Ok, from my brief research it would seem that it’s heavily debated as to whether or not microwaves are harmful to your health.
I can’t say I’ve done enough research to know all there is to know on the topic. Not by a long shot.
All I know is this: most of my “crunchiest” friends live without microwaves. I’ve many a time been in their homes and gone to use the microwave only to find that there isn’t one at all… or it’s being used as storage. (For reals… I have a friend who keeps books and apparently phone chargers in her microwave… things did not go well when it was accidentally switched on at one point. Indoor fireworks!)
Anywho, I don’t know all the reasoning behind this lack of a microwave. I’m not sure if it causes cancer or brain tumors… especially if you used that wicked material they call plastic. I do know I’ve had a scalded tongue a time or two. But regardless of my lack of knowledge on the topic, I do aspire to be my crunchiest self whenever possible and thusly decided to try and follow my health nutty friends onto the microwave-less frontier. At least for a time.
I wasn’t committing to anything crazy. It’s just that we moved and left ours behind so I thought, “Heck, I’ll give it a shot!”
And ya know what… it hasn’t been bad at all!
In fact, I’ve really enjoyed the experience.
Having no microwave for the past month has actually helped me to:
Calculate My Time Better
Since I’m not able to just pop chicken nuggets in the microwave at the drop of a hat, or zap yesterdays dinner in 90 seconds, I have to work on my time management. Planning ahead for meals is vital and actually helps me feel more accomplished and less scatterbrained. And truth be told… it still never takes longer than 10-20 minutes to cook or reheat something on the stove or in the oven. I always thought it would throw me off so badly time wise not to have a microwave but it really hasn’t for the most part!
Use My Cookware
I’m definitely making better use of my cookware. I never realized how little I use the wide variety I possess because I could throw so many things on a plate and into the microwave. I’m using a wider variety of skillets and pots and pans now since most everything is done on the stove. That makes me happy for some reason.
Enjoy My Food More
I’ve always known that reheating food in the microwave tends to be a recipe for scalding air pockets, tough and rubbery meat, and the lack of a crisp on much of anything. But for convenience sake I’ve carried on. Now that it hasn’t been an option, I’m enjoying evenly heated leftovers, sizzling, tender meat, and a renewed crisp on certain foods. (I can actually ENJOY leftover pancakes now reheated in the skillet, as if I’ve just made them, rather than chewing through floppy, rubberiness.)
Make Better Food Choices
Ok, so I’ve never really been into microwave dinners or tons of frozen foods, but I can see how the lack of a microwave could really force just about anyone to make better food choices. There’s a lot of junk that’s just made for the microwave and half the reason people eat it is for convenience sake rather than taste. If you have to spend a little more time cooking something anyway, for the lack of a microwave, it might be more tempting and even necessary to make better food choices.
Improve on Patience
I thought it would be torture to have to wait longer to cook or reheat my food, but honestly, it’s felt really good and helped me to see that faster isn’t always better. All good things to those who wait, right? Taking those few extra minutes has been a growth in patience and simply tastes worth it in the end.
All In All…
As of this moment, I am honestly very content without my microwave. I thought I would miss it desperately, but other than not being able to reheat my coffee (which is honestly not all that awesome anyway) or makes muffins in a mug (although I can still make big batches in a muffin tin if I just think ahead)… I don’t feel any worse off.
And unless my poor hubby decides it’s more than he can take… I might just keep on keepin’ on in this microwave-less existence for the time being.
And no… I don’t have any scriptures to share on this one.
I believe Christian liberty allows for both the love and use and the despising and disdain of the microwave. Or for people like me who are somewhere in the middle. (Romans 14 perhaps?)
Y’all relax… I know it’s not that serious.
I just wanted to share my experience in case anyone has thought about taking that scary but quite worth it microwave-less pilgrimage.
Much love!
My Family Freedom 