76 Cooking Tips – 5W1H boo!

1. In pan frying and sauteing, always get your pan hot first before adding the oil or butter so food won’t stick to the pan.
2. When sauteing with garlic or ginger, always brown them in oil after salt has been added but before any other ingredients. This will bring out the full flavor ofingredients
3. Tips for frying Chicken Make sure that the oil is hot, when the chicken is already brownish lower the heat, allowing the chicken to be cooked evenly inside, then when it is almost done, increase the heat to high to give it a crispy texture and nice color. Remove and place in a paper towel to absorb the extra oil.
4. How To Maintain the Natural Color of the Vegetables even if It’s Already Cooked ? To keep the natural color of the vegetables even if it is already cooked, in soup, sauted, stir fried, etc, make sure that when it’s time to add the vegetables you increased the heat to high, making it to be cooked very quickly, and do not cover.
5. Never pierce meats when browning them; the juices will escape and the meats become tough and dry. Use tongs, not fork, for turning them over.
6. Cooking tips in Baking Bread. If you want the bread to have a shiny look, brush it with beaten egg before baking. If you want it to look crispy brush with melted butter before baking.
7. How to remove the bitterness from bitter melon or ampalaya? The secret to remove the bitterness of the ampalaya is to put a little salt in the oil during heating or sauteing and cook it over high heat.
8. When frying several pieces of food at a time, never let the pieces touch each other as they cook or they will stew instead of saute.
9. Steam potatoes whenever possible to conserve nutrients. If you have to boil them, add 1 tsp. vinegar or lemon juice to the water to make potatoes snowy white. Add a little milk to the water in which cauliflower is cooked to retain whiteness.
10. Grate a quarter of a small onion and add it and a dash of sugar and salt to the water in which you boil frozen or canned vegetables to improve the flavor. Or add a dash of MSG, garlic powder, pepper and onion flakes or powder to the salted boiling water before adding the vegetables for a richer flavor.
11. To cook eggs in the shell: Boil water, lower eggs into the boiling water in a metal spoon so the metal absorbs the heat and the eggs won’t crack from the sudden change in temperature. Lower heat to simmer and cook eggs to desired doneness. For eggs at room temperature — soft cooked, 3 to 4 minutes; hard cooked, 10 minutes.. For eggs right out of the refrigerator: soft cooked,, 5 minutes; hard cooked, 12 minutes. Immediately plunge eggs in cold water after cooking; the shell will peel off easily and the whites will be tender.
12. A teaspoon of salt added to water brings it to boil faster, cuts down on whites running out in case the shells crack.
13. When broiling steaks or chops, put one cup water in the bottom of the broiler pan to prevent grease burning on the pan, eliminate smoke, make pan easy to wash and catch the drippings for the gravy.
14. For barbecues, chicken should not be more than 3 Ibs.; 2 Ibs. is best because it cooks fast and is tender and juicy. Pork should be thinly sliced so it is thoroughly cooked. Beef steak should not be less than an inch thick or it will dry out; 1-1/2″ thick is best for rare, medium or well done.
15. When making pastry for pie crust, add a pinch or two of baking powder to the dry ingredients before adding the water; makes the pastry more flaky.
16. When adding water to pastry, be stingy with it, use only ice cold water and never pour it all in one spot on the flour and shortening mixture. Shake or sprinkle the water,sparingly over the mixture while stirring with a fork. Dough mixes easier this way and the pastry is flakier.
17. After removing a cake from the oven, prace the pan on a damp cloth for a few minutes and the cake will come loose from the pan easily.
18. When butter is too hard to cream, shred it into a warmed bowl and it will cream faster.
19. If a dish is too salty, slices of raw pared potato added to it while cooking will absorb excess saltiness. When cooking adobo and it turns out too sour, add sugar.
20. If a pan of grease catches fire, sprinkle baking soda or salt over it to stop fire and smoke. Do not use water or flour.
21. To save burned food, immediately set burned pot containing the food in a larger container with cold water. Do not stir the food. Leave uncovered until cooled. Then pour contents into another pan. Do not scrape the bottom. Scorched food will adhere to the bottom and can be discarded thus eliminating the burnt taste from the rest of the food.
22. When boiling rice and the water has completely evaporated but the rice is not yet cooked, soak a double layer of paper towel with water and put it on top of the rice. Cover pot and keep on low heat. This way the rice will cook evenly and the bottom will not be soggy or burned.
23. To correct a too thick sauce: heat until simmering, then beat in, a spoonful at a time, a little cream or stock until of right consistency. Use a wooden spoon, spatula or wire whisk and scrape over bottom of pan as you stir.
24. To correct a too thin hot sauce: blend a tsp. of flour with a tsp. of soft butter, or more as needed, always in equal amount. Beat into hot sauce, away from the heat, until smooth. Simmer a minute or two. to remove any raw taste of flour.
25. Boil a little vinegar on the stove to eliminate unpleasant cooking odors. However, cooking foods with vinegar like adobo and paArs/wdoes not help because the combination of vinegar with other foods like garlic creates odors
26. To eliminate fishy odor, rub fish inside and out with a slice of lemon.
27. To keep raw fish fillets fresh and odorless in the refrigerator, rinse in a solution of 1 tbsp. lemon juice and 1 cup water, dry thoroughly, wrap and refrigerate.
28. Put orange peelings on the oven racks when you preheat the oven; gives the house a delicious smell. Take out the peelings when you use the oven because burnt peelings have too strong a smell. Return peelings to the oven as soon as you turn it off and the remaining heat will be just enough to bring out the sweet orangey smell.
