Microwave Oven has become an essential part of the kitchen in most Indian homes. So, if you are planning to buy a new microwave oven or planning to upgrade your old microwave oven, then you are in the right place. We will take you through an in-depth review of microwave ovens available in India and help you to buy a microwave oven of your choice. Also, check our Best Microwave Oven – Buying Guide to get to know the various functions, features, types and technologies of the microwave oven.
A microwave oven can be used for baking, grilling, reheating, defrosting and cooking. It is a perfect appliance to use during the summer as it won’t heat up your kitchen like a gas stove.
Here are our top picks of the Best Microwave Oven.
Best Microwave Oven at a glance
- Best Convection Microwave Oven: LG 32 L Convection Microwave MC3286BRUM
- Runner-up Convection Microwave Oven: Samsung 28 L Microwave CE1041DSB2/TL
- Best Value Convection Microwave Oven: IFB 30 L Convection Microwave 30BRC2
- Best Charcoal Microwave Oven: LG 28 L Charcoal Microwave MJ2886BWUM
- Best Compact Convection Microwave Oven: IFB 20 L Convection Microwave 20SC2
- Best Budget Convection Microwave Oven: Samsung 21 L Microwave CE73JD-B/XTL
- Best Convection Microwave Oven for Small Spaces: IFB 25 L Microwave 25SC4
- Best Solo Microwave Oven: Samsung 23 L Solo Microwave MS23F301TAK/TL
- Runner-up Solo Microwave Oven: Panasonic 20 L Solo Microwave NN-SM25JBFDG
- Best Value Solo Microwave Oven: LG 20 L Solo Microwave MS2043DB
- Best Budget Solo Microwave Oven: Bajaj 17 Litres Solo Microwave 1701 MT
- Best Compact Solo Microwave Oven: IFB 17 L Solo Microwave 17PM MEC 1
- Best Grill Microwave Oven: Bajaj 20 Litres Grill Microwave Oven 2005 ETB
- Runner-up Grill Microwave Oven: LG 20 L Grill Microwave Oven – MH2044DB
Best Microwave Oven in India
Today, Microwave Ovens can do much more than reheating coffee or leftovers, defrosting frozen food or making popcorn. Microwave Ovens are now capable of performing a variety of tasks like convection cooking and grilling. There are different types of microwave ovens to accomplish these tasks.
Jump to Section:
- Best Convection Microwave Oven
- Best Solo Microwave Oven
- Best Grill Microwave Oven
- Best Microwave Oven Buying Guide
Best Convection Microwave Oven
1. LG 32 L Convection Microwave Oven – MC3286BRUM
Highlights
Specifications
This LG 32 L Convection Microwave Oven is a perfect all-rounder. It can be used for baking, roasting, browning, rethermalizing, and cooking with the simple touch of a button. It comes with numerous features and functions that make cooking an easy task. It has 301 Auto Cook Menu options to prepare a variety of dishes.
This convection microwave oven comes with a Diet Fry feature that lets you prepare crispy dishes like samosas, gujiyas, pakoras, and more with minimum oil use.
The oven has an Indian Roti Basket feature that facilitates you to make 12 different varieties of Indian Rotis like Naans, Lachcha Paranthas, Tandoori Rotis, Missi Rotis, etc., with the touch of a button.
The Auto Cook Menu option offers a wide variety of world cuisines, including Indian regional recipes with pre-programmed cooking time and temperature. Just select the dish you want to make and press ‘start’ to prepare something new.
The oven is equipped with a stainless steel cavity, enabling consistent heating inside the cavity for better even cooking.
The ‘Pasteurize Milk’ feature helps to get rid of the conventional process of boiling milk. This feature ensures the preservation of the nutrition content of the milk and saves a lot of time by eliminating the need for supervision. It can also make ghee in 12 minutes.
Delicious paneer and perfectly blended curd can be made at your home without using chemicals or enzymes in this oven.
Indian dishes like paneer tikka and chicken tikka can be prepared at home with its 360° Motorised Rotisserie that provides uniform and even roasting to make crispy and tasty bar-be-que recipes with a touch of a button.
