Rather than being a daily chore, cooking can be a daily stress-reliever: you can use your time in the kitchen to express your creativity, to unwind after a long day, to gain immediate satisfaction from serving healthy food to yourself and others…or all three! Here are some tips to help you enjoy your culinary adventures. [...]
“Fusion cuisine” is the latest trend–it’s innovative, intriguing, and embraces all the foods that the world has to offer. It’s also astonishingly simple to create using leftovers. Don’t think you have anything in the fridge for dinner? Craving flair instead of humdrum? Try mixing and matching what you already have. How’s this idea: chicken satay [...]
Organized. Tidy. Neat. Dreaded words, but invaluable ones in the kitchen. When your pancakes are about to burn onto the pan, you don’t have time to yank open all the drawers in search of the heat-proof spatula! You’ll enjoy cooking and baking much more if you take a little bit of time to organize your [...]
The allium family includes everything from the delicate chive to the hardy leek to the eye-stinging yellow onion. “Spring” onions refer to the greener, milder types that were traditionally harvested in the spring: green onions or scallions. The more-familiar types–red, yellow, white, Spanish–are “storage” or “dry” onions. There isn’t as wide of a gulf in [...]
Hardboiled eggs are best eaten fresh, but you can keep them in the refrigerator for a day or two. To hardboil eggs, place them in a saucepan and fill with enough COLD water to cover the eggs. (Hot water could make the eggs crack.) Place on medium-high heat. When the water reaches a boil, turn [...]
Many times, recipes call for tomatoes that have been peeled and seeded. Canned diced tomatoes come in handy here, but if you want to take advantage of summer’s full-flavor fresh tomatoes, you’ll have to hone your DIY kitchen skills. It isn’t difficult, though–even if you don’t have a food mill (a device that removes the [...]
Yes, they’re blenders, but not the kind you’d use to whip up your morning smoothie. They are electrically-operated, though, and the idea behind them is the same. The main difference is their shape: they’re long, hand-held sticks with a small blade at one end. This design allows you to dunk them down into pots and [...]
Not only does it have a cute name and an engaging shape, the whisk is indispensable in the kitchen. Use it to: De-lump gravies and sauces Make a smooth roux Fold delicate ingredients together Combine dry ingredients–this functions like sifting Whisks are made out of metal, plastic (safe for non-stick cookware), even bamboo. Some varieties [...]
We all learn from our mistakes, as they say–I thought I might as well share some wisdom I’ve gained from my oops-es: Never, ever wear your best clothes while cooking; it’s better to stain a shirt you’re not overly attached to. Or you could use an apron–even Jacques Pepin wears one when he’s cooking! Read [...]
Even Kroger’s is carrying many different types of flours these days–you have many more options than white or whole-wheat. Speciality stores such as health-food or “natural” stores usually have a dizzying selection. Rye, buckwheat, oat, corn, hazelnut, chickpea…the list goes on and on. Some rise better and therefore work better in yeast breads while some [...]
