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Cooking Tips

Handy cooking tips.

  1. Store herbs and spices in a dark, cool place.
  2. Crack eggs on a flat surface, not the side of a pan since tiny egg shells will be pushed into the egg.
  3. Add fresh herbs at the last minute. They lose their distinct flavor over cooking time.
  4. Remove green sprout from garlic before using. It tastes bitter.
  5. Put meat in freezer for 20 minutes before slicing.
  6. To warm pasta serving bowl, pour leftover water in it when draining pasta.
  7. For recipes that call for only a few tablespoons of oil in a pan, pour oil in a cold pan. After a minute, swirl the oil to cover the pan - it is easier when the oil is warm. When a wisp of smoke appears, the oil is hot and ready to use.
  8. Use regular wine instead of cooking wine. Cooking wine has too many additives (like salt) and may alter the taste. I generally use an inexpensive wine.
  9. Use a cheap (extra) light olive oil for sauté and pan frying. It has a higher smoke point than regular olive oil and you will never know the difference in taste over an expensive light olive oil.
  10. Let large cuts of meat sit (rest) 25 minutes before carving. The meat will keep cooking after it is brought out of the oven. Its juices will distribute themselves over this period. Tent the meat with aluminum foil (or a large bowl or leave in bag if cooking in a bag) during repose (the resting period) to retain heat. resting period) to retain heat.
  11. Let small cuts of meat (like steak or single serving of chicken) rest for 5 minutes before serving.
  12. When cooking in butter, add a little olive oil to raise the smoke (burn) point.
  13. Substitute dried herbs (1 tsp) for fresh herbs (1 TBL).
  14. To enhance the taste of pine nuts, toast them in a skillet over med heat. Stir frequently for 4 to 5 minutes or until golden brown.
  15. When I open a new can of tomato paste and use just a small amount, I open the other end of the can (the bottom), discard the bottom, pop the entire can into a plastic sandwich bag, and freeze it overnight. The next day, I remove the can from the bag and run it under hot water for a few seconds, then push the block of frozen tomato paste onto a cutting board. I cut the frozen block quickly into 1-4-inch rounds, each of which equals roughly 1 tablespoon of paste. I then put all of the rounds back into the same plastic bag and toss it into the freezer for ready-to-use portions of tomato paste.
  16. An easy and efficient way to peel ginger is to use the edge of a teaspoon to scrape off the knotty ginger skin. Once the ginger's peeled, use a rasp-style grater. Its fine blades pulverize the ginger, releasing all of the flavorful juices without any stringy segments.
  17. To remove the seeds from cucumbers easily without dirtying a spoon, try this tip: After halving lengthwise, simply use the tip of the swivel-style peeler to gently scrape out the seeds.
  18. If your raisins are hard, soak them in warm apple juice for 15 minutes to restore their juiciness.