Important Kitchen Inventions: The Microwave Oven

Introduction

As technology moves forward each day, a new piece of kit to make our lives easier seemingly enters the market. Touch and go can openers, flavor shakers and digital scales are the latest inventions for our kitchens but what has been the most important? What’s made the most difference? All the latest inventions are there to cut the seconds off preparation time, but some things have made a difference.. The microwave oven is a perfect example.

Microwave oven

Known simply as a microwave, this has been on the market since the mid-1950s although the process was tested as early as the 1930s. Like much of technology, the invention of the microwave has helped us to eliminate time from our day when cooking.

The age-old belief of male dominance often led, and sometimes does still lead, to the belief that the woman should do the cooking. This tended to be because the man would be the "bread-winner" whilst the woman would stay at home as a "housewife"; looking after the children and helping with the upkeep of the house.

As time moved on, so did the way that marriage works and now, in most households, both the husband and wife work. This has led to a new limit on time and, thus, the microwave has almost become a staple of every home in America.

Initially when it was brought into the market it received mixed, mainly bad, reviews; mainly due to the fact that it was huge at the time. Now it takes up just a small pocket of space in the kitchen and is ideal for heating foods quickly. Some benefits of using a microwave oven include:

• Time saving – Using your time wisely is crucial, especially in the kitchen, and comparatively with traditional methods, a microwave takes very little time.

• Simple to use – Stick it in, choose what you want to do (i.e. defrost, heat etc) and then let it do the work.

• Easy to clean – It couldn’t be simpler to clean, take a sponge or damp cloth to the microwave and wipe away. To remove smells get a bowl of water, add lemon juice and boil it.

• Unnecessary supervision – Whilst stirring may be advisable at times, generally, you can just let your food prepare while you take a phone call, check your emails or watch television.

• Retains food nutrients – Unlike in a pan where vegetables are boiled and lose nutrients, the microwave can retain all this goodness.

All these pointers are reasons as to why the microwave oven is up there as the most important invention for housewives and homes. Before purchasing, consider what you cook, the features it possesses, the necessary size and wattage of a microwave oven so that it can perform to your every need.



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