Although fats and sugar typically absorb energy less efficiently than water, paradoxically their temperatures rise faster and higher than water when cooking: Fats and oils require less energy delivered per gram of material to raise their temperature by 1 °C than does water (they have lower specific heat capacity) and they begin cooling off by "boiling" only after reaching a higher temperature than water (the temperature they require to vaporize is higher), so inside microwave ovens they normally reach higher temperatures – sometimes much higher. This can induce temperatures in oil or fatty foods like bacon far above the boiling point of water, and high enough to induce some browning reactions, much in the manner of conventional broiling (UK: grilling), braising, or deep fat frying.
Although fats and sugar typically absorb energy less efficiently than water, paradoxically their temperatures rise faster and higher than water when cooking: Fats and oils require less energy delivered per gram of material to raise their temperature by 1 °C than does water (they have lower specific heat capacity) and they begin cooling off by "boiling" only after reaching a higher temperature than water (the temperature they require to vaporize is higher), so inside microwave ovens they normally reach higher temperatures – sometimes much higher. This can induce temperatures in oil or fatty foods like bacon far above the boiling point of water, and high enough to induce some browning reactions, much in the manner of conventional broiling (UK: grilling) braising, or deep fat frying.