The microwave oven or an OTG has become a necessity these days in the Indian homes. In fact, the current lifestyle and stress have made it impossible for the Indian housewives to spend time cooking. The microwave oven makes it rather easy and simple and even adds more value to the taste of your food by retaining the nutrients. Like a gas stove or a mixer grinder, the microwave oven is getting adopted in every Indian kitchen. If you are one of those looking for the first-ever Microwave in your kitchen or checking out an upgrade, the considerably huge number of options and brands can leave you spellbound.
That is exactly where a buying guide and a choice of the best options can come quite handy enough. We will explore the best buying factors to assist you in choosing the cheap and best microwave oven for you.
How to Choose the Microwave Oven – Ultimate Buying Guide
Like with almost every kitchen appliance, having access to a checklist for the best microwave oven in India can be the first step before you can actually buy it. This can be quite helpful in picking the right microwave that meets your individual needs and cooking style.
Capacity
The capacity of a microwave oven is dependent upon the size of your family. The capacity is measured in litres. The exact size of the family would determine the right capacity of your new oven.
Ideally speaking, a family of two to three people would need a microwave oven of 15 to 20-litres capacity. A family of three to five people would need an oven of around 20 to 30 litres, while a family of five or people would prefer an oven of 30 litre or more capacity.
Power Consumption
Well, we have already learned it. A microwave oven with a higher capacity would cook faster. However, the power rating offered by the microwave also holds water in deciding the right option. Most of the ovens come with a power capacity of 600 to 1500 Watts.
In case you are opting for an oven for a larger family, it is advisable to check the one that has a higher power capacity. It will also be dependent on the cooking options you are looking to use it for.
Extra Features
Like an OTG, a microwave oven is used for a wide range of cooking applications like reheating, cooking, grilling, and baking. However, a few additional features would make your task even more effective and efficient. The pre-programmed menu options are just one of them that can prove to be quite effective.
This would be helpful in avoiding the need for remembering the right settings. The child safety lock is yet another exciting option that can prove to be more effective. This can be helpful in keeping the device and your kids safer. A few other much-needed features would include rotisserie, auto defrost and preheat features, removable racks, and the keep warm functionality.
Type of Oven
You would ideally find three types of microwave ovens – solo, grill, and convection. Your choice will, once again, be dependent on the exact cooking style you want to adapt to. The convection microwave oven has been considered to be the most effective option in many cases. It does support every kind of cooking activity.
In essence, you would be able to use it for those dishes that you might not have even thought of at the time of making the purchase.
Types of Panels
The type of panel is what would assist you in terms of ease of use. The microwave ovens come with ideally three types of panels – mechanical, feather touch, and tactile button. The mechanical panels tend to be long-lasting and easy to use. It comes with a wheel to control the temperature.
The feather touch panels are placed instead of the rotating wheels. They are easy to clean and use. You would want to use the right panel based on your exact preferences.
Ease of Cleaning
The microwave oven is used for cooking, and that is exactly why it is bound to collect the dust. Oil and cheese stains would be quite common with a microwave oven, and that is exactly why cleaning it should be one of the prime concerns.
Ease of cleaning would be one of the major considerations when choosing an oven for your kitchen. Access to the proper cleaning instructions available with the product would be an added advantage. An oven with the removable components would be more easy to clean up.
These are a few considerations like all other kitchen appliances have, for buying the best microwave oven in India. Now, let us see a few best options available in India.
5 Best Microwave Ovens for Home Use in India
Having gathered enough info on how to choose a microwave oven, here is our list of the top picks for the best microwave ovens in India you can choose from. The toppers listed here on Probuyer, should ideally help you make a learned choice.
IFB – Best Solo Microwave Oven in India under Rs.6000
If you have a small family, the IFB 17 Litres microwave should be an ideal choice. The Oven should suit the couples and bachelors alike. Do note that it is a solo microwave oven and does not come with a convection functionality. You can ideally use it to reheat, warm, defrost, and cook your food except for the convection features like baking and grilling.
