Cooking is a skill that everyone should at least know the basics of, especially if you have a hungry family to feed. You will benefit a lot from cooking skills, from a health and social standpoint. The following information contains a variety of tips to help improve your cooking skills.
When baking pie or tart crusts, bake them longer than you think you should. They should not be a pale blond color, they need to be golden brown. The deep caramel color demonstrates that the sugar has melded with the other ingredients, giving you an optimal flavor.
During autumn, apples are an important ingredient in many recipes; however, they do turn bad if they are not carefully stored. Store them in your fridge or basement, in plastic bags that are loosely tied, as they tend to spoil in dry warm areas. Cull bad apples from the bag to avoid rotting more of them.
You can reduce the fat and calorie content of regular mashed potatoes by substituting part of the potatoes with mashed cauliflower. This won’t affect the taste but it adds a handful of nutrition. You will not taste the blandness of cauliflower, but notice a new interesting flavor instead. When they’re mashed, cauliflowers have the same appearance and consistency as potatoes, too. Adding a little cauliflower can take calories out of your favorite mashed potato recipes and add in a little vegetable goodness, too.
Chicken Broth
When cooking vegetables, try cooking them in chicken broth. Not only will chicken broth help to keep vegetables from getting stuck to the pan, but they will add some nice flavors to the dish. Chicken broth is easily purchased at almost every supermarket, and is quite inexpensive.
For a high-protein diet, meat isn’t the only source available. Tofu, lentils and beans are great protein substitutes. Both are easily available to buy at almost every grocery store. For a meat alternative, try pan frying seasoned tofu. To add some tasty protein to your plate, boil some beans with a touch of herbs for seasoning.
This will enable you to enjoy fresh fruit any time your heart desires. This also gives you access to seasonal fruits that might otherwise not be available at the time you want them.
Cutting Board
There are many herbs that have a strong smell that will stay on your cutting board. Separate the halves by using indelible ink on the cutting board so you know what belongs on each side.
If you’re able to cook, you can provide your family with many benefits. These tips can show you how cooking can improve your everyday life, no matter what kind of food you like. So while your natural inclination may be to order a pizza, you’ll be a lot better off if you use these tips to prepare home-cooked meals for you and your loved ones.