Multi-cook Tawa ensures to provide extra browning and bottom heating. The Quartz heater comes concealed, ensuring that you do not get any burn injuries on your hand while cooking. In addition, the steam power feature makes it easier to get rid of grease & grime from the oven. This best convection microwave oven comes with a one-year product warranty and a four-year warranty has been provided for the magnetron.
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2. Samsung 28 L Convection Microwave Oven – CE1041DSB2/TL
Highlights
Specifications
This is one of Samsung’s best convection microwave oven. It can be used for baking, grilling, reheating, defrosting and cooking.
This oven features SLIM FRY technology for providing healthier fried food without a deep fryer. It cooks crispy food using minimum oil by combining the grill with warm air circulation.
Fermentation Function helps to make dough or curd any time of the day by using advanced fermentation technology that sets the right temperature to provide your family with delicious fresh meals.
By downloading the Samsung app, you get to choose a wide variety of pre-programmed local recipes with the simple touch of a button.
Crispy rotis and naans can be made with the touch of a button with the help of Tandoor Technology. This technology replicates tandoor-like conditions in the oven by raising the temperature to 200 degrees Celsius to make perfect and crispy rotis or naans so that you can enjoy the rich taste of tandoori rotis in the comfort of your home.
This best convection microwave oven is provided with an Auto Cook Menu that allows you to tell your oven what you’re cooking and how much you’re cooking. So that it utilizes, it’s pre-programmed settings to make food exactly the way it is set.
The oven comes with a Ceramic Enamel Cavity which is durable, easy to clean, hygienic and bacteria-free. A one-year warranty has been provided for the product, a five-year warranty for the magnetron, and a ten-year warranty for its ceramic cavity.
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3. IFB 30 L Convection Microwave Oven – 30BRC2
Highlights
Specifications
The IFB 30L Convection Microwave Oven comes with many breathtaking features. This oven comes with Auto Cook Settings and 101 standard menus, enabling you to prepare a variety of dishes.
The microwave is equipped with a Rotisserie that enables you to make crispy and browned meat dishes. In addition, its Fermentation features help you to make dough, batter and dairy products.
It can disinfect and sterilize baby bottles and other utensils with the help of its Disinfect feature. The steam clean function of this best convection microwave oven ensures the removal of any kinds of grease from the oven within minutes.
Multi-Stage Cooking enables you to store three types of cooking cycles in its memory. Its Keep Warm feature helps maintain the food temperature for up to 90 minutes without overcooking.
The Express Cooking enables you to set the weight and press the buttons to speed up the cooking process so that you need not have to wait too long to relish the delicious food. Its Speed Defrost function also works the same by entering the weight of the food item you wish to defrost, and it takes care of defrosting the food item in a very less time.
Its Power Save feature helps you to save power and bill by offering pre-set choices depending on your menu.
Child lock is an essential feature if you have kids at your home. It prevents microwave accidents when your children are around. A one-year warranty has been offered for the product, and a three-year warranty has been provided for the magnetron and cavity.
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4. LG 28 L Charcoal Convection Microwave Oven – MJ2886BWUM
Highlights
Specifications
LG 28 L Charcoal Convection Microwave Oven comes loaded with features to provide hassle-free cooking.
The oven comes with a charcoal lighting heater to provide healthy cooking and gourmet flavour. It maintains the natural flavours of the ingredients and makes your dish crunchy outside and juicy inside.
You can make crispy dishes without even worrying about the oil playing havoc with your health. The Diet Fry feature enables you to prepare samosas, gujiyas, pakoras and more items with minimum use of oil. You can also make hygiene ghee with absolutely no smell within 12 minutes with this convection microwave oven.
Indian Roti Basket feature enables you to prepare 12 different varieties of delicious Indian rotis like Naans, Lachcha Paranthas, Tandoori Rotis, Missi Rotis and more with the touch of a button.
The 360° Motorised Rotisserie provides you crispy and tasty bar-be-que recipes with the touch of a button. You can make your favourite paneer tikka and chicken tikka at your home easily and hassle-free with this 360° Motorised Rotisserie and the main highlight is that it requires no manual intervention for uniform and even roasting.
The ‘Pasteurize Milk’ feature enables you to get rid of all the troubles of the conventional milk boiling process, and it ensures to retain the nutrition content of the milk and removes the bacteria.
