Of course, you love to eat, but you may not necessarily cook. Some people find it intimidating to step into the kitchen and get started preparing a meal. The tips contained in this article will take some of the mystery out of cooking and make it seem more doable for you.
When you shelve an herb or a spice, make sure it’s dark and cool. If light, humidity, and heat are present, these items will begin to lose their flavor. Ground herbs and spices will retain their flavor for about a year. You may retain your spice’s flavor for about 5 years. If they are stored properly, they will stay fresh longer.
Ensure that your baked fish is moist and tender by cooking “en papillote”. This is a French technique that refers to fish baked in a parchment-paper packet. Place the fish and vegetables of your choice in the center of a large piece of parchment paper. Bring the edges of the paper together, crease them tightly to form a seal, and bake for 10 to 15 minutes at 450 degrees. The fish and vegetables steam in the packet, keeping them moist and tender, and creating a tasty, healthy dish. (Clean-up is just as easy – simply throw away the paper after eating!)
If you are cooking an important meal for a significant person, such as a boss or a date, you should not serve a dish you’ve never attempted to cook before. Don’t attempt a dish that is new or very far out of your experience level. You will enjoy cooking more if you have greater peace of mind.
Have you felt sorry for tossing moldy fruit away? Is it possible to save the fruit by cutting the bad part out of it? Sadly half rotten fruit is something you can never really save. Throw half-rotten fruit away, because mold can go much deeper than your eyes can see, and you can get very sick from eating food with mold.
When cooking your next large pot of spaghetti, add a drop of oil to the boiling water. This will keep the pasta from sticking together and improve the taste. Your boiling time will remain the same and there is no extra work added by using this method.
As you can see, cooking does not need to be unnecessarily frightening or intimidating. Learning to cook is really within the grasp of anyone with enough interest to learn a few of the basics. Try some of the tips you have learned in this article, and get started cooking today.