Why I Will Keep this Microwave Clean
Pros:
Defrost feature does not over-reach
Cons:
User must be proficient at estimating volumes and weights
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
[This is a review of the Sharp Carousel R320D, which is not technically a member of the R330C series. I apologize for the discrepancy, but this was the closest category I could find, as it fell between the R230B and the R430C.]
When we bought our rustic and somewhat primitive log cabin, we inherited an ancient 30 cu. ft. Amana microwave, a black monstrosity that hung precariously above the stove. We were forced to live with this behemoth for four years, but on the day before Thanksgiving 2000, it exploded. I had just popped in a mug-full of water (because, as luck would have it, my tea kettle had quit working just three days before this), pushed Start, and there was a flash of silver light, then an electric-sounding POP a nannosecond later. Thank HEAVEN that as I gingerly pressed the Start button again, the beast did not respond.
Glee. Mirth. Ecstatic feet jumping about the kitchen floor. I hugged my husband and kissed the dog. This meant we could finally replace the behemoth! This happy assumption was confirmed later that day, after my husband took it apart, grumbled over a melange of curious parts, then taped it back together for the garbage man. It took a month to budget it in (a month spent boiling water for tea in small saucepans on the stove), but the day after Christmas we went shopping.
Meandering down the microwave aisle at Best Buy, what struck me about the Sharp Carousel R320D was that it wasnt deconstructionist black and it wasnt nursing shoe white. It was bisque, a non-70s almond shade, with muted pastel control-panel buttons. Im a sucker for color, which is what then drew my eye to another colorful microwave in the same aisle - a smaller, dorm-room model that looked like a cobalt iMac. So perhaps I should qualify myself as a sucker for tasteful color. I asked my husband his opinion and he indicated no real preference (or interest), so I instructed him to lower a Sharp R320D box marked bisque into our cart.
This microwave comes with a kitchen timer, which was necessary because I dont have any other timer in my kitchen. It also comes with a more or less time adjustment feature, Minute Plus (a similar feature, but involving only a minute of extra time), a child lock, automatic start, and beep turn-off. Usually I just pop cold food in one of these machines, punch up a specified number of seconds, and push Start. But this new-fangled Sharp Carousel R320D has three features that have dragged our primitive, log-cabin kitchen into the 21st century: Sensor Cook, Instant Action, and CompuDefrost.
According to Sharp, Sensor Cook is a semi-conductor device that detects the vapor (moisture and humidity) emitted from the food as it heats. Meaning that when youre unsure how many seconds to specify, the microwave can figure it out for you. For some reason that remains inexplicable, you must wait at least 2 full minutes after plugging the microwave in before using Sensor Cook. The control panel offers nine Sensor Cook food options: baked potatoes, popcorn, frozen entrees, frozen vegetables, rice, fresh vegetables, ground meat, chicken breast, and fish/seafood. Once youve determined which of the nine best approximates your dish and youve pressed the appropriate button, the sensor will begin heating. It detects the vapor emanating from the food and displays the remaining cooking time. The Reheat Sensor operates on the same idea, but on a lesser scale.
Im not yet proficient at Sensor Cooking. My first attempt was a bowl of frozen Morningstar soy crumbles. Its similar to ground meat, but its a vegetable product so I faced a dilemma in choosing from the nine choices frozen vegetables or ground meat? I chose wrong (ground meat) and the crumbles were steaming and popping while the display indicated my soy was to suffer another minute and a half of high-powered Sensor Cooking.
Instant Action is for drinks and breads, like muffins and rolls. Normally I dont microwave breads, and Ive already replaced my broken tea kettle, so this feature is largely ignored. But if I ever did want to heat up a cup of cocoa, Id simply press Beverage (on the Instant Action panel) twice. Why twice? Because pressing Beverage once tells the microwave youd like to warm a half-cup of liquid, and the Sharp manual assumes you're more likely to be heating a full cup. Anyway, you must continue pressing the button until the volume of liquid you intend to heat appears in the display window. Im not good at estimating volumes, so again, I think Ill ignore this feature.
Which brings us to CompuDefrost. I like this one best because theres nothing I hate more than thinking Im defrosting food in the microwave, when in reality Im cooking it. Like the Instant Action beverage button, you must press your CompuDefrost button consecutively until the amount/weight of your food appears on the display. The CompuFrost options are ground meat, steaks/chops and chicken pieces. The first time I CompuDefrosted, I was dealing with two cornish hens (for my husband and son, Im mostly vegetarian), so again I faced a dilemma. Ignoring the more-obvious chicken button, I chose steaks/chops, pressed it four or five times (how much does a cornish hen weigh? I wondered), and the microwave began defrosting the little birds, stopping periodically to request that I turn them over. This went on for several minutes, but I still had raw, cold poultry when it was done.
I must like this microwave because Ive been meticulous about keeping it clean from inside splatters and outside dust. The manual advises using only a damp cloth, without soap or detergents, and Ive been faithful and obedient to all cleaning requirements. My husband assumes this fastidious behavior will last only a few more weeks, but I disagree. Sure, our old Amana microwave was always an encrusted mess. But I hated that thing.
