Everyone can prepare basic dishes, but great cooking requires training. This article offers a variety of useful tips and tricks for becoming a better cook. It is important to have confidence when it comes to your kitchen, cookbooks and the ingredients that go into the meals that you will be preparing. Cooking can be fun and a source of great joy. Use these tips and don’t be scared to experiment in your kitchen every now and then.
If you need to warm up leftovers that are oily but don’t want to contend with the greasy mess, try baking them in the oven instead of popping them in the microwave. Because oil heats the quickest, the concentrated heat of the microwave can cause the oil to separate from other ingredients of the dish. Baking produces a more even and consistent heat that can better keep flavors and ingredients together.
Always bake your crusts a little longer than is absolutely necessary. Judge their color, not the time in the oven to determine if they are done. They will be golden brown when cooked. This golden color means that the sugar used in the crust has caramelized, giving the crust a crisp and sweet flavor.
For an improvement to your pasta sauce, save some of the water used to cook the pasta. Set aside approximately one-fourth cup. The water should be added to the sauce and pasta mixture. The combination of water and the starch from the pasta will give your sauce body and creaminess.
Put citrus fruits in the microwave first to get the most out of juicing. Microwave any medium sized citrus fruits for about ten seconds. Take the fruit out of the microwave and roll it on the counter to break the citrus cells inside, before cutting and juicing.
When you are making pasta you need to be sure to add a liberal amount of salt to the water. This will allow the pasta to take on the seasoning more efficiently. If you try to salt the pasta after it is already cooked it will not hold the seasoning as well.
You need butter that is soft, but still solid, when you want to cream it with sugar to make cookies. If your butter melts completely, then put it back in the fridge to let it solidify again. You can also refrigerate the resulting dough. Dough that has cooled a bit will spread less in the oven.
Try to cut the cinnamon rolls nice and easy. It can be quite a challenge to cut your roll into beautiful slices. You can cut the dough easily by placing a piece of thread right under the spot where you wish to cut the roll. Pull the ends of the string up around the roll, crossing them once over the top of the roll, and then pull both strings outward. This will help you get the perfect slices for your cinnamon rolls.
Incorporate different colors into the the dishes you make. Eating meals that have some extra color is not only better for you, but they also attract your eyes. A range of vibrant garnishments exists that you can use, from carrot curls to parsley. By being creative with the colors you use, you’ll notice that people will be rushing to eat them.
Cooking doesn’t need to be scary. Making your own food can save money, improve your health and nutrition, and still be 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. Celebrate your accomplishment and stick with cooking at home!