reheat in microwave

Bubba, I've owned 3 microwaves and IMHO they all toughened up the meat when heated in them. I always use the simmering water method. In fact, I usually bring the kettle to a boil put in the plastic bag of pulled pork then turn off the heat. The residual heat in the water will do the job but no additional cooking of the product will take place.

I use the nuke for small volumes in plastic.

There are folks that have high end microwave ,or microwave convection that do large cater/vend/restaurant business and swear by them.

Elizabeth Lumpkin,at Boss Hawgs in Topeka,Ks comes to mind.

She'd be happy to talk to you,if you called her.

It might be nice to test a couple products before you committed a two,three thousand bucks.

Hi.

I would love to do some reheating in a micro, but, I find that no matter how much I lower the power and cut the time, the meat has a funky flavor to me. I can just taste the difference.

Kate

ME too.

We have Sensitive tastebuds!

Kate

i have been reheating que in micros for years. i agree, it will toughen the meat some, but its impossible to change the flavor, since it aint adding or subtracting flavor molecules. only the texture changes. most folks never know it. one guy, came to me a couple years ago, and said he hated my competition, because they reheat in the micros. he still thinks mine is fresh, out of the smoker. gets a good laugh for me and the misses.
anyway, moisture is the key. if it aint moist, it will toughen. if its plenty wet, it will will stay tender. i suggest for large amounts, like three pounds or more, place meat in a large micro bowl with lid, add a little moisture like juice, water, coke, sauce, something. then, dont over heat, just get it there, and let it rest a minute.
if heating by the portion, use styrofoam squat cups without lids.
hope this helps....

Everyone who has tasted my pork butt that has been reheated in a microwave has noticed the funky taste the meat has. The texture is the same, moist and tender, but the flavor changes. This does not happen when I reheat in boiling water with the meat in a vacumn bag. It tastes like it is fresh off the pit.

We don't have a microwave, but we have tried coffeebluff's reheated pork in his microwave. It tasted just fine. I sell bags of pork to people that they reheat in their microwaves and they are very happy with it.
Nothing tastes as good as fresh, but after you cook the meat for as long as we do to get it tender and tasty, it can be good reheated. I always tell people to reheat with short time and stir before they hit the button again.
Peggy

Hi.

I was not joking when I said it was a tastebud thing. My sense of taste and smell are very pronounced. Not sure if I am a super taster or not, but I am guessing I might be. Super tasters have more tastebuds and experience food flavors more intensely. I have a low tolerance for hot spices.

"Microwave ovens - what are they really doing to our food?

Does microwaving food kill important enzymes and nutrients?

This is a controversial issue. You will find research on both sides of this question. Below is a brief statement describing the summary of negative effects. Though you will find research to the contrary, please keep in mind this tidbit: La Leche League International guidelines state that you should not microwave your pumped breastmilk.

Microwave oven cooking has 3 categories of effects on us: carcinogenic effects; biologic effects of exposure from oven itself and the food's changes; nutritive destruction of the food. All 3 categories of effects can negatively impact our health.

In direct response to your question, the negative nutritive impact manifests in many ways, including the following. Certain vitamins, such as vitamins B, C, and E are not as available for absorption. The nucleoproteins in meats are rapidly destroyed.

In summary, it is rather reasonable to consider that microwave cooking can significantly decrease the nutritional value of the food by destroying the availability of these nutrients. Some people say that
food tastes funny after being cooked in a microwave. Perhaps, that is the most important research information? Pay attention to your bodily response to the microwaved food. Then make your decision. "

The part I found interesting and was pointing to is that some people find microwaved food to taste funny. I microwave stuff all the time. Microwaved pudding tastes fine to me. Popcorn ... fine. Pork just tastes funky to me.

But... I am willing to try it again. I am going out to give it one more try. I will go right now and test it at 20 ...30...40 and even 50 percent power. I will add liquid.

Let you know what happens.

Kate

I agree that meats taste funky to me from the micro also.I wonder if its possible that certain chems break down from the baggie and produce that taste?I have all but quit using the micro at home unless to reheat veggies.

I agree with Kate about pork tasting funny.Most other stuff seems ok to me.........

Has anyone thought about purchasing a rapid steamer such as a RoundUp Varity Food Steamer?

This would heat the food with steam and do it quickly. I am thinking of purchasing a used one to try for brisket and pulled pork.

What do you think?

Vegas,
I don't know how it would work, I would think it should be alright. I would think it would keep it moist. Some others will hopefully chime in here and give their opinion on it. Let us know if you do get one and how it worked.

Just get one of those steamer inserts that sits on top of a pot with a lid on it. That's the only way I reheat pulled pork, works great.

John

Hi. I usually reheat in the smoker.

Everyone says that steam is a killer for the smoke taste.

Then again, I use a steam table to keep my meats warm (round 140).

Interesting ...

Have been out all day, going to try the reheat again in the micro. I don't think I would reheat in plastic bags. I like glass dishes and a plate to cover. Had a friend that used to bake potatoes in plastic store bags. I know that is a bad thing! Actually she died of cancer, not saying that did it, but ...

I also have to say that we have to reach legal temps (165) on the pork, not just warm it up. What you do as John Q. Public on reheating, such as when a customer buys cold and reheats is another story.

