Abstract:
A method for safe and uniform microwave cooking of food articles in a container, comprising providing a microwave permeable container, wherein a portion of said container is covered with a microwave reflective surface to deflect microwaves away from a predefined body of liquid within said container; loading bacon within said container; and exposing said container to microwaves for a predetermined time period.

Description:
This is a divisional application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/822,690 filed Apr. 13, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,005,621 which is a continuation-in-part application of U.S. Ser. No. 10/405,361, filed Apr. 3, 2003 now abandoned. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for cooking bacon or the like in a microwave oven. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Uncooked strips of bacon can be prepared for eating by frying bacon in a skillet or by cooking the bacon in a microwave oven. Microwave cooking is often preferred due to the shorter time necessary to cook the bacon. Various microwave bacon cooker devices are known for holding the bacon during cooking, including those shown by U.S. Pat. Nos. D318,206; D366,807; 4,075,102; 4,112,883; 4,214,515; 4,343,978; 4,924,049; 4,933,528 and 6,211,502. 
     A plethora of concerns and problems arise when cooking bacon in a microwave oven. The grease produced during cooking is both messy and hot, and must be retained for disposal. Bacon that is allowed to cook on a horizontal surface will often become soaked with grease, rendering the food unpalatable. In the case of a cooking device that holds the bacon, it is desirable that the device be easy to manufacture and ease to use, while at the same time allowing for aesthetically pleasing, properly cooked, and good tasting bacon. Also, the issue of cleanup is a major concern. Ideally, because of the possibility of splattering grease generated during the cooking of the bacon, it would be beneficial to cook the bacon in a closed container. 
     While U.S. Pat. No. 6,211,502 to Hechler provides a bacon cooker that adequately solves many of the problems associated with the prior art, it is still subject to several disadvantageous limitations relating to the products performance, safety, and ease of use. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A primary object of the present invention is to provide a novel and improved apparatus for cooking bacon or other similar food strips in a microwave oven while minimizing the problems associated with conventional apparatus and methods for cooking bacon. 
     A further object of the present invention is to provide a novel and improved apparatus for cooking bacon or the like in a microwave oven while preventing the mess associated with conventional apparatus and methods for cooking bacon. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel and improved apparatus for cooking bacon or the like in a microwave oven while decreasing the risk of injury associated with conventional apparatus and methods for cooking bacon. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved bacon cooker having a cover unit for closing the open end of a microwave permeable container. The container is provided with an annular rim at the open end, and the cover includes improved cam locks that engage and force the rim against the cover. 
     Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a novel and improved bacon cooker having a cover for engaging and closing the open end of a container. The cover is provided with a steam vent formed by an elongate, open ended shaft which defines a vent passage of constricted cross section to prevent liquid fat from exiting through the steam vent. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel and improved bacon cooker having a cover for engaging and closing the open end of a container. 
     A still further object of the present invention is to provide a novel and improved bacon cooker having a cover unit, a microwave permeable container, and a rack for holding bacon. The rack includes radially spaced outward extending vanes over which bacon is hung for cooking and is dimensioned to fit inside the microwave permeable container. The rack further includes an upwardly extending shaft with radially extending projections fitted to engage and secure the cover unit. 
     Yet a further object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved bacon cooker having a cover unit including an improved handle for safe and easy handling and compact storage of the cover unit. 
     A further object of the present invention is to provide a novel and improved bacon cooker including an inner and outer container with a thin microwave reflecting surface, e.g. aluminum foil, positioned therebetween. 
     Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide a novel and improved bacon cooker that is capable of preparing uniformly cooked and palatable bacon. 
