Cooking Hints & Tips Archive 34
Cooking Tip: A dampened paper towel or terry cloth brushed downward on a cob of corn will remove every strand of corn silk.
Cooking Tip: Microwave a lemon for 15 seconds and double the juice you get before squeezing.
Cooking Tip: Buy mushrooms before they "open." When stems and caps are attached snugly, mushrooms are truly fresh.
Cooking Tip: Let raw potatoes stand in cold water for at least half an hour before frying to improve the crispness of french-fried potatoes.
Cooking Tip: A roast with the bone in will cook faster than a boneless roast as the bone carries the heat to the inside of the roast quicker.
Cooking Tip: Stubborn stains can be removed from non-stick cookware by boiling, 2 tablespoons of baking soda, 1/2 cup vinegar, and 1 cup of water for ten minutes. Before using the pan again, season it with salad oil.
Cooking Tip: Burnt food can be removed from a glass baking dish by spraying it with oven cleaner and letting it soak for 30 minutes. The burnt-on residue will be easier to wipe off.
Cooking Tip: Whenever you empty a jar of dill pickles, use the left-over juice to clean the copper bottoms of your pans. Just pour the juice in a large bowl, set the pan in the juice for about 15 minutes. Comes out looking like new.
Cooking Tip: To restore color and shine to an aluminum pan, boil some apple peels in it for a few minutes, then rinse and dry.
Cooking Tip: Stains and sediment in cut glass, bowls, or vases respond to olive oil. Pour some in and let stand until the stains or sediment disappear.
Cooking Tip: The Latin name for shallot is Allium Ascalonicum. The name refers to Ascalon, an ancient Palestinian city where the shallot is thought to have originated.
Cooking Tip: The flavor of the shallot is a pungent blend of onion and garlic. Their color can vary from pale brown to rose, and the flesh is off-white and barely tinged with green or purple.
Cooking Tip: Shallots burn easily because of their high sugar content. For this reason, saute briefly over low to medium heat.
Cooking Tip: When using raw minced shallots in salad dressings, lessen their pungency by reducing the juice; wrap the minced shallots in a clean kitchen towel and squeeze the shallots so the cloth absorbs some of their juices, then add the shallots to the recipe as directed.
Cooking Tip: Shallots will keep for approximately six months if stored in a cool, dry location.
Cooking Tip: This is the sugar most known to consumers, is the sugar found in every home's sugar bowl, and most commonly used in home food preparation. It is the most common form of sugar and the type most frequently called for in recipes. Its main distinguishing characteristics are a paper-white color and fine crystals.
Cooking Tip: This sugar's crystal size is the finest of all the types of granulated white sugar. It is ideal for delicately textured cakes and meringues, as well as for sweetening fruits and iced-drinks since it dissolves easily. In England, a sugar very similar to superfine sugar is known as caster or castor sugar, named after the type of shaker in which it is often packaged.
Cooking Tip: Also known as pearl or decorating sugar. As its name implies, the crystal size of coarse sugar is larger than that of ?€œregular?€ sugar. Coarse sugar is recovered when molasses-rich, sugar syrups high in sucrose are allowed to crystallize. The large crystal size of coarse sugar makes it highly resistant to color change or inversion (natural breakdown to fructose and glucose) at cooking and baking temperatures. These characteristics are important in making fondants, confections and liquors.
Cooking Tip: This sugar is granulated sugar ground to a smooth powder and then sifted. It contains about 3% cornstarch to prevent caking. Powdered sugar is ground into three different degrees of fineness. The confectioners sugar available in supermarkets ?€“ 10X ?€“ is the finest of the three and is used in icings, confections and whipping cream.
Cooking Tip: It is essentially the product at the point before the molasses is removed (what's left after sugarcane has been processed and refined). Popular types of raw sugar include demerara sugar from Guyana and Barbados sugar, a moist, fine textured sugar. Turbinado sugar is raw sugar that has been steam cleaned to remove contaminates, leaving a light molasses flavored, tan colored sugar.
Cooking Tip: Select bright green asparagus with closed, compact, and firm tips. Also look for cut ends that are not dry. If the tips are slightly wilted, freshen them up by soaking them in cold water.
Cooking Tip: Select asparagus stalks that are about the same thickness so cooking will be uniform. Thickness does not influence quality.
