon tank of propane in three months so I didn't mind using it to heat up food in a pot, but I also had an oil stove going all winter (7 months) so I often heated food up there. It wasn't a cook stove but it kept water nice and warm for washing (always a big pot of water on it) and it heated cooked food to more then room temp so I could eat it.

Do you have an oil or wood stove for your heat? You can use a toaster oven to heat food. I have. Solar oven built into the cabin wall is even better.

[NannaJewel]

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[rabbithorns]

I didn't mean to offend you at all. I was just noticing that I when the temperatures are an average of 10 degrees in the winter and probably 45 in the summer, I was less inclined to enjoy food straight from the refrigerator than food warmed a bit. And here in Arizona where the average temp in the winter is 60-somthing, I simply tend toward cooling food.

When I lived in the north, most of the people I knew had Moniter oil stoves or wood stoves. Of course, there are centrally heated homes and there are cabins, and I did find the towns in the Yukon very different from Toronto, for example, as one would find Raytown, Missouri different from San Francisco. It's only your mind that heard my comments as ignorant. You were speaking from your experience of the north country. I was simply speaking from mine. Even in centrally heated homes, everyone I knew had a back-up oil or woodstove due to the dangerous nature of living without heat in a power outage.

80% of the world's 6 billion people still live without toilets and central heat and that includes North America. I don't assume everyone I converse with has central heating and nail polish dryers. I guess growing up in the South without electricity and living in Alaska alone with a nursing baby and a toddler with no running water, I don't know much about "civilized folk".

You say you live the same lifestyle as Americans, but "lady", maybe you should know the poor and hungry Americans I know. Maybe you should live on our crappy minimum wage with no health care. Maybe you should try selling moose dropping earrings for one summer just so you can feed your kids. You don't want me to assume? Well, you're absolutely right. But you shouldn't either. We're not all enjoying cable TV and bon-bons down here....

[NannaJewel]

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[Harper]

To the OP: I don't have a microwave and sometimes it is a drag to heat things up. I think with something like Turkey, I would probably put it in the oven for a few minutes. I do lots of stuff on the stove top. I also don't have a toaster oven. You get used to it!!

[rabbithorns]

Like I side, I was only speaking from my experience. I didn't find my friends in the Yukon living differently from the way we lived in the Kenai Peninsula, and so that was my main Canadian experience. Yes, it gets to 85 degees in Fairbanks, but it never got above 65 in the summer where I lived. Obviously, different areas in any country will have variances. Hmmm....do I have to say it again? I was speaking from my experience...I can only speak to that with which I am familiar.

Explaining and communicating are ever so much more effective than blaming. I had no idea it gets to 100 degrees in Canada. Maybe someone could have told me instead of feeling justified to be angry and then blame. That probably feels pretty icky and I'm sorry you let yourself feel that way.

Most people don't know how rich the low desert is with plant and animal life. It's something to learn, but if someone mistakenly thought I was living in the Sahara, I surely wouldn't jump down their throat. It would be an honest mistake. And I don't live to make people feel badly about themselves. At least not today!

NannaJewel, it's a loss you say you won't come back to the topic because it sounds like you have so many good things to teach me about places I haven't seen yet. I guess if you'd rather stew than teach, that's your choice. I'm sad for your choice.

[messy mama]

Originally Posted by NannaJewel

I am so sick and tired of a few uneducated & ignorant people thinking we are different from Americans. We live the same lifestyle as Americans.

So Canadians are just like Americans? There's no difference? I'm pretty sure alot of Canadians would be offended by that.

You live the same lifestyle as which Americans exactly? Not all Americans live the exact same lifestyle. People can be different. Anywhere.





Anyway, someone (sohj, I think) suggested in a thread recently, to reheat food in a double boiler. I haven't tried it yet but it seems like a good idea. Because of the indirect heat, it would probably be less drying.

[anathea]

to the OP: Get an electric rice cooker/steamer! I spent several happy years using just my steamer to warm up leftovers, etc - it's really pretty quick and easy to pop just about anything into that steamer basket. It is definately the one appliance I would recommend for a microwave-free kitchen. A toaster oven is rewarding too, it's worth having both, but I just my steamer!

[Yooper]

Well, as an american that has had either wood or oil heat in the last 3 of my 4 homes, I will say that I did use those to help reheat food. Sticking a pot of food to be reheatd on the woodstove was a great way to avoid the microwave and save electricity. I also live in a cold-in-the-winter climate....very similar to many parts of Canada and yes, I do prefer my food warm in the fall, winter, and spring.