The Auto Cook options available on the oven should make it easy and simple to use. You get access to three auto cook menu options. The Flexi power control is a feature that suits the power requirement automatically depending on your dish. The manual jog controls are quite simple and easy to manage. Moreover, they also tend to be more durable.
The six power levels and 1200 Watts total power should make it one of the most effective options for power consumption efficiency. The white elegant shade should add more value to your kitchen ambiance.
Godrej is a brand that been quite popular when it comes to the electronic and electrical appliances. The 19 litres microwave oven comes with a convection functionality. It offers you a plenty of options and has been quite simple and an exciting options to go with. It should be the best option for multitasking needs.
The LED should provide you access to an improved performance for getting complete information on what’s happening inside the oven. The Child Lock feature is yet another plus point that takes care of your kids and the safety of your oven. The turn table takes care of almost every type of cooking that includes baking, grilling, reheating, defrosting, or simple cooking.
The faster heating up of the oven, thanks to a 2200 Watts power capacity, ensures that the food is cooked really faster. The tactile buttons and jog dials are designed to make it one of the best options to use it for your cooking needs. The 125 insta-cook menu options is yet another added attraction.
Pros and Cons of Godrej Microwave
Pros
Insta-cook feature can be a great addition for improving your cooking ability.
Yet another solo microwave oven in this list, it should be an excellent option for the cooking needs of bachelors or couples. The oven is best suited for varied cooking needs like reheating, defrosting, and cooking. The mechanical controls are perhaps what would make it entirely different from the most other microwave ovens in this list. The 30 minute timer is a thoughtful addition to ensure your effective cooking performance.
The oven also comes with a built-inalarm system. You also have access to five different power levels, and thus, you can specifically use it to meet the exact cooking style you are opting for. Lack of convection process does away the possibility of grilling and baking. However, other microwave functions like reheating, warming, and defrosting are quite promising and exciting.
You have access to multi stage cooking, child lock, and other advanced features as well. The power consumption of 1200 Watts would make it both faster in cooking your food and also efficient enough in saving electricity consumption. The Jog dials would be yet another added advantage that ensures a more effective and efficient durability level ever.
The convection microwave oven can be an exciting option for almost every one of your requirements, while the 20 litre capacity would make it a great choice for a smaller family. While the oven comes with simplistic features and functions, you would find it offering you a host of user friendly options. The smart power selection functionality and access to the improved auto cook options are a few features that make it one of the right choices for your kitchen.
The stainless steel construction is an added attraction and should gel well with your kitchen décor. The convection microwave provides you access to each of your cooking needs that include the options to bake, grill, cook, reheat, or defrost. The auto cook options help you achieve the best performance with an intelligent calibration of time and heat.
The brand BPL is made in India, and you would find it coming up with the complete in house manufacturing. The device is made of an exciting set of features and is made of the state of the art technology.
Pros and Cons of BPL Microwave Oven
Pros
Affordable pricing.
Membrane touch-sensitive buttons provide you access to an impressive control.
A compact design should make it best suited for smaller kitchens.
The convection microwave oven comes with the stainless cavity and offers you a more durable design. In fact, it should be much easy to clean as well, thanks to the stain free performance. The 23 litre capacity should ideally make it one of the right options for a family or a group of up to 4 members. The microwave does offer you five power levels to meet the exact food you want to use it with.
As for the auto cook options, the oven offers you up to 10 menus and thus can use these menus for enhanced and improved performance. While it offers you a space-saving design, it can also provide you access to multiple features. The product also takes care of the safety precautions with features like overheat and sensory protection.
The 1300 Watts power capacity would be yet another plus point for a faster and power efficient cooking capability. The auto defrost functionality would make it extremely easy and simple to cook your food. It combines the goodness of conventional cooking and advanced technology.
These were a few best microwave ovens in India. Now, let us see certain methods of cleaning a microwave oven which shall ensure durability and efficiency of the appliance.
How to Clean a Microwave Oven?
