Once you put the turkey in the oven there is barely any room for anything else is there? We’ve all been there, ramming in the pigs in blankets, the parsnips, roasties and the Yorkshire puddings.
Or am I the only one who does Yorkies for Christmas?
With multiple dishes, different timings and temperatures, Christmas dinner can be a stressful event for the cooks, can’t it?
Well, Panasonic have brought out such a clever steam combination microwave that gives you an extra cooking space – one that does so much more than heat up baked beans.
Because let’s be honest, that’s all we used microwaves for, isn’t it? That and a very poor version of a jacket potato. But no more. No, from now on I am going to be using my combination microwave to do dishes that I wouldn’t have tried before.
I recently went along to the Panasonic kitchen to do some Christmas cooking, you may have caught the FB live at the time…
We showed you a couple of recipes during the live, recipes that use the microwave and will be perfect for Christmas time.
First up were the roasted gnocchi, sun-dried tomato & olive stacks as voted by you in my IG stories. The gnocchi is roasted in the combination microwave while you prepare the rest of the stacks.
The thing I love most about the oven is the fact that it has a countdown timer, just as you’d expect from a microwave. But of course it also works with the grill, the oven and steamer – so no more overcooked food!
The second recipe was a scrumptious orange and chocolate sponge pudding – you have to make this, it is amazing!! As someone who doesn’t like Christmas pudding, I will definitely be making this as an alternative for me and my family.
It is so easy to make, the full recipe is over on The Ideas Kitchen (along with loads of other brilliant recipes). But in essence, you place the mixture in the microwave and with a combination of steam and the microwave it ensures the pudding doesn’t dry out.
It is such a fab piece of kitchen equipment and I have grand plans for my Christmas dinner this year. It is going to ease the pressure on my oven, meaning less stress on the big day!
One of my favourite features is the fact that it can steam and grill at the same time. I am going to use this combination for my honey glazed carrots and parsnips. The steam will cook them without losing any of the nutrients, while the grill will give them the roasted look. They are going to be amazing!
I haven’t stopped using it these last few weeks as it just cooks everything perfectly. Gone are the days of my microwave standing idle, taking up space on my worktops – it is now used for everything, from roast chickens to steamed veg!
Have you ever used a combination microwave before? Have you got any recipes that would be perfect for me to try?
This post is written in collaboration with Panasonic.