When you have gotten the hang of a few basic techniques, cooking can be very enjoyable. This article will help you to improve your confidence in the kitchen, and will start you off on your journey towards becoming an award-worthy chef with exceptional culinary skills. Once you feel this way, you can start having fun.
Do some research about fruits or vegetables you have never cooked with before. You might be surprised of the possibilities you will learn about for food. If you educate yourself on the potentials of a new food, you’ll have a lot more fun using it.
You can chop fresh herbs quickly by bundling them together in bunches and cutting them with scissors. The herbs can be fluffier, lighter, and drier than if you just chopped them.
Hot Milk
Hot milk can transform your mashed potato recipe. Simply add this hot milk to your potatoes prior to mashing. This causes the potatoes to become lighter and fluffier, compared to using cold milk. They’ll be so much better than lumpy, heavy mashed potatoes.
Make a habit of washing your dishes as you use them when you cook. Keep soapy water on one side of the sink and use the other side to rinse your dishes. If you wash while you are cooking, the dishes and pots will be easier to scrub and you will save time on cleaning up after dinner. Plus, they will be immediately available to use again.
When you are purchasing ingredients to make something read your labels. This will help you avoid unhealthy ingredients. You want to make sure that the product is not too high in sugars or in sodium as both can cause extreme health problems if over consumed.
Prep a fruit for juicing by microwaving it first. Heat your fruits in the microwave for just ten seconds or so. Take it out of the microwave and roll it across a surface, and then proceed to cut and juice it.
A good tip when using cooking oil is to put some on the sides of the pan while cooking. This way, it will already be hot when it gets near the food. This will make your food more flavorful when it is ready to serve.
Give pre-cut, raw potatoes a cold water bath for a half-hour prior to frying for crispier French fries. When you soak sliced potatoes in cold water, it strengthens their fibers, so that they can stand up to the heat when being deep fried.
Moldy Fruit
Did you ever regret throwing moldy fruit away? Should you save the moldy fruit and cut away the bad parts? Unfortunately, there isn’t any way to save fruit that has begun to rot. Discard the fruit, because the mold penetrated deeper than can be seen with the naked eye, and moldy foods can cause some people to experience health problems.
When cooking a meal for someone important, don’t attempt a new recipe–even if you want to impress and cook a fancy meal. Your date, boss or family will be impressed with your cooking if you prepare something great, not if you try a complicated recipe you are not mastering. Please them by cooking a recipe you are familiar with, and can cook very well.
Allow meals to rest before serving. It is often overlooked, but it makes a difference when you let the food sit and allow the flavors to be absorbed. It is very tempting to serve the meal from grill to tabletop. If you do this, you’ll miss out on the meat’s full flavor. Let your meal sit and cool off for a couple minutes before serving.
Try drying your own fresh tomatoes. You can do this by slicing your tomatoes about a half an inch thick, or Romas in half. Place cut side up on a clean cooling rack and salt lightly. Put a cookie sheet under the rack and place in the oven for ten hours at 190 degrees. They can then be stored in plastic freezer bags in your freezer. You can store dried tomatoes in an olive oil filled jar. Add fresh herbs for seasoning. When refrigerated, they will last a minimum of two weeks.
Stacking Cooling
Consider purchasing a stacking cooling rack. If you are making a large amount of cookies or baked items, laying them out to cool will take over your kitchen. In order to maximize counter space, get some stacking cooling racks instead. Using vertical space will allow you to have open space in your kitchen while the cookies are cooling.
If you are sauteing, don’t use too much liquid in the pan. Too much food adds extra moisture and will lead to a steaming effect that will defeat the purpose of sauteing, which is to create a little crispness in the food. Be sure that you do this when the temperature is low too.
For a homemade soup that is very low in fat, use fat-free stock or broth as your base. Use plenty of vegetables as well as lean meat to keep the fat content low in the soup. As soon as the soup is done cooking, put it in the refrigerator to chill. Once cooled, the fat will separate out at the top of the soup. Use a spoon to carefully scoop out this layer of hardened fat and throw it away. You will save approximately 100 calories for each tablespoon removed.
Keep your spices and herbs stored in a dark, dry, and cool area. Exposure to light, humidity, and heat can make your spices lose their flavors quickly. This puts the spices in a position to quickly degrade.
Hold off on using too many spices until your meal is served. You can use garlic powder, cayenne, or salt and pepper for seasonings. Many people like different things in terms of spices. Do not spice the meal until after its cooked so that your guests can customize the taste of the meal. This way, everyone can make the dish truly theirs.
Cooking skills can really be easily attained. You need time and determination to learn to cook. Using these tips can help you gain some real knowledge to get around the kitchen easily. It doesn’t matter if you see cooking as relaxing or challenging, as long as you see it as enjoyable, it will be never be a chore.