For some people, cooking is a fun hobby. For others, cooking is a necessity. No matter what your spe...

1. Vegetable Essentials: How you can Prepare, Prepare And
also Serve Veggies
For some people, cooking is a fun hobby. For others, cooking is a necessity. No matter what your
specific situation is, learning more about cooking is what will make you become a better cook. The
following article is going to provide you with this important information. Use it to your advantage.
It is extremely embarrassing to have lumps in your gravy. It happens to everybody from the beginner
cook to the master chef. There is a simple trick you can use to eliminate them. Drain the gravy
through a fine strainer and discard the lumps. This technique can be used for other sauces or soups
too.
You should not boil pasta in water that has oil in it. When you add oil to the water that you are
boiling your pasta in it keeps the sauce from sticking to the pasta. By leaving the oil out you can toss
your pasta in the sauce and it will cling to it.
When your pasta is done and you are finished draining, pour some Parmesan cheese on top, which
will give your sauce something to latch on to. This will make things much easier for you when you
are creating your meal and allow you to layer the levels of your pasta.
Planning out meals for the coming week can save you both time and money. You can buy all of the
things you will need beforehand without having to make spontaneous trips to the store during the
middle of a busy week. You can have a planned schedule and it will make it easy for you to prepare
things before you actually cook.
If you want to reduce the amount of calories and fat in a mashed potato dish, substitute cauliflower
for some of the potatoes. Cauliflower blends perfectly with your potatoes without changing the taste
of your mashed potatoes. Cauliflower is also the same texture and color of potatoes when mashed so
it's a great way to add more veggies, while lowering calories from classic mashed potatoes.
You can save a lot of money by buying potatoes for your favorite dishes in larger quantities. Make
sure you store them in a cool dark place (preferably in a root cellar). Place them in a crate loosely
and keep the storage temperature between 45 and 50 degrees F. Avoid storing them in the
refrigerator as they become sweet.
It is possible to cook healthy without abandoning all of the rich, creamy dressings that can
contribute so much flavor. One method is to use Greek-style yogurt as a replacement for
mayonnaise. Half of the mayonnaise called for in the recipe should be replaced with the yogurt. This
will give the same great taste while cutting down on the unhealthy effects of the mayo.
A good tip to do when it comes cooking and preparing food is to prepare all the necessary
ingredients that you need at night, that way when morning comes you are not stressing about them.
This will help you concentrate at the task at hand which is preparing food in the best way possible.
For an easy meal to put together, save the sauces from other meals you had earlier in the week. Put
them in an ice cube tray. You can reheat the cubes in a saute pan for a quick sauce. Add some
veggies and you will have a yummy meal.

2. Never use oil when you are boiling pasta. Try not
to let any oil get in the pot when you are boiling
water to cook your pasta. The oil will transfer to
the pasta. This will leave the noodles slick, which
means any sauce you put on them later will not
stick.
It's important to include beans and tofu in your
diet if you're trying to increase your protein intake.
Both are easily available to buy at almost every
grocery store. A delicious alternative to meat is tofu pan fried with your favorite seasonings. Boil
beans with a sauce or herbs, or add them to a salad to serve up some additional protein.
A great cooking tip is to spray your pan with oil before you cook with it. Spraying the pan with oil
will make it so that the food doesn't stick to the pan. Trying to clean a pan with food stuck on it can
be very frustrating and time consuming.
Stock up on ingredients at your local farmers' market. This fresh, healthy food pretty much prepares
itself. The flavors of natural foods dress up the taste of any dish. Avoid over preparing these foods to
preserve the natural flavor, and follow your instinct when it says to leave an ingredient out.
Sometimes, the most simple dishes are the best.
When you are adding food to a slow cooker make sure that you add tender vegetables like
mushrooms, peas, fish, and squash during the final half hour. This is important because adding them
too early will cause them to disappear in to the dish. You will be able to taste them, but you might
not be able to see them.
Oil added to a pan while sauteing needs to be fully heated before it is absorbed by your ingredients.
Slowly pouring the oil along the edge just inside the pan will ensure it is the correct temperature by
the time it reaches your ingredients.
If you love to cook but have minimal space for a library of cookbooks in your kitchen, consider
purchasing a small laptop or netbook exclusively for kitchen use. You can keep your own recipes and
notes on the computer, pull up thousands of recipes online, and listen to your favorite radio stations
or TV shows as you cook.
You can prepare minced garlic ahead of time to be ready to use. Simply mince the garlic as normal
and spread in a http://www.mangiabenepasta.com/pastry_collection.html small pan. Freeze this pan
until the garlic begins to become solid, at which point you take it out, and slice it into cubes. Place
these cubes in a plastic bag and store in the freezer. When you are sauteing puff pastry recipe ideas
vegetables or preparing food later, you can use a cube or two of this prepared minced garlic. The
heat from the frying pan will melt the garlic, and the result is quick and easy garlic with a fresh
flavor.
In the real world, cooking involves practical real world ideas. You will have the best experience
when you have simple information that you can easily translate into your kitchen. Complexity will
slow you down. When you put into practice the tips that you have learned here, you will notice that
your meals will become much tastier.