Convection microwave

A convection microwave is a combination of a standard microwave oven and a convection oven. It allows food cooked in the convection microwave to be cooked quickly, yet come out browned or crisped as in a convection oven. For example, a convection microwave oven can be preheated to bake cakes, which is not possible with standard microwave ovens.

Convection microwave ovens were initially considered to be high-end kitchen appliances. Over time their price has dropped, and they can be bought for around the same price as a conventional oven. However, some models do require more space that a standard microwave, because of the larger cooking area inside.

Companies such as Wolf, GE, Sharp, and Panasonic all currently produce convection microwaves.

Conventional microwaves work by emitting energy waves from the 'microwave' range on the electromagnetic spectrum. These waves are emitted by the magnetron and bounce randomly around inside the microwave until they come in contact with the food. The energy is transferred into the food and causes the water molecules to become excited and move around inside the food. This movement cause heat to be generated, effectively cooking the food. A convection microwave solves this problem by 'heating up' the entire inside of the microwave, and cooks the food this way. If the user was trying to bake a cake, the microwaves emitted by a regular microwave would speed the cooking process too much, and the resulting cake would not be cooked as intended.

See also

• Convection
• Microwave
• Trivection oven
• Electromagnetic spectrum