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Goodbye, Microwave  

post #1 of 51
1/30/08 at 1:03am
Thread Starter 
Tell me about getting rid of your microwave.

If you have done this: what techniques did you have to adapt to make up for not having a microwave? What did you find to be a challenge? How easily did you give it up? Why did you decide to get rid of it?

If you are considering doing this: what are you exploring as you make your decision? What is holding you back? what is your motivation for considering getting rid of it?

If you decided against this or changed your mind after getting rid of it: what did you miss about it? How did you decide to keep/replace it?

Here's the deal: we've just had our kitchen painted. I am LOVING my empty counters (had to clear them off for the painters). I would like to be very selective about what I put back on the counters. So far I have: 1) kitchen aid stand mixer. It is just not possible to fit this in a cupboard. 2) toaster oven/convection oven 3) knife block 4) a few trivets that I like to keep handy.

The last item to be replaced is 5) the microwave. I am seriously considering not putting it back. I think it's going to go in a closet for a few weeks while I consider this. But this is a very sudden decision so I am not sure what I will be missing out on as I have not thoroughly examined the options

I'd love any input!
post #2 of 51
1/30/08 at 1:30am
This is a bit off topic but I just got a metal strip (magnetic) to hold my knives on the wall so I can get rid of the knife block. It's nice!
post #3 of 51
1/30/08 at 1:35am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by dogmom327 View Post
This is a bit off topic but I just got a metal strip (magnetic) to hold my knives on the wall so I can get rid of the knife block. It's nice!
I thought about that, and I think in another place I will do that, but our counter-to-cabinet space is really minimal here and I don't think all of the knives would fit very well...
post #4 of 51
1/30/08 at 1:36am
I haven't had a microwave for about five years now. The only thing it was ever used for was heating up leftovers and cold coffee. I had a convection toaster oven for a while, but it completely crapped out so now I use the stove or the oven for warming up leftovers. There are times when I think it would be nice to have a microwave again to warm up a quick lunch now that I have two kids, but for the most part I don't miss it. I know that the oven uses more energy though, and that concerns me a bit.
post #5 of 51
1/30/08 at 2:18am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vancouver Mommy View Post
I haven't had a microwave for about five years now. The only thing it was ever used for was heating up leftovers and cold coffee. I had a convection toaster oven for a while, but it completely crapped out so now I use the stove or the oven for warming up leftovers. There are times when I think it would be nice to have a microwave again to warm up a quick lunch now that I have two kids, but for the most part I don't miss it. I know that the oven uses more energy though, and that concerns me a bit.
Yes, I am wondering about that too. I feel a little better using the (smaller) toaster oven to reheat things vs. the large main oven. But I still worry - it would take maybe 10-15 minutes to reheat something versus ~2 minutes in the microwave, i think?
post #6 of 51
1/30/08 at 5:17am
:
I've been thinking about this too....
post #7 of 51
1/30/08 at 5:24am
Quote:
Originally Posted by crayolaab View Post
Yes, I am wondering about that too. I feel a little better using the (smaller) toaster oven to reheat things vs. the large main oven. But I still worry - it would take maybe 10-15 minutes to reheat something versus ~2 minutes in the microwave, i think?
It really doesn't take that long for most things at all. In a toaster oven pizza takes about 2 minutes, most supper type leftovers take about 5 minutes or less and they taste SO much better than when they are reheated in the microwave. For things like rice or lo mein we just add about a tablespoon of water to a pan and reheat on the stove. You just have to get a little more creative....
post #8 of 51
1/30/08 at 5:24am
I learned how to fold up tinfoil into airtight packages to put things in the oven to warm up - stale rolls, leftover pizza, potatoes, etc.
post #9 of 51
1/30/08 at 12:29pm
We've been without a microwave for about 6 years now and don't miss it at all. We reheat leftovers in the toaster oven or on the stove. We also use the toaster oven to cook some frozen things like egg rolls and such. Hate to turn on the big oven unless I'm filling it up YK.

It wasn't hard to give up(ours broke).
We don't have a place to put one in this house.
Think about what you use it for, can you heat those without the microwave?
Do you use the microwave alot? We didn't really use ours so it was real easy to just not buy another or take the many that have been offered.
post #10 of 51
1/30/08 at 1:34pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by NocturnalDaze View Post
It really doesn't take that long for most things at all. In a toaster oven pizza takes about 2 minutes, most supper type leftovers take about 5 minutes or less and they taste SO much better than when they are reheated in the microwave. For things like rice or lo mein we just add about a tablespoon of water to a pan and reheat on the stove. You just have to get a little more creative....
Interesting! That sounds faster than I was thinking it would be. I suspect it would create more dishes in general though - no?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Apricot View Post
I learned how to fold up tinfoil into airtight packages to put things in the oven to warm up - stale rolls, leftover pizza, potatoes, etc.
Tinfoil... great idea! Thanks

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jodie View Post
We've been without a microwave for about 6 years now and don't miss it at all. We reheat leftovers in the toaster oven or on the stove. We also use the toaster oven to cook some frozen things like egg rolls and such. Hate to turn on the big oven unless I'm filling it up YK.

It wasn't hard to give up(ours broke).
We don't have a place to put one in this house.
Think about what you use it for, can you heat those without the microwave?
Do you use the microwave alot? We didn't really use ours so it was real easy to just not buy another or take the many that have been offered.
Thanks, I am glad to hear from others who don't have one and don't miss it.

