Q: I recently installed a new range-hood microwave, which is a "convection" microwave. Scientifically, what does this mean? Practically, what will this allow me to do that I could not do with a normal microwave?
Sent by Carolyn
Editor: The short and sweet answer is that convection microwaves offer the quick cooking features of a microwave with the browning, crisping, and full "cook-through" of a traditional oven. Instead of just heating the inside of the food (as regular microwaves do), a convection microwave also browns and cooks the outside of your food. Scientifically speaking, regular microwaves emit waves that bounce around until they come in contact with food, causing water molecules to excite and generate heat, which then cooks the food.
In contrast, convection oven technology uses a fan to force air movement and heat up the full interior of the microwave to cook food from the inside out. That's why you can use convection microwaves to bake and roast things that would otherwise be cooked too quickly (and not thoroughly) with just a regular microwave.
As Emma writes in this post, pies and cookies do particularly well in convection microwaves/ovens. For more on convection oven technology, see this post.
Readers, any advice or opinions on convection microwaves?
Related: Can You Recommend a Good Countertop Convection Oven?
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We’ve had one since redoing our kitchen in 2005, and I love it. It makes a perfect roast chicken, crispy browned skin and all, and in just 18 minutes (for a small bird). I rarely use my ordinary oven, which is good since I store pots and pans in there.
Sorry, but the information about microwaves aren't correct. The microwave oven doesn't heating from inside out, the waves can penetrated 1 to 1½ inches.
They'll concentrate where have more water and other polares molecules. And because vibrations, producing heat.
Haha, yeah, Vitor is right. I also liked that the sentence "Scientifically speaking... the water molecules [...] get excited and generate heat." I'm not sure if that was meant as a joke or if that is really what passes for scientific speech nowadays, but either way I giggled.
Excitation is a scientific term, but possibly the phrase would be "are excited" not "get excited"
I love my convection microwave. I stole mine from my parents. I use it when I'm just making something small that I would normally throw in the oven.
I'm about to move into a studio apartment that features a convection oven only—no oven or microwave. One of the reasons I chose this place over other apartments in my price range is that kitchen features are low-priority for my lifestyle, but I've been nervous about having this one appliance meet all my needs. It's a relief to see that others have such success! @ratphooey—now I sort of wish my new place had an oven to use for extra storage!