Faster Than Fast Food: Some Cooking Secrets
Of course, you love to eat, but you may not necessarily love to cook. Some people find it intimidating to step into the kitchen and get started preparing a meal. The tips contained in this article will take some of the mystery out of cooking and make it seem more doable for you.
Taste your food as you cook it. Tasting your food is a simple and enjoyable thing to do. It can also really improve your end result. By continuously tasting your food as you cook, you will have a better understanding of how it is progressing. If it needs a little something extra, you are more likely to catch and remedy this.
You can save time and energy by cooking larger batches of a meal at one time, and then storing some of it in the freezer for later. Divide the meal into several serving-size containers and put them away. On a night when you don't have time to cook from scratch, just pull a container out and defrost it.
Always read a new recipe thoroughly before you begin cooking, preheating, or prepping. This prevents the hassles of running into surprise ingredients, equipment, or techniques and gives you a chance to hunt down substitutions--or a new recipe--if needed. Ideally, read the recipe before you do your shopping to ensure that you grab everything you need.
Try frozen grapes as an easy and refreshing snack. Like a healthy miniature pop sickle, grapes taste great when frozen. As an added bonus you can stock up when they are on sale and they will keep for a long time in your freezer without going bad. Just remove them from the stem, rinse them, pat dry, and place in a freezer-safe container.
When you are going to have baked potatoes for your dinner you should use a potato with a high starch content. Starchy potatoes will make for a fluffier backed potato. Also look for potatoes that have a smooth skin that do not have any sprouts they are fresher and better to eat.
Ice water can save the color of your vegetables. Dull washed out vegetables do not look as appealing to eat. If you want bright and vibrant vegetables, then you should plunge them into ice water after blanching them. Vibrantly colored vegetables look much more appetizing in salads and pasta dishes.
When you are making Easter eggs it is a pain when the eggs crack because coloring leaks onto the actual egg. To prevent this you can add some vinegar to the boiling water. This helps to seal the egg inside the shell and keep it all in one piece.
Cutting onions does not have to be a crying matter. The keys to success with onions are easy to follow and minimize tears. Chill the onions first before cutting, use your sharpest knife for cutting and turn exposed cuts down on your board. As you cut, be efficient, quick and constantly turn the largest exposed cuts down against the board. Running your vent hood will help circulate air as you cut as well.
Use your freezer to firm up supple meats. When cutting bacon into thin strips used to lard other meats, put them in the freezer for 10-15 minutes to make the meat firm before cutting. This will make it much easier and much less messy to cut into pieces that you can work with.
As stated before, you must know how to cook food if you like to eat food. Although not everyone knows how to cook food, it is easy to learn. If you follow the tips found in this article, then you can know how to cook to feed your hunger needs.
Taste your food as you cook it. Tasting your food is a simple and enjoyable thing to do. It can also really improve your end result. By continuously tasting your food as you cook, you will have a better understanding of how it is progressing. If it needs a little something extra, you are more likely to catch and remedy this.
You can save time and energy by cooking larger batches of a meal at one time, and then storing some of it in the freezer for later. Divide the meal into several serving-size containers and put them away. On a night when you don't have time to cook from scratch, just pull a container out and defrost it.
Always read a new recipe thoroughly before you begin cooking, preheating, or prepping. This prevents the hassles of running into surprise ingredients, equipment, or techniques and gives you a chance to hunt down substitutions--or a new recipe--if needed. Ideally, read the recipe before you do your shopping to ensure that you grab everything you need.
Try frozen grapes as an easy and refreshing snack. Like a healthy miniature pop sickle, grapes taste great when frozen. As an added bonus you can stock up when they are on sale and they will keep for a long time in your freezer without going bad. Just remove them from the stem, rinse them, pat dry, and place in a freezer-safe container.
When you are going to have baked potatoes for your dinner you should use a potato with a high starch content. Starchy potatoes will make for a fluffier backed potato. Also look for potatoes that have a smooth skin that do not have any sprouts they are fresher and better to eat.
Ice water can save the color of your vegetables. Dull washed out vegetables do not look as appealing to eat. If you want bright and vibrant vegetables, then you should plunge them into ice water after blanching them. Vibrantly colored vegetables look much more appetizing in salads and pasta dishes.
When you are making Easter eggs it is a pain when the eggs crack because coloring leaks onto the actual egg. To prevent this you can add some vinegar to the boiling water. This helps to seal the egg inside the shell and keep it all in one piece.
Cutting onions does not have to be a crying matter. The keys to success with onions are easy to follow and minimize tears. Chill the onions first before cutting, use your sharpest knife for cutting and turn exposed cuts down on your board. As you cut, be efficient, quick and constantly turn the largest exposed cuts down against the board. Running your vent hood will help circulate air as you cut as well.
Use your freezer to firm up supple meats. When cutting bacon into thin strips used to lard other meats, put them in the freezer for 10-15 minutes to make the meat firm before cutting. This will make it much easier and much less messy to cut into pieces that you can work with.
As stated before, you must know how to cook food if you like to eat food. Although not everyone knows how to cook food, it is easy to learn. If you follow the tips found in this article, then you can know how to cook to feed your hunger needs.
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Iced tea makes a great addition to any family menu. The challenge is that it takes so long to make. If you want to make iced tea quickly, take a look at the best iced tea maker. For another option, go to this page.
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