What cooking tips do you have that most people probably don't know

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Re: knives in the dishwasher

I feel like there are a few people who are embarrassed that they've been dulling their knives and have wondered why their knives get sucky so quickly, but are all "um, well I meant to do that."

Don't you understand, I don't care enough about a trivial thing. I couldn't care less if they dull. It's easier just to throw them in the dishwasher.

Well surely you can understand that many people, particularly those in a cooking thread, don't like to work with dull knives? They suck.

[Anonymous]

To saute garlic without burning it, add it to oil before you turn the heat on. Then let it cook as it heats up.

[Anonymous]

Microwave steamer here. Let's try a few more and see if any help:

--I buy extra butter and freeze and just move one stick to the fridge at a time. If I need to use a frozen stick quickly, then I put in the microwave on the defrost setting. 8 second, rotate the stick 1/4 turn (rotate on the long axis rolling it like a square log), 8 more seconds, turn, so that it get 32 seconds 8 on each side. Then it's soft enough to cut with a butter knife.

--To clean coffee and tea stains from cups, an SOS pad will clean it off in seconds. I used to have problems that I only use SOS for a few things, and I would put it in a cup by the sink. The SOS pads rust before I finish using them. Now, SOS sells small mini SOS that they call one-time use, use and throw away. I can use one of these for a few weeks and it gets used up before it rusts. SOS also works for the blackened spots from cooking on a gas stove (on the bottom of pans).

--To sharpen your disposal blades, periodically toss a handful or two of ice in the disposal and run the disposal with minimal water until it runs smooth. To clean and freshen, throw all of your citrus peels and grind them.

--To speed up making deviled eggs, scoop your yolk mix into a plastic gallon bag, cut off the tip of one corner and pipe into the egg halves. Faster and easier and cleans up quickly.

--Another tip to soften brown sugar. Put a slice of sandwich bread (any type) in an airtight container or ziploc bag with the sugar. In a few hours, the moisture will move from the bread to the sugar, softening the sugar and making the bread stale.

--To make buttermilk, put 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar (distilled or cider) into a measuring cup, then add milk to the 1 cup level. Let sit for 5-10 minutes, and you'll have buttermilk.
I never keep buttermilk around, but this way I have some for biscuits or pancakes if I decide to make it at the last minute.

--If you have to slice chicken, put the chicken in the freezer for a 10-15 minutes, then slice. It will freeze just enough to make the chicken thick and solid instead of soft and the knife will pass through quicker and easier.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Re: knives in the dishwasher

I feel like there are a few people who are embarrassed that they've been dulling their knives and have wondered why their knives get sucky so quickly, but are all "um, well I meant to do that."

Don't you understand, I don't care enough about a trivial thing. I couldn't care less if they dull. It's easier just to throw them in the dishwasher.

Well surely you can understand that many people, particularly those in a cooking thread, don't like to work with dull knives? They suck.

And they're much more dangerous than sharp knives - you're far more likely to cut yourself when you're using a dull knife.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
--To sharpen your disposal blades, periodically toss a handful or two of ice in the disposal and run the disposal with minimal water until it runs smooth. To clean and freshen, throw all of your citrus peels and grind them.

--To make buttermilk, put 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar (distilled or cider) into a measuring cup, then add milk to the 1 cup level. Let sit for 5-10 minutes, and you'll have buttermilk.
I never keep buttermilk around, but this way I have some for biscuits or pancakes if I decide to make it at the last minute.

Steel is harder than ice – you’re not sharpening your blades. HOWEVER – that’s how I clean my garbage disposal and gets rid of smells.

+1 on the buttermilk tip

Pound chicken breasts flat before cooking – when it’s all the same thickness, it cooks more evenly and you don’t end up with an overdone side and a under cooked side. To keep raw chicken juices from going everywhere, put plastic wrap above and below the breast and get the sides to stick together. Make sure your plastic wrap is much bigger than the chicken.

To not cry when chopping onions, put the onions in the fridge for 20 min before chopping. But I really just keep my onions in the fridge. I use them all the time, so they’re never in there for more than a few days.

Frozen veggies are as nutritious as several day old fresh veggies. I only go grocery shopping once a week – early in the week we eat fresh veggies, later in the week we eat frozen. Took some trial and error to determine which veggies are still yummy when frozen (ex - stir fry mix, broccoli, peas, spinach)

To keep Tupperware from flipping in the dishwasher, weigh it down with tongs or a spatula. We always have a few of them in there anyway.

