Good food is not always easy to come by. Follow the tips here to add that special “magical” quality to all of your cooking.
Put any of the unripened fruits you buy in a plastic bag with small holes on the bag. Fruit produces ethylene gas as it ripens. Placing fruit in a perforated bag allows air circulation in the bag, retaining ethylene gas and keeping the fruit tasting good.
Add some excitement to that frozen sweet corn if your family is getting tired of having the same old corn all the time. Add coconut flakes to the corn for a very exotic flavor.
You need to make sure that you cook a cake until it is thoroughly cooked. Though recommended cooking times are a great guideline for novice cake bakers, they can be misleading, because factors such as elevation can impact the actual cook time of the cake. Insert a toothpick into the cake’s middle. If your toothpick is clean, your cake is ready to be taken out of the oven. However, if there is batter left on the toothpick, keep baking for a longer period of time.
High quality cutlery and knives are worth the expense. You will be more efficient when you do not have to deal with dull knives; in addition, sharp knives are safer to use than dull knives. More accidental cuts occur when using a dull knife, instead of a good sharp one.
If you are making stir-fry meals, you should slice the meat as thin as possible and cut it on the bias. Getting the perfect cut can sometimes be a challenge. Remove the meat when it is firm but before it freezes, and cut at an angle of 45 degrees against the grain.
You must keep your cooking tools in order to keep your recipes on track. If you refuse to organize your cooking supplies, you’ll take longer to find the utensils you need. Keep things that are similar in the same place. For instance, keep your spices in a cabinet, your baking goods in another, and cooking utensils together in a drawer.
In recipes that call for milk or water, try substituting more flavorful liquids. For instance, you can use broth, stock, juice or a bit of wine to replace the water in a recipe. If a recipe calls for milk, try using buttermilk, yogurt or sour cream. A simple switch like changing a liquid in a recipe can improve the nutritional quality while giving the dish a whole new spin in taste.
If you want to use the meats and vegetables in your refrigerator before a shopping day, try using it in fried rice. Cold day-old rice works perfectly, but if you have to make it right away, use a little less water for drier rice. Saute the vegetables and meats in some oil, then place the rice in the pan and add soy sauce and other spices to taste.
A great way to add zip to some of your staple foods, like potatoes, use beef or chicken stock instead of water. It is quick and easy to add a bouillon cube in water to a recipe. In this way, you can be sure your food has enough moisture and extra flavor!
While dark, leafy vegetables provide superior nutrition, they can sometimes prove cumbersome or difficult to prepare. They often have tough stems, which must be removed. To simplify things, fold it in two lengthwise and then break the stem from the middle. Particularly tough stems can be sliced out of the leaf with a knife. Either of these techniques will give you a perfect leaf without a stem.
Food sustains us physically, but it also has an important social role. Impress people close to you with the delicious variety of food you serve them, using the tips given here.