Culinary expert Pauline Chin Sue places cilantro onto the orange juice shrimp before cooking in a microwave. - PHOTOS BY SHELLY-ANN THOMPSON
IN 75 minutes, culinary expert Pauline Chin Sue, using the micro-wave, made dinner and dessert.
In the microwave she prepared shrimp, chicken, rice and peas, and a chocolate cake.
Mrs. Chin Sue was presenting at the Courts, Grace and HiLo microwave cooking workshop last Thursday at HiLo Barbican Food Store in St. Andrew. The microwave cooking workshop has been held at select Courts Stores and HiLo supermarkets island-wide since April 28, finishing on Saturday, May 27.
Mrs. Chin Sue demonstrated how to whip up quick, easy and nutritious meals for the whole family. "The microwave can be used to cook just about anything - bammy, scrambled eggs, shrimp or chicken," said Mrs. Chin Sue.
"Who knows the stove might become extinct. Look how many things are being phased out," she added.
The savoury aroma of Mrs. Chin Sue's meals overwhelmed the supermarket. "I had to come over because I smelled the coconut milk (of the rice and peas) from way over there," said one customer.
At the workshop a few shoppers said they were accustomed to microwave cooking. Monica Elaine Cammock has been using microwave for cooking for about 20 years. At least twice per week she wraps her food such as breadfruit and Irish potato and bakes them in her microwave.
After sampling Mrs. Chin Sue's rice and peas Ms. Cammock noted that the dish was tasty. "All this needed was a green pepper. But everything else is great."
Mrs. Chin Sue noted that the microwave takes a shorter time for cooking than the stove. To ensure proper timing for meals she advised that the appliance's manual must be read. "This will provide proper understanding of the microwave."
Baking a cake four to six minutes
Chicken breasts in three minutes
A whole chicken 20 minutes
Rice and peas 20 minutes
"With the microwave you don't have to worry about pots to wash. That's the beauty of cooking in a microwave," said Mrs. Chin Sue, and added that it is best to use microwave plate covers.
MICROWAVE COOKING TIPS
1. Do not use oil, use margarine it also gives flavour, bake not fry.
2. If saran wrap is used, pierce tiny holes in the wrap so that heat will be released and the wrap does not cling to the food.
3. If food does not cook evenly, bacteria may survive and cause food-borne illness. Simple techniques to minimise the 'cold spots' include stirring and rotating the food once or twice during microwaving.
The microwave workshops with Mrs. Chin Sue and her team will continue at Courts, May Pen, Clarendon tomorrow 12:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. and Courts, Cross Roads on Saturday 12:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. Courts is offering up to 10 per cent off microwaves until June 10.
- Shelly-Ann Thompson