To more easily roll out pie crust, do it between wax paper. The wax paper will peel right off w/o messing up the thin pie crust and it’s much less messy than flouring the counter top.

For easy to peel eggs, steam instead of boil. Google it. Changed my life.

[Anonymous]

If I have to scoop shortening or lard into a measuring cup, I line the cup with Saran Wrap first. The fat slides right out, easier to clean up.

I keep lemon wedges in the freezer. They double as an ice cube in a glass of water or iced tea.

I keep those plastic clamshell containers that berries or lettuce are sold in, and use them to store washed/ chopped veggies (line with a paper towel first if needed).

If I'm heating the oven up for something like roast chicken, I load it up to cook an oven full of food: extra chicken to use as leftovers later in the week, a few beets for the next night's dinner (roast whole, then let cool and rub with a paper towel to remove the skin), a tray of kale to have around for snacking, some apples w/ cinnamon and brown sugar.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If I have to scoop shortening or lard into a measuring cup, I line the cup with Saran Wrap first. The fat slides right out, easier to clean up.

I keep lemon wedges in the freezer. They double as an ice cube in a glass of water or iced tea.

I keep those plastic clamshell containers that berries or lettuce are sold in, and use them to store washed/ chopped veggies (line with a paper towel first if needed).

If I'm heating the oven up for something like roast chicken, I load it up to cook an oven full of food: extra chicken to use as leftovers later in the week, a few beets for the next night's dinner (roast whole, then let cool and rub with a paper towel to remove the skin), a tray of kale to have around for snacking, some apples w/ cinnamon and brown sugar.

Don't the food smells get into other good. Ex don't the apples then smell like chicken? Or do you cover it all with foil or something?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I use dry white vermouth when a recipe calls for white wine - it's like $6 a bottle, lasts forever in the fridge, and leaves the good stuff for drinking, not cooking

Never cook with a wine (even a cheap wine) that you wouldn't drink. Those 'cooking' wines at the grocery are gross.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Rub your hands on your stainless steel water faucet neck after cutting onions to get the onion smell off your hands.

Probably common knowledge but clean your cast iron skillet with a clean paper or hand towel and a little bit of olive oil to keep the seasoning

Rubbing hands on stainless steel also works for getting the garlic smell off your hands.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Never put your knives in the dishwasher.

I can't believe how many people I've seen do this.

why not?

Also if the handle's wooden it will loosen the connection to the blade--no wooden parts in the dishwasher. That's why I buy metal or plastic handled knives. Another person who can't be bothered (but I do sharpen at home).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If I have to scoop shortening or lard into a measuring cup, I line the cup with Saran Wrap first. The fat slides right out, easier to clean up.

I keep lemon wedges in the freezer. They double as an ice cube in a glass of water or iced tea.

I keep those plastic clamshell containers that berries or lettuce are sold in, and use them to store washed/ chopped veggies (line with a paper towel first if needed).

If I'm heating the oven up for something like roast chicken, I load it up to cook an oven full of food: extra chicken to use as leftovers later in the week, a few beets for the next night's dinner (roast whole, then let cool and rub with a paper towel to remove the skin), a tray of kale to have around for snacking, some apples w/ cinnamon and brown sugar.

How do you like a cup?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Put a clove of garlic on a cutting board. Lay the FLAT side of a knife blade on the garlic. Smack the other flat side with your hand to smash the garlic clove. Remove paper easy peasy. Then chop. I used to hate peeling the paper off
!

Yes - bang or crush and and then peel. I sometimes use the bottom of a mug and press (non glass).

I also never cry from onions because I keep them in the fridge. tear free when I chop.

[Anonymous]

When boiling something in a pot - put a stainless steel spoon or utensil in it and the pot won't overflow.

When peeling pomegranates - do it in a bowl under water. The seeds come out so easily! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qfQ3_N7S6Y

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To separate eggs, use the empty soda bottle method. Google it. So worth it.

To clean your microwave with dried on food bits, put a cup of water in and microwave for 2-3 minutes (depending on how strong your microwave is), the steam will soften the food which will clean right off.

Even better if you add few slices of lemon to the water before heating it in the microwave.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Never put your knives in the dishwasher.

I can't believe how many people I've seen do this.

Why can't you put knives in the dishwasher?

The head dulls the blades, renders them not very useful. It's not the knives that are crap - it's that most people don't know how to take care of their knives.

I thought it was because it makes the glue in the handle loose, making the blade loose.