I happened to stumble on an article the other day, explaining how we are probably using the microwave wrong, simply by putting things in the center to heat.
Putting food in the center of the microwave makes sense for most of us. Most microwaves have turntables that rotate the food for better heat distribution, but it doesn’t always seem to work. And no one likes food that will burn your face off in one spot, but is still frozen in a nearby spot.
Differences in density within the food could be one cause. Another cause is that microwaves can bump into each other and sometimes cause dead zones inside the machine. So this article suggests that to avoid uneven heating, food should actually be put off center. Like, off to one edge of the turntable. That way, it moves to different areas of the oven as it rotates and heats more evenly.
It was a Tik-Tok video that brought this up. But should we really trust a random guy on Tik-Tok? Some food scientist are saying maybe we should. The theory is actually pretty sound.
While uneven heating can also be avoided by stirring what you are trying to heat occasionally during the process, not all foods are built for that. No one wants to open a Hot Pocket or something similar, stir the insides, then put it back in the microwave. That would just be a bit too messy. But putting it off center, like out to one edge of the turntable, could make it heat more evenly, basically by spreading any dead spots within the microwave around as the food moves. Although it may still burn your lips off.
I haven’t had a chance to test this, but I plan too. Just to see if it does work.