Having to cook and dish up meals every day can become boring. Cooking isn’t just about eating: you can have a lot of fun preparing a meal and discover new things. The below article provides some excellent cooking tips to get you started.
Find a dark, cool area in which to store herbs and spices. Your spices and herbs will lose some of their flavor when exposed to light, humidity and heat. Most ground spices will keep their flavor for at least one year. Whole spices, on the other hand, can retain their freshness for 36-60 months. If the spices are stored properly, they will stay fresh for a longer period.
Keep all dried spices in a location that is cool and dark. If your spices are exposed to moisture, heat or humidity, these items will begin to lose their flavor. Ground spices can retain full flavor for around a year. Whole spices can keep their robust flavors for up to five years. Storing spices in glass containers with a longer shelf-life for your spices.
Bake pie and tart crusts for a longer time than you think is really necessary. The crust should turn a golden color, not simple blonde. This indicates the sugar has turned to caramel. Your crust will have a sweeter and crispier flavor.
Boiling vegetables is a cooking process that decreases valuable nutrients contained in vegetables. To maintain their healthy reputation, chose faster cooking methods like steaming or sauteing, and you could always enjoy them naturally in their raw state.
When you are seasoning meats, try cooking a small piece first and testing it out, before making all of it. Particularly meats such as ground beef will need to be seasoned carefully. Do not cook it all after seasoning. Take a small portion and cook it so you can give it a taste before your final seasoning. Once you like the way this piece comes out, you can cook the rest.
You do not want to deal with the stress by sticking to familiar recipes and food you have ever done before. This will ensure that your meal preparation.
Crispier fries come from potatoes that have been left to soak in ice cold water for about 30 minutes. Soaking potatoes accomplishes two important things for your French fries; it takes out sugar and starch during the soaking process.
Apples are a popular choice for eating in autumn or winter, but they tend to spoil quickly if not stored properly. Apples will be ruined if they are stored in a warm place, warm air. One rotten apple will quickly ruin the other apples.
Adding cauliflower to your mashed potatoes is a great way to reduce the amount of fat and calories they contain. You should use equal portions of potatoes and cauliflower when making this delicious side. Cauliflower tends to have a bland taste, so this will blend nicely with the potatoes, and will pick up other ingredients, as well. Cauliflowers look very similar to potatoes in texture and color when they are mashed. It will allow you to have a delicious side dish that is healthier and still flavorful.
If your burgers seem to be sticking to the surface of your grill, it will be difficult to flip them without mangling them in the process. Try brushing a thin coating of vegetable oil on the cooking surface prior to cooking so that food from sticking.
Cooking with fresh basil? Take some fresh basil and put some of it in a glass. Fill the glass just enough with water so that the stems can absorb it. Place it on your kitchen counter to keep it fresh for weeks! Frequent changes of the water might even encourage the basil to spread out some roots. Trim your plant on occasion and you will encourage future growth. This means you will have fresh basil in your kitchen for a long time to come!
Always use an airtight containers to store baking ingredients such as sugar or flour in the kitchen. Keeping your food in sealed containers will stop them from spoiling or being infected with bugs. These containers are widely available and definitely worth the money.
If you have sauce left over after a meal, store the remainder in one or more ice cube trays and let it freeze. This way, when you want to make an easy meal another night, all you have to do is reheat it in a saute pan. Sauce cubes made this way are safe and will taste great!
Beans and tofu are excellent sources of protein if you may not have yet considered adding to your diet. Both of these protein-rich foods are easily available to buy at most grocery stores. Try frying tofu with some interesting seasonings and you will have a tasty alternative to meat. Beans boiled with some spices and herbs for a flavorful source of protein.
Do not dress your guests’ salads. Serve the dressing on the side and allow your guests to dress it to their liking. This will allow your guests to control how much dressing they want to put on their salad. Offer a variety of dressings, so there will be something to everyone’s taste.
Fresh Garlic
When you finish a turkey meal, always make sure you save what remains. Cut up the meat instead, put it in a container, and freeze it. With enough leftover turkey, you can enjoy turkey sandwiches and salads for several weeks after the bird was cooked.
Always purchase the freshest garlic available if you have a recipe that calls for it. A rule of thumb is that fresh garlic will have a sweet taste to it. Fresh garlic is not soft and lacks bruises.
You should consider replacing your spices about twice a year. If spices are kept open for too long a time, they will eventually lose their flavor. If you know you can’t use as much as is in the package, give some to a family member or friend to keep from wasting it.
Leave the bone in your roast when you are cooking and pressed for time.The bone helps distribute the heat and make the meat cook faster from the inside.
Always follow the instructions if you are making something like macaroni and cheese. Your macaroni will turn out wonderful if you do it this way. It will also taste so good when you melt cheese over your noodles. A simple serving dish and spoon are all you need to serve dinner. You can even add some pepper to give you macaroni a little kick!
Try making your own tomatoes. Cut Romas tomatoes in lengthwise halves, depending on their size. You can also pack dried tomatoes in a jar with herbs and olive oil. The jars can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
When chopping fresh herbs, you should shake some salt on a cutting board. This adds flavor to the herbs and helps to keep them from sliding off the cutting board. If you add the salt to your cutting board, reduce the salt in the recipe by the same amount, so that you don’t add too much salt to your dish. Applying salt to the board will allow the herbs to stick better and give the meat a bit more flavor.
Many veggies and herbs have a scent that remains on cutting boards well after they are washed. Use permanent ink to mark the cutting board to identify which is which.
Get your grill ready to go before you start to barbecue. Start prepping your grill roughly 30 minutes or more before you decide to start cooking. Cover the coals with ashes, and allow them to reach a medium heat. This is the perfect temperature to grill.
When using fresh herbs in your cooking like parsley or basil, gather them into bunches and cut them with scissors. This will keep the herbs drier and lighter than if they are chopped.
To save time in cooking, do your prepping ahead of time. It’s often possible to do some preparations even a couple days before you need to cook. Sometimes the longer prep time results in deeply flavored dishes. Once you start advanced preparation, you might not ever return.
With your improved outlook about cooking, this may be the beginning of a new favorite pastime for you. Cooking is a great way to add more fun and flavor to your food. You can be even more self aware, as you discover what things you enjoy making. By enjoying it and having fun with cooking, your meals can start tasting better.
When cooking for important company, never try a recipe you’ve never cooked before. Whether it may be a boss, new in-laws or a love interest, you want to make a good impression with them by the way you cook. You are certain to gain their respect if you prepare one of your tried-but-true signature dishes.