A Microwave is basically used for baking and grilling. Of course, you use it for a wide range of cooking activities, but these two operations are likely to make it accumulate more stains and grease. If you are looking for better cleaning options to keep your oven in good condition, it is much essential to follow the proper cleaning procedure.
For effective results, we would recommend opting for natural means of cleaning your oven. The best natural cleaners that we would recommend would be vinegar and baking soda. Lemon juice can be yet another exciting option for a natural cleaning process.
Use Vinegar for Effective Cleaning
Prepare vinegar and water solution by mixing them in equal quantities. Pour it into a bowl and place it inside your microwave. Place a wooden spoon inside the microwave. Once set, run the microwave for five to ten minutes. Once the timer is up, remove the bowl carefully.
Next, use a microfiber to clean the inside of the microwave oven. The purpose of using the water and vinegar mixture from the previous step is to loosen the spills and other debris. The cloth should be able to clean up the debris without the need for extra scrubbing.
Steam Cleaning
This is yet another excellent option for cleaning your microwave, and you do not need to use vinegar for the purpose. This method involves the use of lemon essential oil and sponge for cleaning your oven. To begin with, get your sponge as much as wet as possible. Once it is wet enough, place it inside the microwave. Fill the spray bottle with a few ounces of water and add up around three to five drops of lemon essential oil.
Pray this mixture inside the microwave. Make sure you have sprayed it quite liberally enough. Next, set the microwave to around to minutes and run it. Once the oven has stopped and cooled down, use the sponge to clean the insides thoroughly enough.
Cleaning any of the kitchen appliances be it a refrigerator, washing machine or OTG is the must. These were certain cleaning methods that can ensure the cleaning of a microwave oven.
There are many common food items that can be cooked in a microwave. Here we share two very common recipes.
How to Cook Rice in a Microwave Oven? - Video
How to Cook Rice in a Microwave Oven?
Cooking rice in the microwave is quite simple and easy. Of course, cooking rice in a rice cooker has been one of the most popular options, and none of us generally have ever given a thought to cooking rice in a microwave oven. However, it would be an exciting option to cook your rice in a microwave oven.
To cook your rice in a microwave oven, you will need to use the raw rice and a microwave-safe container. If you are cooking rice for four people, you need to use one and a half cup of rice. Fill up water to ensure that water covers the rice by around an inch. Next, microwave the rice for around nine minutes. Make sure you kept h rice covered for three more minutes to ensure the rice is perfectly done.
How to Cook Cookies in a Microwave Oven? - Video
How to Cook Cookies in a Microwave Oven?
Preparing cookies in a microwave oven should be one of the exciting options in more ways than one. Of course, there are several options you can opt for if you love preparing cookies in a Microwave Oven.
The steps here should be helpful for you in more ways than one –
Use the following ingredients for preparing your favorite cookies –
¼ cup of flour
One egg yolk
¼ spoon vanilla essence
Finger butter
Baking powder
Brown sugar, chocolate chips, and sugar
Mix all these ingredients together thoroughly. Ensure that the mixture is completely homogeneous.
Next, add up two big spoonsful of milk. Mix it thoroughly once again.
Make a small circle like structure of this mix. You can be innovative and creative and devise your own shapes and sizes.
Place the shapes inside the microwave. Set the Microwave oven to 15 minutes. Configure the temperature to around 150 degrees C.
You may need to go with a few adjustments depending upon the texture and crispness of the cookies you want to prepare.
You can opt for your own preferred menu by changing the ingredients featured above. The entire method should ideally remain similar except for the ingredients and flavor of your cookies.
This video should give you a better idea-
Conclusion on Best Microwave Oven for Baking in India
Well, Microwave oven – whether with the convection feature or otherwise, is an excellent option for cooking those delicacies without having to order them from the restaurants. The microwave oven, unlike traditional gas stoves, has options featured in this compilation that should ideally help you make a learned choice for the perfect oven that best meets your individual cooking preferences.
The additional information shared here should also be much helpful. If you want to share any information on the best microwave oven in India for home use, or want to know more about Microwave ovens, do share your queries and comments with us.
