Anyone can cook! Can you buy the ingredients and follow a recipe? Do you have access to basic cooking equipment? If you said yes to the two previous questions, than you are well on your way to learning how to cook! If you want to make the sort of meals that will make your friends and family beg for seconds, cultivate your culinary expertise by reviewing the tips provided in this article.
To lessen the amount of work you have to do the following day, do some preparation in advance. With some forethought and effort ahead of time, you can have stress-free meal preparation. Try things like cutting and paring vegetables the day before, or putting together pastas or lasagna and storing them to use as needed.
Use vegetable or chicken stock to saute vegetables. The chicken broth adds to the taste of the veggies and, you will not have the extra fat. This is a nutritious and delicious method for cooking vegetables.
When serving salad to guests, always offer the dressing on the side rather than pouring it directly on the salad. This will allow your guests to control how much dressing they want to put on their salad. Give them a choice of salad dressings.
Never cook with wine you haven’t tried. Using cheap or unfamiliar wine puts the flavor of your food in danger. You could try wine that is specifically formulated for cooking purposes.
Take excess fat off of stews and soups. If your soup has a lot of fat, try cooling it and letting the fat rise up. Then just collect the fat by rubbing an ice cube, resting on a spoon, along the surface. The ice draws the fat and it collects on the cube. You can also simply blot the fat with a paper towel.
It is necessary for all cooks to organize their cooking supplies. If you do not organize them, you will be scrambling around to find where you put everything. Group similar items together, and keep them in the same area. Keep your herbs and spices together and follow this grouping rule with other supplies as well.
When you saute food, try to avoid filling the pan with oil. The extra moisture will steam the food instead of sauteing it and will not add that little bit of crispness that sauteing is good for. This should be done at a lower temperature, too.
You should discard your spices biannually and buy new ones. The flavors of spices fade just a few months after opening the container. If you purchase a specific spice, knowing that you probably won’t use it all, split it with someone.
When preparing meals at home, you must use sharp knives for best results. Dull knives don’t get the job done, but in addition, are actually dangerous. If you’re trying to slice a firm vegetable with a blunted knife, you’re more likely to cut yourself with it than you are if you use a sharp knife.
For easily adding intricacy and interest to dinner rolls or corn, try concocting a flavored butter. Allow the butter to reach room temperature, or warm it in the microwave. Then you want to add some sauce, herbs or spices to give the butter that extra kick. Honey, lemon juice, chipotles or BBQ make a great combination with butter.
Cooking can be a helpful skill, a fun hobby, or even a profession. With food, the possibilities are limitless. Learn something new by studying the habits and recipes of the people who know cooking best and are willing to share that knowledge. Apply these tips when you prepare your next meal.