You Can Microwave A Frozen Pizza, But It Will Likely Be A Disaster

Microwaves are truly an incredible invention. With just the press of a button, anyone can whip up a delicious hot meal or breathe new life into their leftovers. As versatile as microwave ovens are, though, some foods come out of them less appetizing than others. One good example is frozen pizza. It can be reheated just fine, but microwaving the meal to cook it in the first place is a different story.

When you try to make a frozen pizza in the microwave, even if you're working with the best frozen pizza brands on the market, the results could easily be an unevenly cooked mess of burnt cheese and cold crust. If you've tried plenty of times but still can't make it work, don't worry, it's not strictly anything you're doing. Pizzas just aren't designed to be cooked in the microwave. Microwaves are infamous for not cooking food evenly, and while there are tips to avoid cold spots and similar microwave mishaps in some sorts of food, in the case of foods like frozen pizza, the problem becomes even more prevalent.

The main reason frozen pizzas don't cook well in the microwave is because microwaves work by exciting moisture within the food, heating water molecules up using electromagnetic waves called ... microwaves, of course. Different foods have different moisture levels, which means that some ingredients in your pizza can heat up and cook faster than others. Another issue is that microwaves don't distribute evenly across the entire appliance, so certain areas of the box get more heat than others.

If you're determined to microwave your frozen pizza, you can help it cook more evenly. First, remove any toppings. They'll potentially heat too quickly and burn by the time the rest of the pie is finished. Cook and add them separately afterwards. Second, lay your pizza flat in one layer. If your pizza is too big and won't fit, it might be tempting to cut it in half and stack it, but resist the urge. Not only will such a step make the pizza cook unevenly, it'll also likely cause the halves to stick together.

How long you need to cook your pizza depends in part on its thickness. Different frozen pizza brands are all over the place here, with some being thick and soft and others thin and crispy. On average, set the microwave for four to six minutes on high, or five to seven minutes for exceptionally hefty pizzas. If the cheese isn't melted by then, continue heating in 30-second intervals until it has.

If you're microwaving something tricky like frozen pizza, you may wish to bring a glass of water to the proceedings. The water will increase the humidity inside the microwave and help your food cook more evenly. Fitting the glass in alongside an entire pizza might be tricky (and please be cautious around a glass of potentially very hot water), but a properly cooked meal is worth the effort if you can make it work.