The ability to cook is a useful skill to have. Everyone loves a nice home-cooked meal. Unfortunately...

1. Easy Tips To Help You Cook The Perfect Meal
The ability to cook is a useful skill to have. Everyone loves a nice home-cooked meal. Unfortunately,
many people are less than successful in the kitchen. This article will describe many useful tips that
can help you improve your skills.
Make sure to keep herbs and spices in an area that is cool and dim. The flavor of the spices and
herbs will decrease if they are kept in areas with light, humidity, and heat. For most grounded herbs
and spices keep a lot of their flavor more than a year. Spices that have not been ground have the
potential to last upwards of five years. Store your spices correctly to make them last.
Do all the prep work ahead of time. It is essential to have all prep work finished before it's time to
begin cooking. If you are cooking a complex dish, take some of the stress out of it by having your
needed ingredients lined up and ready. You can help lessen the potential stress by getting all your
prep work done early.
If you are baking crusts for a pie or tart, you will probably need to bake them for a while longer than
you thought. The crust should turn a golden color, not simple blonde. The darker color results when
the sugar from the crust has started to caramelize and will have a much sweeter and crisper flavor.
When stir-frying meat, it should be thinly sliced on the bias. It can be a tedious, lengthy process.
Then take the meat of out the freezer when it has firmed up a little, but has not frozen yet, and cut
the meat at 45 degrees with the grain.
Do you enjoy flavoring your food with fresh basil? Place fresh basil into a glass. Next, fill the glass so
that the stems are fully submerged. This will allow it to stay fresh for weeks! Many times the basil
will root if the water is changed regularly. If you maintain the basil by trimming the outgrowth, you
can get quite a lot of free basil using this method.
When you store things like flour, baking mixes and sugar, you should use containers that are
airtight. Containers that are airtight will help keep your foods fresh a lot longer because they aren't
exposed to air, while also keeping it safe from bugs. They are a must-have for the kitchen and can be
purchased everywhere kitchen products are sold.
When preparing chicken stock, make a large amount. When you prepare stock, make a large
amount, so it can be frozen for later use. This stock is a popular base that can be used in a variety of
dishes, from soups to casseroles and much more. Allow the stock to cool, then split it up into heavy
duty Ziploc freezer bags.
If you want to eat healthier and lose weight, it's really important to use fewer oils in your cooking.
Oils and butter are a source of fats. A nonstick spray for cooking provides many of the same results
as oil; however, it does not add extra calories.
Tofu and beans are great sources of protein that can easily be added to your diet. Most grocery
stores stock these items. A delicious alternative to meat is tofu pan fried with your favorite
seasonings. Boil kidney, navy or pinto beans with seasonings and you can enjoy a protein-rich side
dish.

2. Be sure to read nutrition labels when purchasing ingredients. There are many hidden, unhealthy
ingredients put into common cooking preparations. Pay special attention to carbohydrate and salt
content, as eating too much of these can be especially dangerous.
Always measure the amount of cooking oil you use. Determining the exact amount of cooking oil to
use rather than just dumping it on your food helps you regulate the quantity of fat in each dish.
You'll be able to carefully account for all of the oil that you use.
If you purchase unripened fruits, place them in a perforated plastic bag. When fruits ripen, they
produce ethylene gas. When you store the fruit in a perforated bag, the ethylene gas can escape so
that the natural decay process slows down. This allows your produce and fruits to stay fresh longer.
An organized cooking area is where you should focus to avoid costly mistakes while cooking your
meals. When your cooking area is organized, you will be more productive and avoid errors. When
you are disorganized, misplacing items or making food inedible becomes much more likely.
Consider creating your own stock, in order to add some customized flavor to your dishes. You can
make this in large batches, and freeze some for later use in resealable freezer bags. You will have
stock on hand for soup and other things. Preparing your own stock in advance will reduce your need
to use cheap over-salted options instead.
Even if a meal looks irresistible, let it sit for a few minutes after it has finished cooking. Lots of
people don't take advantage of this important step for food. You may be tempted to serve people as
soon as the meal comes out of the oven. Doing so actually causes you to miss out on some extra
flavors. Always let the meal cool and sit for a little while.
Reserve some pasta water for use in your pasta sauce. Remove approximately a quarter of a cup and
set it aside. When you mix your pasta and sauce, also add the water you reserved. The combination
of water and the starch from the pasta will give your sauce body and creaminess.
When chopping fresh herbs, try shaking a small amount of salt on your cutting board first. The salt
helps to keep the herbs on the cutting board during chopping and also adds some extra flavor. Don't
add to much salt when doing this. Salt is known to boost the flavors of the items you use in your
recipe, including herbs.
As you can see, cooking can be easy. With the right techniques, creating delicious dishes for family
and friends can suddenly become a breeze! Now that you have been introduced to these great tips
and tricks, you just need to make the time to go and give them a try!