I do not have a small toaster oven but wish I did. There are a few things that do not take well to being heated on the stove but would be a big waste to heat in the big oven. Pizza leftovers is one that comes to mind. If I even get the chance to score a toaster oven, I will. I keep my eyes open at Goodwill but have not lucked out thus far. Most things I reheat on the stove or eat cold.

I would like to hear from these "many other Canadians" that are offended. I see nothing offensive in rabbithorns' post.

[marlee]

I would heat turkey up in the oven. I don't have the counter space for a toaster oven. Most other left overs I heat on the stove but I add a little water to everything first as not to dry it up or stick to the pan. Most often though I use leftovers to make another meal. For turkey I would make soup, a stirfry, turkey pot pie, or turkey sandwich. There are really very few times I have been stuck. Planning ahead really helps as well. When I wake in the morning I take my baby's frozen food cubes out of the freezer and they are thawed by the time she is ready to eat.

Just for the record I am in Canada. I took no offence to the post referring to Canada. I have a wood stove and electric basebords. I hate to eat any cold foods until summer. I am looking forward to summer foods such as smoothies and salads

Marlee
P.S. I love having no microwave.

[marybethorama]

I'm an American but I have lived in Candada (Ontario) and I'd move there in a heartbeat if I could

Anyway, our microwave broke and now we just heat things in a pan on the stove (maybe with a little water) or in the oven (we don't have a toaster oven). A toaster oven should work great though. I know a lot of people who use them for warming stuff up.

[Livi's Mama]

Get an electric rice cooker/steamer!

Hey, what a great idea! I have one I don't use nearly enough. What a timely thread for me. Glad it got started. Bummer the OP read too much into the 1st reply. Reinforces a policy I'm trying hard to live by: Always, always assume the best until proven differently. Anyway my $.02...

Oh, a twist on the double boiler. If you have a glass pie pan that would fit on one of your pans, you could heat in that & not have to buy something special. But I, too, am keeping my eyes peeled for a cheap toaster oven!

[melissa17s]

We loved our toaster oven... so sad it died. It used much less energy than the broiler, and did not make food soggy like the microwave. Not sure about reheating meat, though, cause we are vegetarians. We use our rice cooker to reheat stir fries and curries with rice, but had not considered other foods, yet. Maybe a slow cooker would work, than, too... I am not sure though.

[lilyka]

yes toaster ovens are handy. Ihave a microwave/toaster oven/convection oven combo. it rocks.

ither things. a small pan, heating stuff in a skillet is fast and a pizza stone is good for warming things inthe oven.

[Paris1974]

Is warming food up in a microwave harmful to your health?

I'm sorry, I'm very new and still trying to learn lots of things from all the knowledgeable and experienced mothers here. But can anyone please tell me what is wrong with warming food up in a microwave? Is it harmful? I need to know because I warm baby food up in a microwave a couple of times a day. I appreciate any feedback..

Thanks, Paris

[rabbithorns]

Some people think they change the nature of the food, but as far as I know, the waves simply agitate the fluids in the food which cause heat due to friction. But for some, I have heard it's a matter of just living with fewer appliances; living more simply. I think it depends on the person as to why she would not want to use a microwave. Personally I never microwave baby food because the temperatures aren't even throughout the food and there might be a pocket of burning hot food.

[kathirynne]

For me a microwave was just one more thing to clean. (And, let's face it, I have enough trouble cleaning the stuff I already have...I don't need another appliance. ) I often use my CrockPot to reheat leftovers. It takes about 15-20 minutes on High to reheat a potful.
You can also use the broiler to reheat things like pizza. (Place on a cookie sheet, and sprinkle each slice with water first, to avoid drying out the crust. )

[katiecat]

Ok, the whole Canadian thing is making me LOL! (I am Canadian. )

Our microwave broke a while ago and we are not replacing it. We use the toaster oven a lot (in fact ours just broke and we bought a new one) and I bought a couple of small pans to fit inside it for warming leftovers. I never thought about using the rice cooker/steamer! I hardly ever use that thing but what a good idea to use it for heating leftovers! I'm glad I read this thread.

[Paris1974]

Thanks,...

Thanks ladies for the great info. I liked the idea of a toaster oven or even a CrockPot to reheat food. I'll see if I can squeeze a toaster oven on my kitchen counter...

Thanks, Paris