Not everyone knows how to cook, but everyone eats! You’ll find advice on how to create memorable meals in the article below. Do not be afraid of your recipes, kitchen, or ingredients. Once you become more comfortable and confident in the kitchen, you may find that you love to cook. Now discover a few great tips that will have you feeling confident in the kitchen in time for dinner!
It is important to have sharp knives when cooking. It is difficult to cut ingredients using dull knives and they are also dangerous to use as well. You’re less likely to cut yourself chopping up a vegetable with the clean, fast strokes of a sharp knife, than when you are forcing and wiggling a dull knife.
To create low-fat soups or stews, start with fat-free broth or stock. The goal is to make the soup as low fat as possible, so lean meat and masses of vegetables are next to go into the pot. Once it is complete, cool the soup in the refrigerator before eating it. As it cools, the fat will rise to the top. Once this happens you can easily remove the fat that has hardened and discard. The calorie savings is around 100 per tablespoon you remove.
Your spices and cooking herbs will last longer if stored in a dry, cool, and dark place. Your spices can become less spicy if you expose them to humidity, heat, or light. This just exposes them to the elements and degrades their flavors.
When you are sauteing a food, make sure you do not add too much to the pan. It will add too much moisture, which steams the food and doesn’t allow it to saute or get crispy. Always saute over a low flame or low setting on your stove-top.
Microwave citrus fruits before juicing to get their maximum yield. Take your lemon, orange, or other fruits and heat it up in the microwave for ten seconds. Take it out of the microwave and roll it across a surface, and then proceed to cut and juice it.
Save time and stress with night-before preparation of ingredients whenever possible. You can chop and prepare meats and vegetables for fajitas or refrigerate a casserole the night before. When you get home tired and weary, you can pop a great meal in the oven and still make your family happy!
Get out the cooking oil when measuring sticky foods. Just coat your measuring spoon with an oil that has a very mild flavor (Canola is a good option). When you use that spoon to pick up the sticky substance, it will slip off the spoon, and into your mixing bowl, with ease. This will work great for things like peanut butter and honey also.
Keep sauce easily by filling an ice tray with the leftovers and freezing it. When you need sauce for another meal, you already have individual portions, ready to grab and reheat in a pan. Do not worry, the sauce will still be edible after it has been in the ice cube trays!
Take extra fat out of soup or stew. You can remove excess fat from soups and stews by skimming it off the top of cooled dishes. Then just collect the fat by rubbing an ice cube, resting on a spoon, along the surface. Fat sticks to ice, so this will gather it right up. If you don’t like this method, you can also blot the fat using a paper towel.
Cooking is not the boogeyman. Making your own home-cooked meals can be healthier, more nutritious and cost-effective, as well. It is also lots of fun! Take the tips that you have learned in this article for a better way to shop, prepare meals, and then ultimately to a nice dish on your plate. Cheers to home cooking and enjoy your meal!