You can make dishes from a wide variety of world cuisines including new Indian regional recipes with the revolutionary auto cook menu. It comes with preset cooking time and temperature, so you only need to select the dish you want to cook by pressing ‘Start’ and make new dishes every day.
The oven is equipped with a durable Stainless Steel Cavity that ensures more hygiene and enables uniformity of heating for better even cooking.
The oven comes with a Recipe Book which gives an insight into exotic, lip-smacking recipes from all over India which are not only delicious but also simple to make. The product comes with a one-year warranty and a four-year warranty has been provided for the magnetron.
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5. IFB 20 L Convection Microwave Oven – 20SC2
Highlights
Specifications
Bring out the Master Chef in you with this feature-loaded IFB 20 L Convection Microwave Oven.
Multi-stage cooking allows you to store three types of cooking cycles in its memory to cook different dishes.
Combination Cooking Power Grill and Combi Tech function of this best convection microwave oven combines the microwave and grill modes for browning the dish.
The oven comes with 24 standard menus facilitating you to cook different types of dishes. The Auto Cook Settings can be changed without having to cancel them.
Auto Reheat function facilitates you to reheat your food with pre-programmed time and power levels.
Weight plus Speed Defrost function lets you set the weight of the food you wish to defrost, and the rest is taken care of by the microwave oven.
The time display of this microwave oven helps you monitor the cooking as it informs you about the cooking time, power level and time at every stage of cooking.
The Child lock feature is handy if you have children at your home. It helps in preventing accidental operation by your children. The product comes with a one-year warranty and a three-year warranty has been provided for its magnetron and cavity.
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6. Samsung 21 L Convection Microwave Oven – CE73JD-B/XTL
Highlights
Specifications
Samsung 21 L Convection Microwave Oven is a small and compact oven that you can fit into your compact counter space in your kitchen.
This convection microwave oven comes with an innovative technology to provide better-cooked food with its Triple Distribution System. It widely distributes the waves with its three antennas to cook every part of the food evenly.
The best aspect of this oven is that it is equipped with a ceramic enamel cavity, making it one of the best convection microwave ovens. It is hard-wearing, durable, and easy to clean and protects it from scratch, rust, and bacteria.
Its Power defrost mode enables you to defrost frozen foods quickly and evenly, and its Keep Warm feature ensures to warm the food when you have guests for dinner.
It features Auto Cook and comes with pre-programmed Indian recipes so that you can select the best option you want and the rest will be taken care of by the oven.
The product comes with a one-year warranty, five years warranty has been provided for its magnetron and ten years warranty for its ceramic cavity.
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7. IFB 25 L Convection Microwave Oven – 25SC4
Highlights
Specifications
This 25 L Convection Microwave Oven is a splendid performer. This oven comes with 26 pre-programmed cooking recipes which can be put to use with the touch of a button.
The Steam Clean feature helps to get rid of the grease from your microwave in a matter of minutes.
You can make Indian cuisines in minutes with the pre-programmed menus provided in this best convection microwave oven.
Auto Defrost feature helps you to defrost food items by entering the weight of the food item, and the rest is taken care of by the microwave.
Microwave is equipped with a Timer Option to notify you about the cooking time, power level, and time at every stage of cooking.
It can automatically switch OFF the heating function if the temperature goes too high.
Express Cooking lets you cook the food by entering the weight and just pressing the buttons to get the desired results.
The combination of microwave and grill modes enables you to cook and brown delicious meals. A one year warranty has been provided for the product and three years warranty for the magnetron and cavity.
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Read Next: Best OTG Oven
Best Solo Microwave Oven
8. Samsung 23 L Solo Microwave Oven – MS23F301TAK/TL
Highlights
Specifications
Samsung 23 L Solo Microwave Oven can perform reheating, defrosting and cooking. It cannot be used for baking or grilling.
The oven looks stunning with its elegant design architecture. Its premium, stylish design is backed with a stylish handle and a silver dial for easily setting the desired mode of cooking. It also features an ice blue display for knowing the time, power level and other details for perfect cooking.
You can easily prepare your favourite food with this oven as it comes with 20 pre-set cooking modes which enable preparing fresh food within minutes.
Power Defrost of this best solo microwave oven allows you to defrost frozen foods swiftly and evenly without the food getting soggy.
This oven features a ceramic interior that is easy to clean and is also anti-bacterial, scratch-resistant and prevents discolouration.
