Why Cooking in a Microwave is NOT bad

[Mizzely]

I've heard a lot of people knocking microwaving around the internet, saying that microwaving can rob foods of their nutrients, so I decided to do some research myself to see if that is the case. I thought I would share what I found. The abridged version is that any method of cooking that involves water does, because water is what leeches the nutrients out. Boiling is actually one of the worst ways to cook for some vegetables!

Microwave-cooked food may actually retain vitamins and minerals better than stove-top-cooked food because the microwave zaps food quickly and without much water. The longer you cook food in liquid, the more nutrients may seep out, which is fine for soups and stews, but it's a problem if you discard the liquid before eating. One study found that spinach retained all of its folate when cooked in a microwave, compared with 77 percent when cooked on a stove.

Using a microwave oven to cook food, although sometimes considered an “easy way out,” has many benefits. The traditional method of covering with water and boiling vegetables leads to loss of vitamins and minerals due to leaching into the water. This is especially true for water-soluble vitamins such as vitamins C and thiamin. Microwaving with only a small amount of water in a microwave-safe container, which minimizes the surface contact between the vegetables and the water, along with a reduced cooking time, ensures that higher levels of vitamins will be retained.


Since prolonged heat destroys many vitamins and other beneficial compounds, cooking or reheating food quickly in a microwave retains more nutrients than heating food over a long period of time by a more conventional method.

Microwave cooking and nutrition

Does Microwaving Spinach Ruin The Nutrients? | LIVESTRONG.COM

The Claim: Microwave Ovens Kill Nutrients in Food - New York Times

Microwave Oven FAQs

 

[HungryBird]

Sometimes I use the microwave to reheat or defrost food but I've never used it for actual cooking. For anything, not even for human food. This is pretty interesting though. About boiling the veggies, what if you only use a little water and then add that water to whatever the food is? I mean don't throw it out but give it to them...somehow. Would it make a difference?

 

[lotus15]

I simply like the taste of stove/oven-cooked food much more I also don't like that microwaves don't cook evenly and create "hot spots."

 

[greymatron]

I'dd have to show this to my vet, since he said that microwaves destroy nutrients.

 

[Thugluvgrl187]

I also also use the microwave to heat things up and bake potatoes sometimes. I love to use my steamer for veggies!

 

[Mizzely]

Sometimes I use the microwave to reheat or defrost food but I've never used it for actual cooking. For anything, not even for human food. This is pretty interesting though. About boiling the veggies, what if you only use a little water and then add that water to whatever the food is? I mean don't throw it out but give it to them...somehow. Would it make a difference?

I don't see why not I know one of the articles said that in soup its not bad because you are still consuming the broth, its when you throw the water out that you are getting rid of them! I usually

I simply like the taste of stove/oven-cooked food much more I also don't like that microwaves don't cook evenly and create "hot spots."

I don't encounter this issue with the veggies I make, but I agree that with anything a lot of liquid especially it can certainly do that! I do prefer stove/oven too, its just not always feasible

I'dd have to show this to my vet, since he said that microwaves destroy nutrients.

I'd be interested to hear what he has to say!

I also also use the microwave to heat things up and bake potatoes sometimes. I love to use my steamer for veggies!

I wish I had a steamer! I agree potatoes are one of the things I use mine a lot for, that and squash! It's also nice when I already have a stove full of things cooking but still need just one more thing​

 

[TextsFromParrots]

I use the microwave pretty often just because I reheat such small amounts of precooked mash for two small birds that I just can't use the stove for it. It wouldn't make sense. I saw a bunch of these articles not too long ago and felt a bit more relaxed about it.

 

[Gen120]

Interesting article! I also use the microwave for the fids stuff and for our own stuff. In fact, I have my own microwave that I mostly use for bird stuff in the birdroom, Also, anything I warm up for the fids in the microwave, I always stir it really well and check for hot spots too just to be safe.

 

[orphansparrow]

i like steamers the best too. really cheap (they cost like $5), and keeps the food really tasty, and nutrient rich. ^__^

 

[Nikki]

Just don't microwave things in plastic...I transfer everything to glass.

 

[GlassOnion]

Microwaving is one of the best methods to cook veggies while preserving a lot of their natural nutrients. Much healthier than frying or roasting

 

[Mizzely]

Just don't microwave things in plastic...I transfer everything to glass.

That is a good point, I only microwave in glass or ceramic

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[Lauren and Jack]

Very interesting....

 

[HungryBird]

I moved relatively recently and we did not have a microwave at first. Or much of anything to be honest. But the absence of the microwave was definitely noticed. We lasted eight whole months before breaking down and getting a microwave. If only to heat food up! I hated having to reheat everything on the stove.