The Easy Test That Determines If Your Glass Jar Is Microwave Safe (It Takes One Minute)

Anyone with a microwave has at least once found themselves standing in front of the machine, wondering whether the container full of leftovers that they're holding is safe to go in. If only there was an easy way to check whether containers are microwave-safe? Well, with one clever technique, you can easily check whether a glass jar is microwave safe or not. All it takes is one short minute, and you can finally have the answers you've been looking for.

If you're wondering whether you can safely put glass in the microwave, use the water test. The idea for this clever hack is to fill another container with water (one you know for a fact is microwave-safe) and place it next to your mystery glass jar in the microwave. After running this setup for a minute in the microwave, you'll be able to tell if your glass jar is microwave safe simply by touching it. If it's cold, it's safe, and if it's hot, it's not.

Determining whether a glass jar is safe to use in the microwave is important. Using the wrong glass containers can cause them to break, leaving you with a mess to deal with, glass shards in your food, and one less container in your collection. Before you do the water test, check if the container has a "microwave safe" label or symbol on it. These are typically found at the bottom of the glass and can look one of a few ways: a wave symbol, or a dish with some wavy lines above it. Some have a simple label that reads "microwave safe" or the letters "MW," which stand for the same thing. In some cases, there is a temperature rating to indicate how hot you can heat up the dish in a microwave.

To do the water test, you'll need one microwave-safe cup or jar to use. For this, look for something that has a microwave-safe label on it, though it doesn't need to be glass. Fill this microwave-safe cup with some cold water, and place it inside the microwave. Place the other glass jar (the one you're testing) next to it inside the microwave, empty, and close the door. Turn on the microwave and let it run for one minute, not more.

After that minute is over, it's time to test. Carefully check the temperature of both the water and the glass jar you're testing. If the water is warm but the glass is only slightly warm, or even cool, then you can go ahead and mark this as microwave-safe. If the empty jar is hot, then you should avoid using it in the microwave. Using the wrong containers is a mistake everyone makes with their microwave, but it's really that easy to fix.

This test will help you tell if your glass jar is resistant to heat in the microwave because of simple science. On its own, microwave-safe glass doesn't heat up because it doesn't have a reaction to the radiation that the machine emits to heat up food. This is exactly why an empty glass jar should be cool if it's microwave-safe. The water, on the other hand, absorbs some of the radiation, which slows the rate of heating of the glass, reducing the chances of breakage if the experiment fails. As it heats up, the water can transfer heat over to the glass, which is why the water-filled jar will be warm to the touch, even if it's microwave-safe.