Cooking Tips - 5 Ways to Create Magic in the Kitchen
Cooking Secret No.1 - Buy Top Quality Ingredients
Leading chef’s only use the freshest and best tasting food they can find. Even the best chefs in the world would have difficulty making food taste good from inferior products. However, this does not mean everything has to be made from scratch.
When buying pre-prepared goods always go for quality and freshness. If cost is an issue try smaller portions. It is better for your waistline and your health to have small servings of good quality food rather than a large serving of an inferior product.
A helpful tip when using frozen or canned goods is to use them up as soon as possible. Don’t wait until they are near the end of their shelf life, as there is already deterioration in quality by then.
Cooking Secret No.2 - Keep it Simple
Some of the best tasting meals in the world are the simplest. I find that they have fewer ingredients but just compliment each other superbly.
Adding too many ingredients to a dish can create a canceling of flavors. Like when making pasta sauce, where the onion in the dish overrides the garlic flavor. I prefer not to add onion to my pasta sauces so the full flavor of the garlic can be brought out.
The opposite is the case when making French Onion Soup. For a fuller bodied onion flavor, don’t add garlic.
Cooking Secret No.3 - Use Complimentary Foods
A secret to cooking well lies in combining complimentary foods, where one ingredient actually enhances the flavor of the other. One of my favorite combinations is tomato and basil. Whether you’re making a pasta sauce or just putting tomato on a pizza nothing compliments it better than the herb basil.
Another great mix is oats, brown sugar and cinnamon. Whether I’ve used this complimentary combination for an apple crumble topping or just for hot oatmeal it creates an unbeatable flavor
You can come up with more of your own complimentary food groups simply by taking note of what foods taste great together!
Cooking Secret No.4 - Use only the Best Equipment
Good equipment makes your work in the kitchen a breeze. Ask any craftsman and he will tell you the value of good tools. Go for quality, ease of use and buy the best that you can afford. If there were only one thing I would recommend investing in, it would be to get a good knife set and keeping them sharp.
Good tools not only make your life easier in the kitchen but can also improve the final result, like in the case of my stainless steel cooking pots. Everything I cook in them comes out better than average simply because the cooking utensils are better than average.
Cooking Secret No.5 - Collect Good Recipes
Good recipes can come from many sources other than a cookbook or finding them online. Most of my favorite ones have actually come from family and friends. The benefit of obtaining recipes this way is that I have usually been able to taste them for myself beforehand. Live cooking demonstrations sometimes offer free samples so that you can test to see if the recipe suits your taste.
Televised cooking shows and magazines are another way to collect good recipes. I keep organized by putting any loose-leaf recipes I collect in a plastic leaflet file folder.
I’m glad to have been able to share my easy to follow secrets for creating cooking magic. Remember that being selective and keeping it simple are the two main ingredients to creating magic in the kitchen.
Happy Cooking!
If you would like to print out a free copy of Jeannette’s favorite recipes, go to http://cookingmagic.blogspot.com/ Then click on “My Favorite Recipes” on the right hand side of the page.
Tags: cooking, cooking recipes, cooking tips, food, food recipes, free recipes, home cooking, recipesHealthy Food Recipes for Nutrition and a Better Life
In the fast pace world today most people have settled for fast food. Which in turn has put them on a fast pace to poor health like obesity, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes and many more. I was a victim to congestive heart failure. Now I eat good nutritious food that is low in fat and sodium. I had a weight loss of 45 lbs just by changing my eating habits and now I feel great because of a low fat, low sodium diet.
The average American eats 6 to 18 grams of salt daily. Your body only needs a half gram or 500mg of salt each day. Here are some of the foods you should limit or stop eating. Ham, bacon, corned beef, luncheon meats, frozen, pre-breaded, pre-fried or smoked fish, canned foods, catsup, mayonnaise and store bought salad dressings.
Here are a few tips that will help. Avoid adding table salt to food. Use salt substitutes or herbs and spices. Eat fresh lean meats, poultry, fish, unsalted pork, egg whites and tuna canned in water. Choose unsalted nuts and use dried peas and beans. Use products made without added salt, rinse canned vegetables, beans and fish.
You also need to eat foods that are high in the good cholesterol or HDL. Foods like fresh fish, avocados, olive oil, soy beans, tofu, raw hazel nuts and almonds. These foods are high in good cholesterol HDL and help reduce bad cholesterol LDL. Also look for foods labeled organic for higher quality products.
Eating food that is low in cholesterol, fat and sodium dose not have to be boring. I have learned how to cook using various herbs and spices to liven up the flavor. When looking for new recipes I came across a great web site for cooking quick and easy foods. It also has links to other great web sites for recipes. Just go to http://www.quick-and-easyfoods.com on how to prepare great healthy and nutritious meals. You can even find vegetarian and low carb recipes to fit your needs.
Lawrence James has become an expert in healthy, nutritious foods out of necessity. He learned he had congestive heart failure after going to the hospital emergency room with swollen ankles and shortness of breath. After having a defibulator implanted he had to change his eating habits. At first the low fat low sodium meals he prepared lacked flavor and were not appealing. Over time, trial and error plus the help of the recipe web site http://www.quick-and-easyfoods.com he learned he could prepare delicious, healthy food. He now wants to help others continue or regain their health learning to prepare healthy, delicious and nutritious meals.
Tags: diet, diet plan, food, free recipes, healthy, low carb, low fat, nutrition, organic, vegetarian, weight loss