I probably use the micro 3-4 times a week. The biggest things I use it for are defrosting meat (biggest concern!) and reheating leftovers (can use toaster oven or big oven). I also use it for a few little things like warming citrus before juicing it, heating up soup (can do this on the stove), nuking vinegar to clean the microwave oven (don't need to do this if I don't have a microwave!) and storing food to keep it warm after cooking before eating (can do this in the oven). Oh, and I use it to cook squash (can do this in the toaster oven but takes a lot longer) and soften butter (again can do this in oven but takes longer/might be messier).
post #11 of 51
1/30/08 at 2:11pm
Good to know I"m not the only spazz in the world (I mean that in the most loving way !!!!)

I got rid of my microwave because, you guessed it, I painted my kitchen and the empty counters were so nice!!!! And I have this weird theory about the radiation going into your food...anyway, not the point. We're doing just fine without it. Takes longer to cook some things, but things taste better out of the oven anyway. The only thing that I sometimes miss it for is those hot sock things.
post #12 of 51
1/30/08 at 2:34pm
My microwave broke about 4 years ago and we have yet to replace it. Dh complains once in a while because he want's to reheat something. But that is really rare. I reheat in the toaster oven or on the stove top. We had to replace our coffee maker about the same time and i got one with a thremos caraf so the coffee stays warm longer and I don't have to reheat it. Deforsting was the biggest thing to get used to. I find the best thing is to plan ahead. I meal plan a week at a time and take what I will need out of the freezer a day or two in advance. This saves me time and money too. Sometimes I will defrost as I cook too. Like if I want ground beef for tacos, I'll put the frozen lump in the pan with a bit of water. As it thaws I scrape off the thawed stuff so it breakes apart. I'll also put roasts into the oven frozen and they come out just fine same with chicken pices in a casserol. They don't need to be thawed ahead of time.

I really like the extra counter space. And I think the food is bettter when it hasn't been "nuked"
post #13 of 51
1/30/08 at 2:39pm
Your post is perfect timing for our plan

DH is going to move the microwave to the garage today. We're going to buy an electric water kettle (stainless steel) because we found that we really only use it to heat water (tea, oatmeal, etc).

We have the counter space, but frankly, food just tastes better heated other ways -- oven, toaster oven, stovetop.

We've been using the toaster oven for leftovers (usually at lunchtime) for several months now and it's been working well.

DH is still skeptical, which is why the microwave will be in the garage for a while before we sell it. I'm confident we don't need it
post #14 of 51
1/30/08 at 2:42pm
We save leftovers in small glass rectangular pyrex containers, they keep nicely in the fridge or freezer and you can reheat the leftovers in the oven/toaster oven! You can find them at walmart or the like, they are maybe 4 x 8 with a blue lid. Perfect size for one serving of left overs!
post #15 of 51
1/30/08 at 3:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by anthasam View Post
DH is still skeptical, which is why the microwave will be in the garage for a while before we sell it. I'm confident we don't need it
That's what we did too. We stopped using it at Christmastime and we have not even thought about putting it back in the kitchen!



To defrost food faster we fill the sink with lukewarm (not hot) water and put the package to be defrosted in it (just make sure it's airtight). Things like shrimp, scallops and bacon take about a 1/2 hour. Steaks and chicken probably take closer to 2 hours. Still beats letting them sit on the counter all day.
post #16 of 51
1/30/08 at 7:52pm
I just bought a microwave for the first time because I'm tired of not being able to defrost with less than a day's notice, and to heat up leftovers, which we eat a lot of. Heating up the whole oven for one plate of food seemed so wasteful to me (and I have a picky 3 year old who needs his food to be warm, not hot, not cold.)

All that said, I still haven't taken it out of the box. I'm thinking of taking it back. Would a toaster oven be better? Never had one of those either...
post #17 of 51
1/30/08 at 8:03pm
We haven't had a microwave in almost 3 years, haven't missed it one bit. We reheat our food on the stovetop (add a little bit of water, like PP said) or put it in the oven. We have a Toaster Oven and use that for smaller things and we love it. Everything (EVERYTHING) tastes better when it is reheated some other way than the microwave. We just have to take the time to defrost things in advance, which can be an issue, but if I forget, we just make quick meals, instead of something really fancy.
We got rid of it because we didn't feel like it was healthy for us. I have read never to nuke breastmilk because it kills all the enzymes. Has anyone else heard this? Well if it kills things in our breastmilk, what are we doing putting the rest of our food in it? Is anyone else as paranoid as I am?? LOL
post #18 of 51
1/30/08 at 9:08pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by gottaknit View Post
All that said, I still haven't taken it out of the box. I'm thinking of taking it back. Would a toaster oven be better? Never had one of those either...

We LOVE our toaster oven - you can bake, broil, toast, dehydrate, bake w/fan (so breaded items stay crispy!). It's much faster than a regular stove, uses less energy and is very versatile. We no longer have a regular toaster either.
post #19 of 51
1/30/08 at 9:22pm
We don't use the microwave because of health concerns, but we rent and have an installed above the stove microwave, so we can't get rid of it, but we use it as additional pantry space. It really didn't take that long to get used to not using the microwave. It doesn't take that long to warm stuff on the stove.
post #20 of 51
1/30/08 at 9:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by anthasam View Post
We LOVE our toaster oven - you can bake, broil, toast, dehydrate, bake w/fan (so breaded items stay crispy!). It's much faster than a regular stove, uses less energy and is very versatile. We no longer have a regular toaster either.
Sorry, totally OT but--How do you dehydrate using the toaster oven?
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