Christina Zola on tue 23 jan 01
I'm thin on the physics of microwaves, but am wondering why it would be any
different than clay pot cooking... Romertoffs. Nice unglazed terra cotta
pots with lids that you soak in water for a half hour, fill with poultry,
meat, veggies, the works, and then roast in the oven. YUM. Why wouldn't a
microwave do the same thing, but faster?
DEBBYGrant@AOL.COM on tue 23 jan 01
I am going to try to take a stab at this thread. My husband happened to
have run the plant that made the first microwave ovens, then known as
the Raytheon Radar Range. He says that an unglazed earthenware pot
which was soaked in water would not explode because the pot is porous
enough for the steam to escape. I don't claim to understand everything
that he explained to me but he says the way a material heats will depend
on the dialectric constant of the material. For instance, a jelly donut will
heat faster in the middle because of the jelly. It would help if you look up,
in a good dictionary, the 2 terms dialectric constant and dialectric heating.
You should avoid at all costs materials that conduct electricity. That is why
a wad of aluminum foil caused "arching over". Basically, a microwave oven
does cause food to heat faster in the middle than the outside because of
the direction of the microwaves.
Debby Grant in NH
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