Many people consider cooking a very rewarding and relaxing hobby. Opening your fridge to reveal a vast array of tempting ingredients prepared just for your recipe is an amazing mood-booster. Your first attempts at cooking should consist of easy recipes that include ingredients you are familiar with. This article contains a number of tips that can help you cook a fantastic meal.
When you shelve an herb or a spice, make sure it’s dark and cool. Exposure to humidity, light and heat all affect the flavor of your spices. Usually, spices and herbs that are ground will retain their flavor for up to a year. You may retain your spice’s flavor for about 5 years. The length of time that they stay fresh depends on how they are stored.
When making a stir-fry dish, the meat needs to be cut into very thin slices, always on the bias. It takes a little practice and time to get it right. Cut your meat as it is still a little frozen and cut it at a forty five degree angle, with the bias.
Keep all spices stored out of the sunlight. Storing spices in lighted areas or warm areas can reduce their length of freshness. When a spice is placed in a cool area with very little light, its life is extended and it will taste better. This will help every meal that you prepare taste better.
A great tip to follow if you use oil to cook is to put it on the sides of the pan while cooking, so it’s already heated by the time it reaches the food. This will give more flavor to what you are cooking.
Have you felt sorry for tossing moldy fruit away? Have you ever been tempted to cut the rotten bits out of a piece of fruit and eat the rest? Unfortunately, you cannot save half rotten fruit and expect it to be healthy. If you see that fruit is starting to rot, just throw it away because even if some parts look healthy, the mold has most likely already spread throughout.
Chicken Stock
Think big if you plan to make chicken stock. Plan on preparing a large batch so that the excess can be frozen and used later. Homemade chicken stock makes a great base for casseroles, soups, stews, and many other wonderful dishes. Once your stock is finished, cool it and put it in heavy freezer bags.
When serving salad to guests, leave the dressing on the side. Amount and type of dressing are personal tastes, so let your guests dress their own salad. Make sure you have a wide selection of dressings to choose from as well.
As this article has discussed, cooking is revered by many as an excellent and enjoyable hobby. However, some people don’t know where to start, in terms of picking the right recipes or using the proper techniques. Follow this article’s advice and you will be on your way to cooking great food.