I got so sick of looking at mine on my kitchen bench that I left if out on hard rubbish day a couple of months ago. The people who'd owned our place didn't have a microwave and I'd never got round to installing ours in a cupboard. At first I thought they were mad not to have one but I started to think I might not need one either.
Two months after throwing it out I'm convinced I don't.
I bought mine six and a half years ago when my first son was born. Contrary to all good advice I used it to heat his bottles. I know, bad mother. I also used it to reheat all those frozen puree bits and pieces that were such a feature of his life in the early days.
In the last year or so I realised I was really only ever using it to melt butter or chocolate for brownies. Cooking vegetables in it could take much longer than simply steaming in a small pan with a dash of water.
So now it's just me and the stove top and we're getting on famously. My new best friends are my three small saucepans. You can reheat almost anything with a splash of water. Forgetting to defrost the chicken or mince for dinner is not a disaster. A couple of ziplock bags and a sink of warm to hot water, some patience and you can fix it.
The only disaster is a rushed school morning and frozen bread you can't prise apart for sandwiches. I don't think a good soak in warm water works.
I got rid of the microwave on hard rubbish day. We live in a pretty nice area so it's the sort of event that draws a crowd. The morning I left the microwave out I put it down on the verge and then dashed back inside to grab my camera.
As I emerged from our gate a van with two very large men crammed in the front screeched to a stop. The passenger jumped out and looked a little sheepish when he saw me but who felt the bigger fool?
I had to ask him to wait while I took a photo. He's probably still wondering now what on earth I was up to. Mad people, bloggers.
Our daughters got rid of their microwave two years ago, for health benefits, but they love having the extra counter space in their kitchen.
ReplyDeleteYes, we bloggers are always looking for a good picture, eh?
Fondly,
Glenda
That's interesting - the living sans microwave bit.
ReplyDeleteI was cleaning the innards of ours today. It was quite gross. I use it to reheat leftovers (much of which had splattered all over the microwave's sides) and to warm Martha's bottles (I'll be Secretary of your Bad Mothers Assoc.), but that's all we use ours for.
I'm now looking forward to the day I can leave it on the footpath and also hide behind a shrub with a camera!
I use mine to cook frozen peas and to heat the odd cup of milk for my daughter...hmm...do I really need it? Probably not, and as it's pretty old I'll now think hard about replacing it when it eventually goes.
ReplyDeleteYou made me smile with the image of you taking a photo on the kerbside!
x
I can just imagine you at the kerb,stalling off those men while taking a pic of the item you've just thrown out..haha! I know I felt like that the day I went downtown and installed a little origami house on a bench seat outside a bank and a group of men were watching me take photos..and I don't think they even realised something was on the seat!!
ReplyDeletep.s..I do like reheating leftovers, cooking peas and potatoes and heating up milk for our cappucinos in the microwave.
My microwave just died too. Not replacing it.
ReplyDeleteI don't have a microwave either...I find them completely redundant. My other half is always bemoaning the fact we don't have them - and he does about 5% of the food preparation around here. ;)
ReplyDelete