You can cook to eat, or you can cook as a hobby. We can all learn how to enjoy cooking if we know some of the good advice that makes it a pleasure and not a chore. This article will address a few ways that you can improve your cooking.
Keep butter or oil used to a minimum when sauteing. You may end up steaming your meal because of the water content of your vegetables. Saute at a lower temperature as well.
To make cooking less stressful, prep all of your ingredients ahead of time. Then you won’t ever be midway through preparing a meal when you realize that you’re missing an essential ingredient. It is actually quicker to prepare everything in advance than to try to locate items while you are in the midst of preparing a dish.
There are several different ways to warm tortillas. For the first method, set your oven’s temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. The tortilla is then placed directly on the oven rack until it reaches your desired crispness. Another way would be to use the top of your gas stove, then place the tortilla right on top of the grill over the flame. You’ll notice a fresher, more enjoyable tortilla than by just throwing them in the microwave.
To make a delicious beef stir-fry, slice your meat thinly and across the grain. This can be a very time consuming and somewhat difficult procedure. Retrieve the meat after it has firmed a bit, and cut thin slices across the grain, holding your knife at a 45-degree angle to the cutting board.
For an improvement to your pasta sauce, save some of the water used to cook the pasta. Save about one-fourth of a cup of water after draining the pasta. While mixing the sauce and pasta, add the pasta water into the mix. Starches present in the retained water can contribute to a creamier sauce when combined.
It is not always easy to remember the proper grilling times for all meats. A meat thermometer can give you a precise temperature, reassuring you that the meat is fully cooked. Try grilling with the lid on if your pieces of meat are particularly thick to lower the cooking time.
You may have felt regret when you threw away a moldy orange or lemon. Should you save fruits by cutting out moldy parts? Sadly, there is really no safe method for using fruit that is partially rotten. Mold goes a lot deeper than you see and it can make you ill.
Prepping for the following night’s dinner before you head to bed can save you a ton of time when life is busier enough to make cooking more difficult. If you chop your vegetables or put together a casserole before hand, you will be saving yourself a lot of time and effort and still make a great meal.
If your recipe calls for a liquid, try using something other than water or milk. This will add a spark to that tired old dish. Substitute plain water with juice, broth, or the water that you cooked your vegetables in. Buttermilk, yogurt and sour cream can be great substitutes for milk. Varying the liquids that are in your recipes is an excellent method of adding nutrition and variety to a dish.
Good cooking goes beyond the basic practice of plopping meals on a waiting table. Experimenting with new recipes can be an adventure and a delight to the taste buds. Occasionally, things may not turn out the way you had hoped, but hopefully this article will limit the frequency of those occurrences. To attain culinary success, follow these tips in the kitchen.