Triple Distribution System enables to cook dishes perfectly by delivering microwaves via three slots in the oven cavity, which ensures wider heat coverage and uniform heat distribution resulting in even cooking.
The Deoderizer feature helps to eliminate the unpleasant smell of the food or smoke from the interior of the oven, and it also features a reminder end signal which informs you the end of the cooking process.
With a simple touch of a button, you can choose a wide variety of pre-programmed local Indian recipes.
The oven comes equipped with a Childlock program that locks the oven from being accidentally operated by children or anyone unfamiliar with its operation.
A one-year warranty has been provided for the product and magnetron and a ten-year warranty has been provided for the cavity.
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9. Panasonic 20 L Solo Microwave Oven NN-SM25JBFDG
Highlights
Specifications
This 20 L Solo Panasonic Microwave Oven is an ideal choice for a small family. It can be used for reheating food items and defrosting meat, fish, fruits and vegetables. However, this solo microwave oven cannot be used for baking and grilling.
This oven comes with five power levels that allow you to control the temperature as per your cooking needs to make the perfect dish.
The oven is equipped with a mechanical control knob for controlling the functions of the oven so that you have more precise control while cooking.
The timer allows you to set time for cooking and reheating in single minute intervals from one to ten minutes and after that with a five-minute interval from ten to thirty-five minutes. In addition, the auto programmed time and modes allow you to reheat and defrost the food within a few minutes with the touch of a button.
Its compact design makes it easy for you to accommodate the appliance in the kitchen if you have little space over the countertop.
The premium-grade material used in the construction of the oven enhances its durability.
This Panasonic Oven comes with one year warranty on the product and magnetron.
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10. LG 20 L Solo Microwave Oven – MS2043DB
Highlights
Specifications
LG is one of India’s leading consumer electronic brands, and its products are of top-notch quality. LG’s Microwave Ovens looks elegant and are loaded with a lot of features.
This LG 21 Solo Microwave Oven can be used for reheating, defrosting and cooking. It cannot be used for baking or grilling as it is a solo microwave oven.
The microwave oven features 44 Auto Cook Menu which can be used with the touch of a button by selecting the dish that you want to make, and the microwave oven will control the rest of the job.
It ensures to provide faster and healthier cooking by its Intellowave technology by circulating the microwaves uniformly inside the cavity. As a result, it ensures to provide an even reheat and defrost.
It helps to save energy by automatically turning off its display during the standby mode or after 5 minutes after the door is opened or closed.
The Anti Bacteria Cavity ensures to reduce the growth of bacteria inside the cavity of this best solo microwave oven, thus eliminating odour formation, and it also helps in easy cleaning.
The Health Plus Menu is a complete breakthrough feature for fitness-conscious people. It comes with a variety of auto cook menus specially designed for health and calorie-conscious people.
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11. Bajaj 17 Litres Solo Microwave Oven with Mechanical Knob – 1701 MT
Highlights
Bajaj Electricals is one of the leading Consumer Products Company in India. Bajaj has a wide array of microwave ovens ranging from solo to convection with different capacities to cater to everyone’s needs.
Bajaj 17 L Solo Microwave Oven can not only heat food but can also cook tasty dishes. As it is a solo microwave oven, it does not support baking and grilling options, but you can heat and defrost.
It comes with a 30 minutes timer which you can control according to your cooking needs. The built-in timer notifies you with an alert when the cooking process is complete.
The oven comes with five cooking levels that help you to cook effortlessly. In addition, the High power output of this best solo microwave oven ensures a faster and efficient cooking time.
Its compact size enables you to fit the oven anywhere in your kitchen. The oven comes equipped with a mechanical control knob to control the temperature and heating level according to the type of food being cooked. A one-year warranty has been provided for the product and magnetron.
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12. IFB 17 L Solo Microwave Oven – 17PM MEC 1
Highlights
Specifications
IFB 17 L Solo Microwave Oven is a perfect oven for defrosting frozen foods and for reheating it to the right temperature before serving. This solo microwave oven does the job as efficiently as a convection microwave oven does, but it cannot be used for grilling and baking. This oven can be used only for reheating, defrosting and simple cooking.
The eye-catching retro finish of the microwave oven can attract anyone’s attention.