     These and other objects of the present invention are achieved by providing a microwave permeable lid, a microwave permeable container, and a microwave permeable rack dimensioned to fit inside the container. The container has an open end with an annularly extending, laterally projecting rim. The cover unit releasably attaches to the container by cam locks and includes a centrally-located bore with laterally extending protrusions from the inside portion of the cover unit defining the bore. A plurality of radially vanes are affixed to the rack. The vanes contain an upwardly extending portion dimensioned to fit within the centrally located bore in the lid. In a preferred embodiment, the apparatus includes an inner and an outer container with a thin reflective surface positioned therebetween. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a side view of the assembled bacon cooker  10  of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  the side view of the container  100 ; 
         FIGS. 3A and 3B  is a plan view and a side view, respectively, of the rack  200 ; 
         FIGS. 4A-4E  is a side of the lid  200 , a plan view of the lid  300 , and a side view of the lid handle  322 , a side view of the alignment tabs  323 , and a partial cross-section of the clasp  342  engaging the peripheral rim  314 , respectively; and 
         FIG. 5  is a side view of the bacon cooker  20  of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring now to  FIG. 1 , the bacon cooker indicated generally at  10  consists of a container  100  (illustrated as being transparent), a rack  200 , and a lid  300  formed to cooperate with a rimmed, disposable microwavable permeable container. As shown in  FIG. 2 , container  100  has a bottom wall  110  and a sidewall  120  terminating at an open end  130  defined by an annular, laterally projecting rim  140  of the type found on many conventional containers. Ideally, container  100 , rack  200  and lid  300  are made of low cost plastic which retains stiffness and strength at elevated temperatures involved in microwaving bacon is capable of retaining hot grease. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 3A-3B , rack  200  consists of a plurality, preferably six, radially extending vanes  210  over which bacon is hung for cooking. Vanes  210  are joined at a common center  220  and are dimensioned to fit within container  100 . A bayonet-like stem  230 , formed from upwardly extending vane projections  240 , extends upwardly from center  220  of the rack  200 . At least one, but preferably three of vane projections  240  have laterally extending tabs  250 , such that the upper portion of the at least one vane projections  240  is wider than the lower portion thereof. A support disc  260  is positioned under tabs  250  on the lower portion of stem  230  to maintain proper spacing between rack  200  and lid  300  when the bacon cooker  10  is assembled. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 4A-4E , lid  300  has a top wall  310  connected to an outer sidewall  312  having a peripheral rim  314 . Extending downward from the underside of top wall  310  is an inner side wall  316 , so as to form a container rim receiving compartment  318  extending annularly around top wall  310 . Rim  140  of a container  100  is inserted into rim receiving compartment  318  until it engages the underside of top wall  310 . Rim receiving compartment  318  can be made large enough to receive containers having open ends of different diameters. Top wall  310  is provided with a central bore  319  of sufficient diameter to receive and engage stem  230 . A bore wall  321  (shown by dashed lines in  FIG. 4A ) extends downwardly from the underside of top wall  310  to define central bore  319 . Extending laterally from the bottommost portion of bore wall  321  into central bore  319  are a alignment tabs  323  spaced so as to define at least one, but preferably three slots  325  dimensioned to receive laterally extending tabs  250  on stem  230  of rack  200 . The top surface of alignment tabs  323  include a plurality of teeth  327 , preferably two, the inside edges of which are sloped downwards so as to form groove  329 , as shown in  FIG. 4D . Rack  200  can be secured to lid  300  in a bayonet-like fashion prior to inserting rack  200  into container  100  by fully inserting tabs  250  into slots  325  and rotating the lid such that the bottom of tabs  250  are aligned with grooves  329  in alignment tabs  323 . The downwardly sloping edges of teeth  327  are operative to direct tabs  250  into slots  325  in the event that tabs  250  are not perfectly aligned with grooves  329 . Slots  325  are of sufficient size to vent steam from the bacon cooker  10  during microwave cooking while preventing significant passage of grease from the container. The top wall  310  of lid  300  preferably includes a plurality of raised dots  313  vertically aligned with grooves  329 , to facilitate the tactile location of grooves  329  and assist site impaired persons, for example, in properly positioning lid  200  onto container  100 . 
     It is important for the container  100  to be firmly attached to the lid  300  during the microwave cooking process. If, for example, the cover unit should become detached, the hot contents of the bacon cooker will forcefully splatter out of open end  130 . To removably secure a container in place, lid  300  is provided with two or more cam locks  320  which engage the underside of container rim  140  when the cam locks lock in place, as shown in  FIGS. 4A-4C . In a preferred embodiment, a first cam lock  315  is mounted in handle  322 . Handle  322  preferably consists of a neck  324  and a grasping arm  326 . Neck  324  consists of a neck top wall  328  that is coextensive with lid top wall  310  and which joins downwardly extending neck sidewalls  330  and  332 . Grasping arm  326  joins the distal end of neck top wall  328  relative to lid top wall  310  and extends downwardly from neck  324 . Thus, when lid  300  is attached to container  100 , container sidewall  120  and grasping arm  326  are substantially parallel to one another. Neck  324  preferably extends a distance laterally from lid top wall  310  such that one&#39;s hands do not touch any portion of container  100  when handling grasping arm  326  of handle  322 . The downward configuration of grasping arm  326  allows for easy handling and storage of the bacon cooker  10 . 
     A second cam lock  320  is mounted in a lock mount  330  which extends laterally from lid outer sidewall  312 . This lock mount is positioned opposite to the handle  322  and includes a top wall  311  which is coextensive with lid top wall  310  and which joins downwardly extending, lock mount sidewalls  334  and  336 . 
