A lot of people view having to cook as a nuisance. In this article you will find suggestions to do that.
If you are cooking beans that have been previously dried, avoid adding spices, garlic and salt until they have become soft. Salt and garlic in particular can hinder softening while cooking, particularly if the beans had been sitting on the shelf for a long while. So instead, allow the beans to cook partially before you add the seasonings. Then you will get the desired texture.
Keep your spices and herbs in a dry, cool, dark place. Exposure to humidity, heat and light can cause your spices to lose their flavor fast. These areas are not good because the spices will get exposed to flavor losing elements.
Prepare to cook before you actually start cooking. Do not start cooking until the prep work is done. If you are cooking a complex dish, take some of the stress out of it by having your needed ingredients lined up and ready. Prepare your food in advance if you want to minimize the stress that you feel.
If you want to cook a pumpkin, cut it vertically in half. Place them on individual baking sheets, cut side down. Lightly sprinkle a bit of water over the pans, then bake the pumpkin for about one hour in an oven heated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Be careful to neither over-bake nor under-bake your cake! The times on the recipe are great as a guide for cooking, but factors like elevation and various oven temperatures can effect the actual cooking time of cakes. Sticking a toothpick in the center of the cake is a time proven test for doneness. If the toothpick has no batter on it, then the cake has finished baking. If it does have batter on it, then put the cake back in the oven.
Prepare your own stock to enjoy dishes that are more flavorful. Making it in huge quantities can allow you to store the leftover in some resealable bags in the freezer. Your yummy stock will be ready for you when you’re ready to create your next culinary treat or just make a simple soup. An enormous benefit of cooking your own soup stock or broth is that you know and control the ingredients in the stock.
To make a delicious beef stir-fry, slice your meat thinly and across the grain. This is rather difficult to do, and can take a lot of time. Take the meat out of the freezer when it is slightly frozen and cut at a forty five degree angle, do it across the meat’s grain.
Add cauliflower to your mashes potatoes to make this dish healthier and tastier. You will not even taste the cauliflower in with the potatoes, because it is so bland. It also mimics the texture and color of the potatoes almost perfectly letting you up your vegetable intake, and drop the calories, all the while giving the same delicious potato experience we all know and love.
If you have the time, always reheat oily dishes in the oven as opposed to the microwave. This will keep you from having a greasy mess. Microwaves heat food very quickly and very intensely. Oil tends to heat up the fastest, and it will separate from the rest of the food as it does so. Baking, though, provides an even, consistent heat, even if it is a little slower. This way, the ingredients and flavors of the food stick together.
As you’ve read, there are a variety of ways that cooking can be made fun and exciting, and not just a chore. Try following these tips and come up with new ideas on your own to start cooking meals you will enjoy more.