The Flexi Power Controls of this best solo microwave oven can be used to adjust the power level as required by your food item.
The oven is equipped with jog dials that make it extremely convenient for setting heat level and time.
The oven comes with Auto Cook Settings with three standard menus that help to change the cooking settings without cancelling them.
The oven comes with a 1-year warranty on the product and 3 years warranty for the magnetron and cavity.
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Best Grill Microwave Oven
13. Bajaj 20 Litres Grill Microwave Oven with Jog Dial – 2005 ETB
Highlights
Specifications
Bajaj 20 L Grill Microwave Oven is ideal for people who like grilled food. This oven is suitable for grilling, reheating, defrosting and cooking and is not suitable for baking.
This oven comes with 9 Auto Cook Menus for cooking your dish easily with the touch of a button.
Time Defrost and Weight Defrost feature offers dual defrosting options by which you can defrost the food items.
It is equipped with electronic controls to adjust the power level according to the type of food being cooked.
The high power output of this best grill microwave oven enables faster and efficient cooking time. In addition, the 60-minute timer lets you manage your cooking requirements, and its timer informs you with an alarm when the cooking process is completed.
The oven features a Child lock which helps to prevent accidental operation by children at your home. A one-year warranty has been provided for the product and magnetron.
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14. LG 20 L Grill Microwave Oven – MH2044DB
Highlights
Specifications
LG is known for selling high-quality consumer electronics products and services in India. They offer a wide range of the best microwave ovens in India, starting from solo microwave oven to convection microwave oven.
This LG 20 L Grill Microwave comes with i-wave technology for ensuring faster and healthier cooking. This technology circulates the microwaves evenly inside the cavity for enabling faster cooking.
The oven is equipped with a Quartz Heater for grilling. The Quartz Heater is supreme to the sheath heater and can heat the food items faster. In addition, the concealed Quartz Heater gives you more space inside the oven and prevents your hands from burn injuries.
The oven features an Auto Cook Menu, which you can use for making your favourite dishes with the touch of a button.
The oven is equipped with an Anti Bacteria Cavity, which helps in reducing the growth of bacteria inside the cavity and helps to eliminate odour formation. It also helps in easy cleaning.
Its Keep warm feature helps to maintain the temperature of food for up to 90 minutes. In addition, health Plus Menu offers a wide variety of autocook menu options for health and calorie-conscious people.
The Energy Saving feature of this grill microwave oven allows you to save energy by automatically turning off the display when the oven is not active for 5 minutes.
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Best Microwave Oven – Buying Guide
A microwave oven is an appliance that consists of a magnetron, high voltage transformer, thermal protectors and complicated circuits. It operates by transmitting a combination of electrical and magnetic energy, known by the name of electromagnetic energy. These waves move all around the interior of the oven to provide uniformly cooked food.
There are some important factors to be considered while buying a microwave oven. First, make a list of features that you would require before buying a microwave oven. For instance, you can include the type of food you cook, how often you use it, and the size of the microwave oven.
Types of Microwave Oven
Solo microwave oven
Solo microwaves are the most basic microwaves available in the market. These microwaves can do simple tasks like cooking, heating and defrosting food items. However, the solo microwaves don’t crisp or brown your food like a grill microwave, and you also cannot bake cakes as can you do in a convection microwave.
Solo microwaves are comparatively cheaper than their counterparts and are easy to use, and their compact size helps to save a lot of space in your kitchen. Although they have a smaller capacity and limited functionality, some of the latest models in the market come with a host of auto-cook programmes.
Grill microwave oven
A grill microwave is the same as a solo microwave, but the only difference is that it comes with an added grill style plate or metal rack inside it to perform the function of grilling. The grill microwave helps to bring a brown and crisp texture to the food item, and it also gives the food a greater visual appeal.
The grill plate or the metal rack operates by taking in the energy from the microwave to heat the grill so that it’s hot enough to sear, brown or grill foods as per your requirement. Burgers, pizza and pasta, will all taste good and visually appealing when cooked with a grill microwave. In addition, the grill microwave ensures to heat or cook pizza without a soggy crust.
The addition of a grill plate might seem like a small thing, but it makes a big difference.