     The construction of cam locks  315  and  320  are identical. Each cam lock includes a pivot pin  338  mounted for pivotal movement. The pivot pin for first cam lock  315  extends between the handle sidewalls  330  and  332  and rotatably rests therein. The pivot pin  338  for the second cam lock  320  extends between lock mount sidewalls  334  and  336  and is also rotatably rests therein. For convenience, the functionality of only one cam lock is discussed in detail below. It should be recognized, however, that the discussion as it relates to one cam lock applies equally to other cam locks. The cam locks preferably consist of two laterally projecting arms  301  which, when in the locked position, engage the underside of container rim  140 . When container  100  is exposed to microwaves, the elasticity of the upper portion of side wall  120  of container  100  may increase. Thus, to ensure that arms  301  remain securely engaged to the underside of container rim  140 , arms  301  are preferably of such length to firmly force the upper portion of side wall  120  against inner side wall  316  of lid  300 . The spacing of lid outer sidewall  312 , lid inner sidewall  316 , and container sidewall  120  permits the elliptical distortion of container sidewall  120  when arms  301  are moved into the locking position, and provides instant, non-friction release of lid  300  from container  100  when the cam locks are unlocked. 
     An inwardly inclined actuator lever arm  340  is connected to one end of the pivot pin  338  to rotate the pivot pin and to lock the cam lock. The lever arm  340  is angled to frictionally engage the lid outer sidewall  314  when the cam section  346  has been pivoted thereby into engagement with the underside of container rim  140 . In a preferred embodiment, a clasp  342  is positioned at the end of lever arm  340  and is dimensioned to snap over peripheral rim  344  on the outer sidewall  314  of lid  300  in order to secure lid  300  onto container  100 . Clasp  342  can thus be engaged to secure lid  300  to the container  100  by simply pushing actuator lever arm  340  to position A, as shown in  FIG. 4B  until clasp  342  snaps onto peripheral rim  344 . To unlock the lid from the container, lever arm  340  is forced downwardly against the incline edge of outer sidewall to cause the pivot pin  338  to pivot cam section  346  downwardly to a vertical position where lever arm  340  will be positioned at B in  FIG. 4B . Handle neck sidewalls  330  and  332  and lock mount sidewalls  334  and  336  each include a slot  339  through which pivot pin  338  can be removed when lever arm  340  is in position C, shown in  FIG. 4B . Slot  339  contains a circular-shaped portion dimensioned to receive pivot pin  338  and a rectangular portion dimensioned to allow the passage of the cam locks therethrough, when pivot pin  338  and cam lock  315  are positioned 180° degrees relative to position A. The end of pivot pin  338 , located distally from clasp  342  is slightly larger in diameter than slot  339 , such that a slight degree of force is required to insert and remove pivot pin  338 . This prevents the unintentional detachment from lid  300 . Pivot pin  338  also includes a stop ring  317  of a diameter larger than slot  339  and which is positioned circumferentially around pivot pin  338 . Stop pin  317  abuts against neck  324  to maintain pivot pin  338  in proper position. 
     By pushing downwards on lever arm  340 , clasp  342  can be disengaged from peripheral rim  344 . Thus, to lock and unlock lid  300  onto container  100 , lever arm  340  is simply pushed upwards and downwards, respectively. As illustrated in  FIG. 4E , a top portion of clasp  342  includes an inwardly sloping face  341  having an angle of approximately 45° relative to outer side wall  312  when clamped onto outer rim  344 . When lever arm  340  is pushed upwardly into the locked position, inwardly sloping face  341  of clasp  342  rubs against rim  344  forcing clasp  344  outward such that clasp  342  can be positioned over rim  344  without having to pull laterally on lever arm  340 . Clasp  342  also includes an outwardly sloping face  343  having an angle of approximately 30° relative to outer side wall  312 , that engages the upper portion of rim  344  when lever arm  340  is in the locked position. The bottommost edge  345  of clasp  342  extends under rim  344 . The arrangement of inwardly sloping face  341 , outwardly sloping face  343 , and bottom edge  345  of clasp  342  creates a recess on the inside edge of clasp  342  for receiving rim  344  and creating an interference fit. The interference fit is tight enough to prevent the inadvertent disengagement of clasp  342  from rim  344  under normal usage, but large enough to permit disengagement to quickly relieve internal pressure if the internal pressure within container  100  becomes extraordinarily high. 
     The apparatus of the present invention allows for the quick, clean, and safe microwave cooking of bacon and other food items. Bacon is hung over vanes  210  of rack  200 . The number of bacon strips accommodated by rack  200  primarily depends on the width of vanes  210  and the number of bacon strips loaded onto vanes  210 . Obviously, when using wider bacon strip, a lesser number of strips fit on any one vane. Once the bacon is loaded onto rack  200 , lid  300  is placed onto rack  200  by inserting stem  230  of rack  200  through central opening  319  such that tabs  250  on vane projections  240  are aligned with and inserted into slots  325  defined by the alignment tabs  323  extending from bore wall  321  until the underside of alignment tabs  323  engages support disc  260 . Lid  200  is then rotated to align vane projections  240  with grooves  329 . Then lid  200 , with rack  200  attached, is placed into container  100 . Once lid  100  is properly in place, lever arms  340  are pushed upwards such that clasps  342  securely snap onto peripheral rim  314  on the outside wall  312  of lid  300 . With lid  300  securely fastened to container  100 , bacon cooker  10  is then placed into a microwave oven and the bacon is cooked for a predetermined length of time. 