Cooking Tip: Storage of fresh asparagus is important. Fresh asparagus must be kept refrigerated at all times. Wrap a moist paper towel around the stem ends and place in the refrigerator. Keep fresh asparagus moist until you intend to use it.
Cooking Tip: Keep frozen asparagus in the freezer until you are ready. Do no defrost before cooking. If the asparagus defrosts, cook it immediately. Do not refreeze! Make sure you use the asparagus within eight months.
Cooking Tip: Keep canned asparagus in a cool, dry place. To cook, drain all but 1 Tablespoon of liquid, and microwave at 100% power for 2 to 4 minutes, stirring once halfway through cooking time.
Cooking Tip: In general, never cut a fruit or vegetable until it is ready to eat. Another general rule-of-thumb; never attempt to cause the ripening of a product while under refrigeration. Ripen first, then refrigerate.
Cooking Tip: Buy mature fruit. A green peach or nectarine will not ripen but merely soften some and wither. A cantaloupe picked too green will soften but will not be sweet and juicy.
Cooking Tip: Some fruits do not get any sweeter after harvest, because they have no reserve starch for conversion to sugar. On the other hand, bananas and pears gain sugar as well as tenderness after harvest.
Cooking Tip: Fresh fruits and vegetables, because of their perishability, require constant attention to keep their fresh appearance. The less you handle them when purchasing, or in the home, the longer their life.
Cooking Tip: Don't pinch, squeeze or poke fresh fruits and vegetables, for bruising leads to damage and damage results in more spoilage.
Cooking Tip: Most brownie recipes call for melting the chocolate with the fat and adding this mixture to beaten eggs and sugar. Let the chocolate mixture cool completely before adding it to the eggs and sugar as it makes for a lighter brownie.
Cooking Tip: Brownies are cooked when the edges look hard, the top has cracked slightly, and the surface has a glassy appearance. The center should not jiggle when you shake the pan. The toothpick method works on cakey brownies, but not fudgy ones.
Cooking Tip: As they cool, brownies shrink from the side of the pan and set. Put them out of reach and don't cut until they've reached room temperature.
Cooking Tip: Store cheese in your refrigerator, which approximates the temperature of our aging rooms. Keep it wrapped tightly in plastic, away from air. Air helps mold grow on cheese. If you get a little mold on the outside, just cut it off. The English say if mold won't eat your cheddar it can't taste very good.
Cooking Tip: Bring cheese to room temperature before melting. Melt cheese over a low heat to help prevent toughening and separation of oils and liquid.
Cooking Tip: Fresh oysters should be closed tight, and kept either in fresh sea water or on a bed of ice. Never buy shellfish that are open.
Cooking Tip: Store oysters on ice until ready to serve. Cover them with a wet towel or keep them in a closed container.
Cooking Tip: Get into the habit of measuring the oil you use while you cook, rather than just pouring it out of the bottle. It will be much easier to moderate the amount you use.
Cooking Tip: Use non-stick cookware so that you don't have to use as much fat. When sauteing, use a small amount of chicken broth or wine instead of butter or oil.
Cooking Tip: Many vegetables and fruits, including potatoes and apples, retain many of their nutrients in their skin. So when possible, leave the skin on your fruits and vegetables and cook them whole.
Cooking Tip: Store cheese in your refrigerator, which approximates the temperature of aging rooms. Keep it wrapped tightly in plastic, away from air. Air helps mold grow on cheese.
Cooking Tip: Bring cheese to room temperature before melting. Melt cheese over a low heat to help prevent toughening and separation of oils and liquids.
Cooking Tip: Most ripened or aged cheese is low in moisture content and can be frozen without drastic flavor and texture changes. Thaw slowly in the refrigerator for 24 hours or more.
Cooking Tip: Soak wooden skewers in water for 30 minutes before using them so they won't burn during cooking.
Cooking Tip: To substitute honey for sugar in recipes, start by substituting up to half of the sugar called for. With a little experimentation, honey can replace all the sugar in some recipes.
Cooking Tip: Nuts can turn rancid rather quickly, walnuts and pecans more so than almonds. Always store all nuts airtight in the freezer or refrigerator.
Cooking Tip: In the refrigerator nuts last well for nine months; in the freezer at zero degrees they will last for two years. Bring them to room temperature before using.
