Do you drool enviously over the many attractive and tasty meals other people prepare? Do you wish you had the talent to offer your family these works of art? The following article can make anyone a better cook.
When making a dish that contains garlic, make sure you purchase the freshest garlic at the store. Fresh garlic tastes much sweeter than does garlic that is not fresh. Fresh garlic is not soft and shriveled nor does it have bruises.
Start preparing your meal a night in advance if you have a lot to do on the day you’re going to cook. Pre-assembling some lasagna or chopping up some vegetables ahead of time is a great way to quickly create a delicious homemade meal.
Add oil to the pan’s sides when cooking. Adding oil in this way allows the oil to heat before it reaches the food in the center of the pan. This will help to maximize the flavor of your food when you are done.
A cool, dark storage area will preserve your herbs freshness for the longest period of time. Light, heat, and humidity will cause their flavor to weaken. Most spices will retain their flavor for about a year. Whole spices can retain flavor for about three or five years. When stored properly, they will stay fresher longer.
Select potatoes with a thick skin if you are going to make twice baked potatoes. Red potatoes contain skins that are too thin to hold very much filling.
It can be very useful to think large when making your favorite chicken stock. Making more than you need in a large pot can allow you to have some left over to store in the freezer for later use. You can use that delicious chicken stock in stews, casseroles, and soups. Once your stock is cooked, let the leftovers reach room temperature, then portion them into freezer bags.
Leaving the bone in a roast will help if you have a limited amount of time. The heat will focus in the bone and cook the meat from the inside. Once the meat has finished cooking, remove the bone prior to serving.
Make sure that you never use a wine in your food that you would not normally drink. Wine that you don’t like or haven’t tried can ruin the way you feel about the food. You can find wines that are made primarily to cook with.
Homemade stock can add flavor to many dishes. You can cook it in large batches, pour the extra batches into plastic freezer bags, and then simply store them in the freezer. Then when you make a soup or other dish that calls for stock, you always have some right at your fingertips. If you prepare your own, homemade stock, you will be cutting out all of the preservatives of canned versions.
While garlic is a great addition to many dishes, it has the frustrating feature of rubbing off on your hands. After you work with garlic or any other type of ingredients that have a strong smell, rub your hands completely on stainless steel, like the inside of your sink. This handy trick cleanses your hands so the smell will not be transferred to what you are going to touch next.
People tend to use a lot of apples for cooking in the fall and winter months, but if they are stored incorrectly they will quickly spoil. To avoid rotting, store apples in open-mesh bags or baskets in a cool basement or in the produce drawer of your refrigerator. But remember that one bad apple really does spoil the bunch; check on them regularly.
Make use of the handy tips contained in this article. Your guests will begin to inquire where you learned your new secrets.