     Only by using a closed, covered cooking unit that safely contains grease splatter can bacon be effectively cooked in a microwave without having bacon grease soil the surfaces of the microwave. However, when bacon is microwaved in an enclosed cooker without a ventilating means, steam generated during cooking becomes so pressurized that the cooker can explode, thereby spilling the hot contents of the cooker and potentially causing serious injury. All animal fats are composed of glyceryl esters of fatty acids, and as they cook, they release water in the form of steam via a process known as effervescence. As bacon cooks, the fat that drips from the bacon collects as liquid fat at the bottom on an enclosed cooker to form a liquid mixture. The steam that effervesces from the bacon could build up pressure that could forcefully blow up an enclosed cooker. Even ventilation of steam through central opening  319  of lid  300 , does not completely ensure that lid  300  will remain attached to container  100  during the cooking of bacon. Although most of the steam that effervesces from the bacon will be vented through central opening  319 , some will condense on the cooler sides of container  100  as droplets which run down into the hot grease collected at the bottom of the container. The water that collects below the liquid bacon fat, is superheated due to the weight of the liquid bacon fat above it. The water gets even hotter as the layer of liquid fat gets thicker. The application of continued microwaves heats this water and converts it back to steam. When the steam rises upwards from the bottom of container  100  it tends to erupt through the surface of the liquid bacon fat, and if forceful enough, can blow lid  300  off container  100 . 
     As long as water is present, the temperature of the liquefied fat cannot exceed the boiling point of water, which at sea level is 212° F. As the cooking continues, a point is reached when the water generated by the effervescence becomes insufficient to replenish the water lost through boiling from the bottom of container  100 . Absent freely available water, the temperature of the aforementioned mixture, consisting primarily of sloughed-off bacon particles, liquefied bacon fat, sloughed-off bacon particles, molecularly locked-up water, and higher level nitrogenous organic compounds which accumulates at the bottom of bacon cooker rises significantly. If cooking continues absent a sufficient amount of freely available water, the temperature of this mixture can exceed 300° F., which depending on the material of which container  100  is composed, could cause the bottom portion of the container  100  to melt and the mixture to spill. It is desirable, therefore, to reduce the rate by which water is lost through boiling, such that the water generated by the effervescence remains sufficient to replenish water at the bottom of the container. Unfortunately, the simple addition of a predetermined amount of water to the container to accommodate for the water loss from the container  100  collected through effervescence results in the microwaves being attracted to the added water, rather than the bacon. This disadvantageously prolongs the cooking time and reducing the available crispiness of the bacon. 
     To overcome these problems, the present invention provides, in another embodiment, a bacon cooker  20 , as shown in  FIG. 5 . Bacon cooker  20  preferably contains the aforementioned components and features of bacon cooker  10  described above, and shown in  FIGS. 1-4 , but in addition includes an outer cup  400  applied to the lower portion of container  100 . Cup  400  is preferably composed of the same material as container  100 , to facilitate the synchronous expansion and contraction of cup  400  and container  100 . Cup  400  has a small air vent hole (not shown) on its bottom side. A thin microwave reflective surface, (e.g., preferably ordinary household aluminum foil having a dull side and a shiny side), is positioned between cup  400  and  100 , with the shiny side abutting the outside surface of container  100 . The reflective surface preferably covers only the bottom surface of container  100 . Alternatively, however, the reflective surface may extend from the bottom of container wall  110  of container  100  upwards to cover a portion of container sidewall  120 , so as to form a cup. The reflective surface, however, preferably only extends up sidewall  120  far enough such that the cup created is only deep enough to hold the maximum amount of water-free mixture generated by the cooking of the maximum number of bacon strips. In any event, the reflective surface should not extend so far up sidewall  120  such that the cooking uniformity of the bacon is compromised. Should the temperature of the liquid mixture for any reason rise high enough to melt the bottom of container  100 , the cup formed from the reflective surface will capture the hot liquid mixture, protecting the user from serious burns. 
     In the microwave bacon cooking process, omni directional microwaves pass through container  100 , and its components and contents. In the absence of a reflective layer, the microwaves continue unimpeded and exit container  100 . However, where as in accordance with the present embodiment, a reflective layer is applied to the outside of container  100 , microwaves impinge upon the shiny surface of the foil and are omni directionally reflected back through the interior of container  100 . This process occurs continuously during the cooking process. 
     The embodiments of the invention shown and described herein are solely for exemplary purposes only and in no way limit the scope of the present invention.