Cooking Tip: Never heat pesto sauce as the basil will turn black and taste bitter.
Cooking Tip: Do not store olive oil in the refrigerator as it solidifies at 36°F. If your olive oil contains a layer of white solids, the bottle has been chilled. Leave it out to reach room temperature.
Cooking Tip: Olive oil, like all organic oils, will turn rancid over time if not properly stored. Keep it away from heat, air and light. Don't be tempted to store it in the cupboard over the stove or above the refrigerator.
Cooking Tip: As long as they are kept at room temperature, tomatoes picked at the mature green stage will finish ripening in supermarkets and after you purchase them.
Cooking Tip: Once they are fully ripened, tomatoes can be held at room temperature or refrigerated for several days. When you're ready to use them, bring the tomatoes back to room temperature for fullest flavor.
Cooking Tip: To peel tomatoes, fill a saucepan with enough water to cover tomatoes; bring to a boil. Immerse tomatoes about 30 seconds; drain and cool. Remove stem ends and slip off skins.
Cooking Tip: To seed tomatoes, cut tomatoes in half crosswise. Gently squeeze each half, using your fingers to remove seeds. To reserve the juice for use in dressings, sauces or soups, seed the tomato into a strainer held over a bowl.
Cooking Tip: To roast tomatoes, preheat oven to 450°F. Halve tomatoes crosswise. Place halves, cut side down, on a shallow baking pan; brush with oil. Roast until lightly browned, about 20 minutes; cool. Remove skins and stem ends.
Cooking Tip: When using spaghetti, keep in mind that 8 ounces of uncooked pasta makes 4 cups cooked.
Cooking Tip: When using all-purpose flour, keep in mind that one pound flour is the equivalent to 4 cups.
Cooking Tip: When using dried beans and peas, keep in mind that 1 cup dry beans or peas makes 2 1/2 cups cooked.
Cooking Tip: When using rice, keep in mind that 1 cup of uncooked long-grain white rice makes 3 cups cooked.
Cooking Tip: When using granulated sugar, keep in mind that one pound sugar is the equivalent to 2 cups.
Cooking Tip: Keep popcorn fresh and encourage more kernels to pop by storing in the freezer.
Cooking Tip: Pancakes are lighter and fluffier when you substitute club soda for milk in the batter.
Cooking Tip: Cookie dough can be frozen up to three months in an airtight container or refrigerated three to four days.
Cooking Tip: Cookie dough can be frozen up to three months in an airtight container or refrigerated three to four days.
Cooking Tip: Add 1/2 to 1 teaspoon baking powder to a frying batter for an especially delicate crust.
Cooking Tip: As a general rule, herbs and ground spices will retain their best flavors for a year. Whole spices may last for 3 to 5 years.
Cooking Tip: When possible, grind whole spices just prior to using. Toasting whole spices in a dry skillet over medium heat before grinding will bring out even more flavor.
Cooking Tip: Because the refrigerator is a humid environment, storing herbs and spices there is not recommended. To keep larger quantities of spices fresh, store them in the freezer in tightly sealed containers.
Cooking Tip: Store spices in a cool, dark place. Humidity, light and heat will cause herbs and spices to lose their flavor more quickly.
Cooking Tip: For long-cooking dishes, add herbs and spices an hour or less before serving. Cooking spices for too long may result in overly strong flavors.
Cooking Tip: Mushrooms freeze well. Wash quickly, dry, then put them, sliced or un-sliced, in a plastic bag and freeze. Use them without defrosting. In any cooked dish, they will taste exactly like fresh mushrooms.
Cooking Tip: For garlic-flavored potato chips, put a peeled garlic clove in a container with chips several hours. Discard before serving chips.
Cooking Tip: When you freeze bacon, there is no waiting for thawing if you arrange the strips flat, slice by slice, on waxed paper, then roll them up. Put them in a plastic bag in the freeze. To use, unroll and peel off the necessary number of slices.
Cooking Tip: To keep celery crisp, stand it up in a pitcher of cold, salted water and refrigerate.
Cooking Tip: Place an open box of hardened brown sugar in the microwave oven with 1 cup hot water. Microwave at high for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes for 1/2 pound of sugar or 2 to 3 minutes for 1 pound of sugar.
