Living Without Electricity: Living Without a Microwave

You may recall that a few months ago my microwave broke. (You can read that post, here.) Now, I don't use the microwave often, but my husband does. We called a repair man to fix it but it was old and beyond repair. So, we started looking to replace it. I don't have a regular microwave, I have an Advantium Oven. Advantium Ovens are more like a microwave/convection oven combination. It speed cooks. For example, it can bake a potato in 10 minutes. A new one costs $1,400.

My microwave may look pretty, but it doesn't work!

When we went to the appliance store to look at one, we realized that not only did we need a new one, but it was going to require a bit of demolition work to get the new one to fit. This is because ours is 14 years old and the new models are about 1 inch bigger. My tile back splash is in the way! Ugh!

We decided to wait. My husband announced that if we can go without a vacuum cleaner, we can go without a microwave for a year! I was all for it! So, we started our journey without a microwave. We don't miss it! As a matter of fact, food tastes better when you don't use the microwave! Not a little better, a lot better! Everything has so much more flavor! Potatoes and vegetables are so good, they don't require all the toppings most people use. (Another plus here is weight control - those toppings are fattening!)

Not having a microwave requires a bit of planning because you can't just defrost something in a few minutes. In addition, it takes a bit more time to cook. How much more planning/time to cook? In my opinion, not enough to notice! A few seconds to pull meat out of the freezer a day or two in advance, 10 to 30 minutes in advance to steam the vegetables on the grill, in the Sun Oven or on the stove. A few minutes in advance to defrost a slice of bread (if the bread isn't on the counter already.) About one to one and a half hours in advance to bake potatoes. 

The biggest difference for us is we must think about what we are going to eat a few days in advance. This is the hardest part. When you are busy, most people don't think about what they are going to eat days in advance. So, we plan out what we are going to eat for the week on Sunday afternoon. Then, on a daily basis, first thing in the morning, I will take out anything that needs to be defrosted.  For example, on Monday, I will take out the meat we will eat on Wednesday. If we are having potatoes that day, I will also pull them out and set them on the counter. (If they are on the kitchen counter, I won't forget to put them in the Sun Oven later in the day.)

I should mention here that I don't think the work involved with cooking takes any additional time. For example, it takes the same amount of time to prepare potatoes for the microwave as it does to prepare them for the Sun Oven. It also takes the same amount of time to prepare vegetables for the microwave as it does to prepare them to be steamed.

Some one at church asked me if I missed my microwave. I answered truthfully, not one bit! Instead, I have decided to store baking pans in mine. This is one appliance that I don't think we will ever replace!