KAte

The amount of sugars in your rub and/or sauce can be affected by microwave. The more sugar in your product the more it will change the flavor. It doesn't take sugar long to change flavors when cooked.
Lee

I have used the micro but I don't like it much. It can save you sometimes though, when you need something hot now.

Simmering water works well, or a regular oven until just warm.

vegas,
to me a steamer is one of the most useful tools i ever had available in a commercial kitchen and if we were a static rather than mobile i certainly would have one of the new tabletop steamers. they are extremely versatile, do not require a boiler and allow you do do everything from plain old white rice to rillets and terrines and poached fish and chicken are a snap in them. they are also wonderful for reheating foods. the only downside is weight and electric current draw which makes them unsuitable for our operation. one place that you might look is equipment auctions. they show up there all the time (as do trunion kettles which are just as useful for making small runs of sauces from the classic mother sauces to bbq sauces)
oh what the heck since we are in the pro's section let me brutally frank if you had the following pieces of equipment there is not a cuisine or style that you could not duplicate;
vulcan range with 35,000 btu heads
vulcan convection oven
salamander (but a propane tourch would work in a pinch)
vulcan steamer and steam kettle.
something to smoke in which could range from an alto sham to an fec or anything in between.
a griddle
a grill- charcoal, gas (it doesn't matter if you are resourceful). a wok works great on this!!
with the above equipment you can run the range from classic french to thai and chinese and everything in between. but that's a dream kitchen.
now for a down and dirty way to make a steamer for no or little cost------
if you have an old non-ul fec you can rig up a steamer from 2 disposable aluminum pans. punch holes in one add water to the other to just below the level of the bottom of the food pan that you will be placing into it. set the fec to max, boil the water, set the food in the punched pan covered in foil and put that in the water pan and shut the door. instant emergency steamer!!
glad i remebered that i was in the pro's section as i would never post that in any other section.
when you have some time give it a try.
now if you would like grill marks but you have no grill i can highly recommend taking a standard soldering iron,buying a new chisle point tip, wash and sanitize it, and just draw your grill marks on. works like a charm!!!!
welcome to the wonderful world of culinary arts!!!!
jack
ps. i learned this trick just last week from my GM. he made hollandaise sauce using the heat from the hot oil in our fryers!!! and here i thought i had seen it all. always think outside of the box. heat is heat and the product never really cares where the source is generated from!!!!

Jack,



You are a wonderment!

Gotta love you!

Kate

kate,
man thanks!!!!! kinda embarassed. just stuff i learned the hard way when things broke down. funniest thing i can remember was the exec dining room at barnett bank in jacksonville. if you have ever seen a pic of downtown jacksonville this is the pointed top building (matter of fact the ceiling for the dining room was 6 feet below the point. since we were on the 42nd floor fire code required that the kitchen be full electric oh and the biggest fire ladder truck could only reach 23 floors).
electric goes out during a storm at lunch. had a bunch of japanese bankers and those guys only eat beef and a load of it!!!! got out the little gas canister fired rechards and did table side cooking. they could have steak diane or steak au pouivre. had a ball doing it once i got past the "oh my god" stage. called up my old german chef achatz and told him how i handled it (this was my 1st job out of school, i was sous chef and the exec that i answered to was no where to be found but i sous chef and at that point the kitchen was mine from garde manger up to pastry!!)
got "ya,dist ist gud!!!" never got one of those before!!! real darned happy!!! found out from his wife years later that the decision i made was one of his high points as a chef. felt he trained me well and he did cause i remember his words "food is like a dog. show it fear it will bite you. be his master he will die for you"
so it ain't me it is a guy who learned from a guy who,ect,ect and all i am doing is passing that on down. sure can't be the one to break a chain and have all those good "cherman" ghosts coming for me.
jack
ps. i like the pro's section. it is all about business and when comp cooks try to draw it off line someone always says something like "hey don't give recommendations give prices like asked" or something along those lines. it's just a good place for pro's to gather and give out ideas
pps. flambe work in a darkened dining room is great fun!!! when i was in school bets were placed on how close i could get the flames to the ceiling. 1 ounce of 151 rum and 1 ounce of hennessy vsop cognac would get a flame of 4 foot height which added to the 3 foot height of the rechaud would give a total of 7 foot. sometimes i miss the classic cuisine a lot. the pates, terrines,charcuterier work,baking breads but i am too old to return to those days.

Bubba,
I started using a micro at first. Then 2 weeks after opening I purchased a NITRO POWER COOKER made by Vollrath. This thing can cook and also reheat then hold items at temp. I'm using it to reheat everything from my stew, beans, and my pulled pork.We used it last Friday nite to heat up vac sealed ribs. It is a LIFESAVER. We can take stew,beans,and the pork out of the fridge and in 30 minutes or less it's all up to temp to move over to the steam table. You fill it with water then drop in your steam table pans and crank it up. I started with 1 and 2 days later purchased a 2nd one. They are giving me an extra hour or 2 of sleep each morning. That's a GOOD THING. We have noticed a difference in the taste of all the items we used to nuke. Hope this helps.
SMOKIN' STEVIE