Convection Microwave
A convection oven is equipped with a fan and exhaust system that circulates hot air inside the cavity of the oven. The fan blows out hot air around the food, reducing the hot spot and cool spot in the oven. It then releases the air out of the oven with the help of an exhaust system, which eventually helps the convection microwave distribute the heat evenly around the food. Thus the hot air surrounding the food helps to cook the food more evenly and quickly.
Traditional or conventional ovens can have hot spots where the heating element is situated. But with the presence of a fan in the convection oven, it helps to circulate the air evenly to correct the temperature variation.
This process helps to reduce the moisture present in the oven to make the food brown and crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside.
Different forms of Microwave Oven
Countertop Microwave Oven
Countertop microwaves are the most common microwave models that you can see in an Indian kitchen. They do not require any special installation and can be easily used by just plugging them into the electric socket, and they can be moved around easily. Countertop microwaves are a great option if your kitchen isn’t designed in a way to accommodate a built-in or over-the-range microwave.
Over-the-range Microwave Oven
Over-the-range microwaves (or OTR microwaves) are designed in a way in which they are installed over your stove or your cooking range. OTR microwaves don’t take any counter space like countertop microwave, and they look neat and organised as if they are integrated into your modular kitchen. These microwaves are placed over your gas stove or cooking range. Thus, you don’t need an exhaust fan or a range hood as they come with an inbuilt ventilation system to remove smoke and odours while you cook.
Unlike countertop microwaves, OTR microwaves cannot be moved around easily. There is only a limited choice of OTR microwaves as you’ll need a model that fits perfectly above your stove. The main drawback of OTR microwaves is that you will need to hire an electrician for installation.
Built-in Microwave Oven
Built-in microwave ovens are designed in such a way that they would fit neatly in the wall cavity or your kitchen cabinet. They help to save your counter space if you have a cramped up kitchen.
However, the built-in microwaves are costly compared to the countertops, and the installation is very complicated, especially if you didn’t have one earlier. You might need a professional to do the installation task. This type of microwave oven is intended to be a permanent fixture in your kitchen so take that into your account if you plan to install a built-in microwave in your kitchen.
Drawer Microwave Oven
Drawer microwaves are designed in such a way that they are installed under your counter space in the kitchen. They can be pulled out like a drawer rather than a swing door from your cabinetry. They also blend with the design of your modular kitchen and gives an ultra-modern look. This model helps to save a lot of counter space in your kitchen. Most of the drawer microwaves come with a child lock to ensure safety by not allowing the children to tamper with it.
Drawer microwaves are tough to install and are comparatively on the expensive side.
Important factors to be considered while buying a microwave oven
Size
An essential thing that you need to look into while buying a microwave oven is its size because it should easily fit into your kitchen counter without any hassle. Firstly you need to measure the space in your kitchen counter where you plan to install your microwave. Then you should ascertain the height, width and depth of the model that you are planning to buy to find out if it will fit in the space of your kitchen counter. The external dimensions of the microwave can vary a lot, so choose wisely. Also, make sure that there is enough space to open the door and a power outlet nearby.
Capacity
The capacity of the microwave oven is measured in litres in India. You’ll find microwave as small as 15 litres to the largest models measuring in at 42 litres or more. It is also advisable to consider the size of the turntable as it helps to know whether you can accommodate your plates in the microwave oven. The capacity of the microwave is determined by taking into account the number of members in your family and your cooking needs. The following picture would help you to ascertain how much capacity a microwave you would need.
Wattage
In Microwaves, wattage is equal to power. The higher the wattage, the faster the food will be cooked. Most microwave ovens available in the Indian market will have a power output of 700 to 2,400 watts. The larger and more expensive microwaves tend to have a higher wattage. The best option for your need would largely depend on how you plan to use the appliance.
Auto Cook Menu or Preset cooking modes
Most microwave ovens come with preset cooking modes or an Auto Cook Menu in addition to the regular control keys. These preset cooking modes are pre-programmed cooking options that automatically select the power level and cooking time based on the dish you are preparing.
Cooking function
Microwave ovens come with different functions like heating, defrosting, grilling and convection cooking abilities. Different microwave ovens offer different cooking functions. The convection microwaves are generally used for baking, grilling, heating and defrosting. The grill microwaves have heating, defrosting, and grilling capabilities but cannot be used for baking food items. Solo microwaves offer the most basic cooking functions as they can be used only for heating and defrosting and not for any other tasks like grilling and baking.
