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BUYING new microwave

(81 Posts)
Bea65 Wed 05-Jun-24 13:06:31

Hi GNs, has anyone bought one recently...and what power usage is it....thanks for any comments...I don't need anything big as just me and sometimes 1 other....

dalrymple23 Wed 05-Jun-24 14:11:22

In a previous life, have used many different ones in client's houses. Some are just too flipping complicated - unnecessarily so. My recent purchase was a Sharp 900w. Easy to use and has the power to cook things quickly. I also wanted one in white (not a great big black thing sitting on the worktop)! They are surprisingly few and far between. Digital are much easier to programme, rather than turning a knob, which can be iffy. Look at Amazon and read the reviews. Happy shopping!

M0nica Wed 05-Jun-24 14:13:06

i have just bought the cheapest one I could find that matched my kitchen decor and fitted in the space provide What else matters?

Ziplok Wed 05-Jun-24 14:29:13

Mine is 900 watts, a Samsung, with digital display which, as dalrymple23 says, is more accurate than the dial kind.
It’s not huge, and is brushed stainless steel. Came from curry’s if I remember correctly. It’s quite straightforward to use, unlike some models.

MissAdventure Wed 05-Jun-24 16:03:27

Same as M0nica.
I think it's 850 watts, but does have a loud door,like early microwaves have, which I don't like.

Esmay Wed 05-Jun-24 16:30:29

Mine is a Russell Hobbs 800 watts . I bought it from Amazon .
I'm very happy with it .

HelterSkelter1 Wed 05-Jun-24 17:07:52

Mine now 3 years old is a 1000 watt Panasonic. White. From John Lewis. Very pleased with it. I don't use all the settings. But it does have a 30 second 1000 watt button which I use a lot otherwise I set it for 1000w or 800 w. It's really funny I find we spend ages trying to decide what to get of the white goods and then once you have it you never think about it again. Our previous microwave was very old and built like a tank from Bejam. But did us many years of sterling service.

Norah Wed 05-Jun-24 17:21:03

Just curious. Not a debate, just a question.

Do any posters actually use a microwave? For what?

We had one, I never could work out upside to using it, I believe it moved to one of my husband's buildings (as one is there) or to a daughter.

MissAdventure Wed 05-Jun-24 17:24:18

Jacket potatoes, heating up beams amd things, to save using a saucepan

Cooking a small amount of veg.

crazyH Wed 05-Jun-24 17:24:57

Same as Miss A

Germanshepherdsmum Wed 05-Jun-24 17:25:23

We have a microwave but only use it for quickly re-heating something already cooked, not for actual cooking. I know a lot of people use them for cooking but, never having done so, I wouldn’t have a clue.

MissAdventure Wed 05-Jun-24 17:25:49

Beams or beans smile

Germanshepherdsmum Wed 05-Jun-24 17:26:13

Ah, I lie! I do use the microwave for jacket potatoes.

MissAdventure Wed 05-Jun-24 17:28:29

I prefer them done in the oven, but I'll often start them in the micro.

kittylester Wed 05-Jun-24 17:29:04

Mine has a convection setting too which we find useful for doing things like baked potatoes. The microwave setting 1000 watts. To be honest I could manage with out one but quite like it as a security blanket.

aggie Wed 05-Jun-24 17:30:21

Porridge, scrambled eggs , vegetables, custard , sponge puddings , reheating my coffee 🤣

SueDonim Wed 05-Jun-24 17:35:45

I wanted a small, simple one for my new, smaller kitchen and this is just the ticket. panasonicdirect.store.panasonic.co.uk/p-5413-panasonic-nn-e28jmmbpq-panasonic-20l-compact-solo-microwave-oven-silver.aspx?psn=13

To answer Norah’s query, I use ours to heat soup or baked beans and to cook frozen veg and fruit. I microwave potatoes prior to roasting them and also jacket potatoes before finishing them in the- airfryer. Also to reheat bits and bobs such as forgotten cups of coffee or warm up scones etc.

My kids tease me about our very first microwave in 1986, which was about the size of a washing machine. I did everything in it - if it couldn’t be cooked in the MW we didn’t have it. 😂

Chardy Wed 05-Jun-24 18:10:37

Norah

Just curious. Not a debate, just a question.

Do any posters actually use a microwave? For what?

We had one, I never could work out upside to using it, I believe it moved to one of my husband's buildings (as one is there) or to a daughter.

I batch cook 4 identical meals and freeze. I love my microwave

Doodledog Wed 05-Jun-24 18:18:40

I have one that is also an oven, grill and air fryer, and I use it all the time.

The microwave function is used mainly for heating up leftovers, warming custard or gravy, that sort of thing. It's much cleaner and easier than using saucepans and more effective than heating on a plate in the oven. The other functions save a lot in power, as they basically mean I rarely need to heat up the oven. The grill in the microwave isn't great, so I don't use that often.

MissAdventure Wed 05-Jun-24 18:43:29

Mine's a Morphy Richards.
It looks modern and minimalist, but it works well.
A dial where you have to guesstimate how far round you turn it, and the clunky door.

CanadianGran Wed 05-Jun-24 19:16:45

Mine is ages old, and built in, with a fan above my stove. I think 700 w, but does the trick.

We use ours all the time! Oatmeal in the morning, re-heat soup at lunchtime, veg steamed at dinner time. Popcorn sometimes in the evening.

M0nica Wed 05-Jun-24 22:30:47

Today I cooked some frozen fish in my microwave, also rice and reheated a container of vegetable curry.

The advantage of the microwave is that i can put the item to be heated in it, set the timer and walk away and do something else, secure in theknowledge that it will not burn dry in my absence. I can also reheat drinks in the mug and heat soup and other similar foodstuffs in the bowl they will be eaten out of, in a fraction of the time it would take to heat them any other way and with less washing up.

On the day we have heard such alarming news about global warming, its biggest advantage, as with the sir-fryer, is that it uses less energy than would be consumed by more traditional cooking methods.

Bea65 Thu 06-Jun-24 11:34:07

They are a time saver as yes you can heat/reheat and get on with other chores..like reading and posting on Gransnet grin my black microwave is about 10 years old the turntable has stopped turning and the enamel is cracking...so have looked on Amazon and other retailers like Argos and Currys but so far haven't found what I want...think I'm overthinking itgrin

Nannashirlz Thu 06-Jun-24 11:38:05

I bought mine from local supermarket think it was £40 or something I don’t really use it so didn’t see point in buying state of art just to warn my peas etc lol £40 or £400 still going to warm my peas

farmgran Thu 06-Jun-24 12:20:25

I had a panasonic for years until one day smoke started coming from it and I took it out and threw it on the lawn. I don't miss it!
I'm thinking of getting a rice cooker but not sure of which brand is best.