Cook Like A Chef With These Tips

Cooking is just one of lifes daily chores, but it can be a fun hobby too. If someone has the right information, they will be able to cook even the most complicated of dishes. The following article contains helpful information.

When cooking a big meal, try to do your prep work the night before. This saves you time when youre getting things ready for your dinner the next day. Have everything washed, chopped, and ready to go. Youll thank yourself because there is less stress the night of the big meal.

Flouring the baking pan is called for by lots of recipes. It is necessary for the baking, but leaves an unattractive white coating on the side of the cake. Change the recipe a little and use dry cake mix instead of flour. The unattractive white residue from the side of the cake will disappear.

After you have cooked a piece of food in the oven, you should give it several minutes to rest before serving. The last thing that you will want to do is serve any part of your meal that is too hot, which will ruin its overall quality for the person you are serving.

A granite surface is great for thawing frozen foods, usually taking less than half of the time necessary for typical counter top thawing because granite absorbs the cold (and heat) of items placed on top of it so granite literally "sucks out" the cold from your frozen foods. Granite is also an amazing surface for pastry preparation when dusted with a little flour. If you cant afford to redo your kitchen in granite, check out a granite dealer for scrap pieces or have a smaller piece cut and polished for a fraction of the cost of remodeling your kitchen.

One of the best ways to store green vegetables so that you can increase the lifespan that they have, is to store them in a damp paper towel and place them in a plastic bag. This will keep the nutrients in them and retain the freshness that they need to remain tasty.

Shelling pecans can be really challenging. Make it easier by soaking them in a cup of water and put the cup into the microwave for 5-6 minutes. It is always possible to soak the pecans into boiling water to get the same effect. Hot water makes the shell softer and easier to crack.

Place fruit that is not quite ripe in a plastic bag with a few small holes to allow it to ripen. The plastic helps retain the gases used by ripening fruit while the holes allow fresh air to circulate across the fruit. This also helps you keep your fruit fresh longer!

Nutrition

If you have a recipe that requires water or milk, you can change out the liquids to create a whole new flavor. In place of water, try adding beef or chicken broth, juice or even water used to cook vegetables. Buttermilk, yogurt and sour cream can be great substitutes for milk. Adding different and interesting liquids to a recipe can help the dish become more interesting and nutritious.

To preserve more of the nutritional value of your vegetables dont cook them for too long. As you cook a vegetable, its nutrient content diminishes. Good techniques for quickly cooking vegetables are steaming and stir-frying. Slow cooking has its place, but dont neglect the quicker techniques with their greater nutrition.

Good cooking goes beyond the basic practice of plopping meals on a waiting table. With the right skills and mindset, it can also be an enjoyable and appetizing hobby. Becoming a confident cook can decrease your waistline and increase your savings account. By embracing these hints and putting them to good use, cuisine success is yours for the taking.