What utensil (material) to use in Convection + Grill mode of Microwave Oven?

Question

My Microwave Oven (Samsung DE68-03387M) has three modes: Microwave, Convection and Grill. It has various combinations of those.

There is a Pre-heat option which uses Convection and Grill modes simultaneously. It has maximum temperature of 250 degrees centigrade.

Now, I have, at home, only Microwave Safe plastic bowls and a Baking Tray/Pan {Maybe aluminum? Some kind of non-stick color.}.

I want to make this recipe: Mac and Cheese. Where I have to bake the dish (Picture point number 34). My mother generally uses Microwave + Convection mode and Microwave safe plastic to bake the cakes. Since, it says preheat(see above), I'm concerned that the grill will melt plastic? Is this possible?

I don't want to just Microwave + Convection because it will not brown the cheese on the dish.

I saw somewhere that Borosil glass is fine but doesn't let enough infrared (convection) heat pass through. Is metal allowed in Microwave + Convection mode?

Answer 1

Preheat should be done with an empty oven, afaik. And indeed, a grill isn't nice to plastic; and I avoid plastic also when using the convection mode (alone or with microwave): where the plastic touches the food, the temperature will be limited by the water in the food, but if the plastic is not in contact with the food, it'll go to the temperature of the oven.

Convection heating is through air circulation, so IR plays only a very limited role there. Borosilicate glass is however a poor conductor of heat, compared to metal. That means that a borosilicate tray will show more browning on top when the interior is cooked. But it is perfectly usuable in a convection/microwave oven. And you can always give it a few minutes with just the grill to brown the top a bit more.

As for the use of metal in yor microwave oven, check the manual. It might be possible with limitations.