LG JMC8130DDQ Owners Manual - Page 5

Installation and Operation CIRCUITS For safety purposes this oven must be plugged into a 15 or 20 Amp circuit. No other electrical appliances or lighting circuits should be on this line. If in doubt, consult a licensed electrician. VOLTAGE The voltage used at the wall receptacle must be the same as specified on the oven name plate located inside oven door. Use of a higher voltage is dangerous and may result in a fire or other type of accident causing oven damage. Low voltage will cause slow cooking. In case your microwave oven does not perform normally in spite of proper voltage, remove and reinsert the plug. UNPACKING OVEN • Inspect oven for damage such as dents in door or inside oven cavity. • Report any dents or breakage to source of purchase immediately. Do not attempt to use oven if damaged. • Remove all materials from oven interior. • If oven has been stored in extremely cold area, wait a few hours before connecting power. PLACEMENT OF THE OVEN Your microwave oven can be placed easily in your kitchen, family room, or anywhere else in your home. Place the oven on a flat surface such as a kitchen countertop or a specially designed microwave oven cart. Free air flow around the oven is important. Do not place oven above a gas or electric range or cooktop. Exposure to heat from a cooking surface will damage the microwave oven. DO NOT BLOCK AIR VENTS All air vents should be kept clear during cooking. If air vents are covered during oven operation the oven may overheat. In this case, a sensitive thermal safety device automatically turns the oven off. The oven will be inoperable until it has cooled sufficiently. GETTING THE BEST RESULTS FROM YOUR MICROWAVE OVEN Pay attention as food cooks. The instructions in this book have been formulated with great care, but your success in preparing food depends, of course, on how much attention you pay to the food as it cooks. Always watch your food while it cooks. Your microwave oven is equipped with a light that turns on automatically when the oven is in operation so that you can see inside and check the progress of your recipe. Directions given in recipes to elevate, stir, and the like should be thought of as the minimum steps recommended. If the food seems to be cooking unevenly, simply make the necessary adjustments you think appropriate to correct the problem. Factors affecting cooking times. Many factors affect cooking times. The temperature of ingredients used in a recipe makes a big difference in cooking times. For example, a cake made with ice-cold butter, milk, and eggs will take considerably longer to bake than one made with ingredients that are at room temperature. All of the recipes in this book give a range of cooking times. In general, you will find that the food remains undercooked at the lower end of the time range, and you may sometimes want to cook your food beyond the maximum time given, according to personal preference. The governing philosophy of this book is that it is best for a recipe to be conservative in giving cooking times. While undercooked food may always be cooked a bit more, overcooked food is ruined for good. Some of the recipes, particularly those for bread, cakes, and custard, recommend that food be removed from the oven when they are slightly undercooked. This is not a mistake. When allowed to stand, usually covered, these foods will continue to cook outside of the oven as the heat trapped within the outer portions of the foods gradually travels inward. If the foods are left in the oven until they are cooked all the way through, the outer portions will become overcooked or even burned. As you gain experience in using your microwave oven, you will become increasingly skillful in estimating both cooking and standing times for various foods. SPECIAL TECHNIQUES IN MICROWAVE COOKING Browning: Meats and poultry that are cooked fifteen minutes or longer will brown lightly in their own fat. Foods that are cooked for a shorter period of time may be brushed with a browning sauce to achieve an appetizing color. The most commonly used browning sauces are Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, and barbecue sauce. Since relatively small amounts of browning sauces are added to foods, the original flavor of recipes is not altered. Covering: A cover traps heat and steam and causes food to cook more quickly. You may either use a lid or microwave cling-film with a corner folded back to prevent splitting. Covering with waxed paper: Waxed paper effectively prevents spattering and helps food retain some heat. Since it makes a looser cover than a lid or cling-film, it allows the food to dry out slightly. 5