Turntable
Turntables are placed inside the microwave to keep the food moving in a circular motion for a more even cooking. Most turntables are detachable and are easy to clean. As you plan to buy one, consider whether the turntable is sufficiently large enough to fit your utensils and plates in the microwave oven.
Child Lock
Families with young children should opt for a microwave oven that comes with a child lock feature. This helps to lock the microwave so that children or anyone unfamiliar with the operation cannot operate it accidentally.
Rotisserie
Rotisserie is a method of roasting where meat is skewered on a bar, and this bar is rotated in the oven to cook the food evenly. This method is generally used for preparing barbeque and tikka. The rotation of the bar helps to cook the food evenly without using much oil. Many vegetarian dishes like paneer tikka, skewered potatoes and many more can be prepared with the help of rotisserie.
Control Panel
Microwave ovens tend to have dials, push-buttons and touch-sensitive controls. The Control panel varies depending upon the type and model of the microwave. Dial controls can be used by turning the mechanical dials for changing the settings. The push-button control gives haptic feedback when the button is pressed. The touch-sensitive controls do not provide haptic feedback. You do not need to press down any buttons, you only need to touch the controls on the panel that you desire, and it starts working. Touch-sensitive controls are easier to clean than panels with push buttons or dials.
Also, make sure that the digital display on the microwave is bright enough to see properly.
Price
The price of a Microwave varies largely upon the offered size, power (wattage) and features. Convection microwaves tend to be the most expensive, and solo microwaves the least expensive.
Warranty
Most microwaves are covered by a 1-year warranty on the product, with some having extended coverage for the magnetron and the cavity. Make sure to check the warranty policy before you buy a new microwave to know exactly what is covered and for how much duration. In addition, most manufacturers offer extended warranty plans which you can opt for at your own will as a precautionary measure.
Safety and Cooking Tips
How to Clean Microwave Oven
Always clean your microwave regularly as food items tend to splatter onto the walls of the microwave. The turntable should be thoroughly washed if there are any cooking residues. Wipe the top surface along with the sides and the bottom part of the microwave. If there are bits of splattered food on the top surface inside the microwave, then there is a chance that it could drop into the food the next time you microwave. Unpleasant odours can be prevented by regularly cleaning the microwave. The exterior of the microwave should also be regularly cleaned by wiping off the dirt, grime, grease and cooking residue from the door, handle and control panel.
Best Microwave Oven – Frequently Asked Questions
Will the food cooked in a microwave oven lose its nutrients?
Every form of heating reduces the nutrient value of food. The main factors that can cause a reduction in nutritional value are temperature, cooking time, and cooking method. Cooking time and temperature are generally low when the food is cooked in a microwave oven. During boiling and frying, nutrients may leak out of the food. But in a microwave oven, the food is not boiled or fried so you can expect microwave ovens to retain more nutrients than frying and boiling.
How to get rid of unpleasant odours from the microwave oven?
If your microwave oven comes with a deodorizer feature, then you can use it to eliminate the unpleasant odour. If your microwave does not come with this feature, then you can mix 1 cup of water with one tablespoon of either lemon juice or vinegar in a microwave-safe container. Heat on high for 5 minutes or until the water comes to a boil. Leave it to cool for about 15 minutes before opening the door. Then remove the bowl and wipe the inside of the microwave with a sponge or a paper towel.
What is the average lifespan of a microwave oven?
The average life span of a microwave oven is 9 years with normal usage and even less with heavy usage and poor maintenance.
Can I use metal cookware in the microwave oven?
Metal cookware should not be used in a microwave. Metal cookware will not allow microwaves to penetrate through it. Thus, food cannot be properly cooked. It can also cause a spark in the microwave oven if metal cookware is used for cooking.
Conclusion
We hope that you have got an idea about which microwave oven you would require considering your budget, cooking features, presets you most commonly use and the capacity of the microwave. For instance, if you live alone, you would need only a small microwave, but if you have many family members, you should consider getting a larger microwave to fulfil your needs.
Finally, don’t operate the microwave oven without reading the owner’s manual. The owner’s manual is a great resource to know the features, cooking mode, and cookware used in the microwave.