How To Cook The Best Food Possible
If you are looking to improve on your cooking skills, a refresher course in the basics can be a great investment of your time. But if you are too busy for that, the following tips can help you get back to some cooking basics that you may have forgotten or overlooked.
Watch the time when you are making pasta for a dish. If you are cooking pasta that will be mixed with sauce, you should shave a full minute off of the initial boil time. Doing this will keep your noodles from becoming overcooked in the sauce as you mix them.
When adding flour or cornstarch to drippings for making gravy, whisk the ingredient into a bit of water to create a slurry and pour this liquid into the pan, instead of just dumping in the dry ingredients. This will prevent unappealing lumps in your gravy, and it makes it easier to add just a bit of thickener at a time.
Don't use prepared seasoning mixes when you cook, especially if you have high blood pressure. These mixes often have a high sodium content. Instead, use fresh herbs and spices, or make sure you choose a low-salt mix. For more flavor, try adding lemon or lime zest or a few chili peppers to your meal.
Every good cook recognizes the importance of keeping a well stocked pantry. You should have quantities of flour, salt, oil, sugar, and spices on hand at all times. Good cooking depends on it. There is nothing more frustrating than to get down to that final step and find you are missing a necessary spice.
Place fruit that is not quite ripe in a plastic bag with a few small holes to allow it to ripen. The plastic helps retain the gases used by ripening fruit while the holes allow fresh air to circulate across the fruit. This also helps you keep your fruit fresh longer!
Avoid using citrus to marinate your meats. Citrus sometimes lends a mealy quality to the texture. If you must have citrus, squeeze a bit of lime or lemon as a finishing touch instead. This will give you the flavor that you desire while keeping the integrity of the meat intact.
After trying these steps, you should be well on your way to being a much better cook. The great thing about these tips is that if they don't work the first time keep trying and you are sure to get better. You should notice the difference right away and your friends and family will thank you.
Watch the time when you are making pasta for a dish. If you are cooking pasta that will be mixed with sauce, you should shave a full minute off of the initial boil time. Doing this will keep your noodles from becoming overcooked in the sauce as you mix them.
When adding flour or cornstarch to drippings for making gravy, whisk the ingredient into a bit of water to create a slurry and pour this liquid into the pan, instead of just dumping in the dry ingredients. This will prevent unappealing lumps in your gravy, and it makes it easier to add just a bit of thickener at a time.
Don't use prepared seasoning mixes when you cook, especially if you have high blood pressure. These mixes often have a high sodium content. Instead, use fresh herbs and spices, or make sure you choose a low-salt mix. For more flavor, try adding lemon or lime zest or a few chili peppers to your meal.
Every good cook recognizes the importance of keeping a well stocked pantry. You should have quantities of flour, salt, oil, sugar, and spices on hand at all times. Good cooking depends on it. There is nothing more frustrating than to get down to that final step and find you are missing a necessary spice.
Place fruit that is not quite ripe in a plastic bag with a few small holes to allow it to ripen. The plastic helps retain the gases used by ripening fruit while the holes allow fresh air to circulate across the fruit. This also helps you keep your fruit fresh longer!
Avoid using citrus to marinate your meats. Citrus sometimes lends a mealy quality to the texture. If you must have citrus, squeeze a bit of lime or lemon as a finishing touch instead. This will give you the flavor that you desire while keeping the integrity of the meat intact.
After trying these steps, you should be well on your way to being a much better cook. The great thing about these tips is that if they don't work the first time keep trying and you are sure to get better. You should notice the difference right away and your friends and family will thank you.
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