29. To remove the smell of garlic from the fingers, rub them with a cut ripe tomato.
30. To keep parsley crisp and fresh, place a bunch upright in a wide mouthed jar with airtight lid. Add just enough water to the jar to cover the stems without it touching the leaves. Store in the refrigerator.
31. Cut off about half an inch from both ends of cucumbers to remove bitterness. To bring out their taste, slice them ahead of time, sprinkte with a little salt and refrigerate until ready for use.
32. To avoid tears when cutting onions, leave them in the refrigerator for a few days before using them.(Or peel and cut them in half under cold running water. Keep under running water for about a minute or let soak in cold water for a time before slicing.)
33. Roll lemon with palm over a hard surface or heat lemons before squeezing to get more juice from thenru
34. Scale fish under water to keep scales from flying around.
35. Frozen raw meats defrost faster when submerged in cold water rather than when left standing at room temperature.
36. For fluffier and higher pancakes, double the number of eggs called for in the recipe. Put yolks in the batter, beat the whites separately until stiff and gently fold in the batter.
37. When preparing sauces, add flour to melted butter off the heat for a smoother mixture. When adding any liquid to a sauce base, stir it in off the heat also. Add hot sauce to cold sauce two tbsp. at a time so the cold sauce warms up gradually and does not curdle.
38. If a recipe calls for a covered casserole or skillet and none is available, use a piece of aluminum foil as a lid.
39. Marinate meat in clear plastic bags. Close tightly and press occasionally to distribute fluid.
40. To coat meats or chicken pieces, measure seasoned flour into a paper bag, drop in a few pieces at a time and’ gently shake bag.
41. To keep open boxes of raisins and prunes, keep them in tightly covered jars. Hard dried out prunes and raisins may be revived by dropping them in boiling water for 2 or 3 minutes. Drain and dry and they will be tender again.
42. Store peeled ginger root in a plastic bag in the freezer compartment of the refrigerator and they will not dry up. When a recipe calls for ginger root, simply grate frozen root.
43. To center gelatin mold on serving plate, smooth a few drops of water on plate with fingers; unmold gelatin.
44. If you’re cooking for someone important — whether it’s your boss or a date — never try a new recipe and a new ingredient at the same time.
45. Cook pasta 1 minute less than the package instructions and cook it the rest of the way in the pan with sauce.
46. After working with garlic, rub your hands vigorously on your stainless steel sink for 30 seconds before washing them. It will remove the odor.
47. If you find you need more oil in the pan when sautéing, add it in a stream along the edges of the pan so that by the time the oil reaches the ingredient being cooked, it will be heated.
48. When you deep-fry, hold each piece of food with long tongs as you add it to the oil. Hold it just below the oil’s surface for five seconds before releasing it. This will seal the exterior and stop it from sticking to the pot or the other food.
49. To make a great sandwich, spread the mayonnaise from corner to corner on the bread. People rush this step and just do a swoosh down the middle. Every bite should be flavorful. Now that’s a sandwich!
50. If you keep it simple and buy ingredients at farmers’ markets, the food can pretty much take care of itself. Do as little as possible to the food; consider leaving out an ingredient and relying on instinct.
51. Always season meat and fish evenly; sprinkle salt and pepper as though it’s “snowing.” This will avoid clumping or ending up with too much seasoning in some areas and none in others.
52. For best results when you’re baking, leave butter and eggs at room temperature overnight.
53. When you’re browning meat, you should blot the surface dry with a paper towel so the meat doesn’t release moisture when it hits the hot oil. Too much moisture makes the meat steam instead of sear, and you will lose that rich brown crust.
54. Use a panini maker to make omlets fast (messy)
55. Use cookie cutters to fy some creative eggs
56. If an egg is fresh it will sink in water, if it’s off it will float
57. Put ice cream containers in a zip lock bag and it will stay as soft as when you first opened it
58. Use a panini press to make roast chicken
59. For golden eggs shake it intensely for 2 to 3 mins then boil
60. Run a knife under hot water to cut perfect cake slices
61. To remove fast from a soup stew or casserole, drop ice cubes to reveal congealed fat that will be easy to scoop out
62. Extend veggie freshness line the bottom of your refrigerator’s crisper drawer with paper towels, They’ll absorb the excess moisture that causes veggies to rot.
63. Make veggies crunchy, when radishes, celery, or carrots have log their crunch, simply pop them in a bowl of iced water along with a slice of a raw patato and watch the limp vegetables freshen up right begore your eyes.
64. No need to peel potatoes before boiling them; the skin will just slide off once they’re cooked. Transfer them to an ice bath when they’re done cooking, then twist the peel off with your hands
65. Freeze meat to make it easier to slice for stir-fries and stews.
66. Refrigerate leftovers within two hours of preparation. Leaving food out too long is a safety hazard. Ensure the fridge is not too packed but has plenty of air circulating around the food.
67. Measuring Baking Powder, Salt and Spices – Use standard measuring spoons. Heap ingredient in spoon. Level off with spatula.
68. Never store an apple near a banana unless you want to ripen the banana in a short period of time!
69. Potatoes: To keep them from budding, place an apple in the bag with potatoes!
70. Store tomatoes with stems pointed down and they will stay fresher, longer!
71. To keep lemon fresh put them in water and store in refrigerator.
72. Never store potatoes near onions! Potatoes rot quickly if stored near onions!
73. Try to put some vinegar on your hands and rub it let it stay for 2 minutes to remove the fishy smell.
74. Crack-free hard boiled eggs! ADD A PINCH OF SALT to the water when hard-boiling to have a smooth & crack free hardboiled eggs!
75. To rescue a recipe that tastes too sweet or too salty after you’ve mixed the ingredients, try adding a dash of White Vinegar. It may save the day.
76. Peel ginger with a spoon! So much easier to shave the skin off than cutting it with a knife.