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Cooking 101: Everything You Need To Know

Chris Kostopoulos Oct 12, 2012 · 3 min read

Restored from the Empower Network archive (2011–2017), lightly edited to meet our current advertising standards. Views are the original author’s.

Lots of people enjoy cooking as a relaxing, rewarding and creative hobby. A kitchen filled with with aroma and fresh ingredients is a great mood enhancer for most people. But it can be stressful trying to find good recipes and techniques to help you create that great meal. In this article, you will find many tips that can aid you in the creation of a meal that is out of this world.

When preparing mashed potatoes, stir in hot (not boiling) milk to mix them. As opposed to cold milk, hot milk will help make your mashed potatoes lighter and fluffier. This will turn your mashed potatoes from dull to delightful with virtually no effort.

TIP! While cooking or baking, wash the dishes as your sauce simmers or your cookies bake. Have your sink full of soapy, hot water one side, and use the other side to rinse.

Cut down on cooking time by doing your prep work in advance. Often times, you can prepare food prior to cooking by at least a couple days in advance. There are many cases when the meal will have more flavor if the ingredients are prepped a few days in advance. Getting your meals ready ahead may be a habit that lasts for a lifetime.

Cooking Oil

It is important to measure cooking oil. This will help you reduce how much fat is present in your cooking. Doing this will make you aware of exactly how much cooking oil you’re using.

TIP! Keep your spices and herbs stored in a dark, dry, and cool area. Exposure to humidity, heat and light can cause your spices to lose their flavor fast.

Rub your hands on stainless steel prior to washing them to eliminate odors of onions, garlic, fish and other strong ingredients. It does not matter if you use a spoon, a side of your stainless-steel sink, or a “soap bar” made of stainless-steel; rubbing your hand on it neutralizes the undesirable smell and freshens your hands.

When you are preparing potato skins or twice baked potatoes, consider using a baking potato. Red potatoes contain skins that are too thin to hold very much filling.

Set a timer that you can easily carry with you as well. Then you will know when the time is up even if you are not in the kitchen.

TIP! You should store your spices and herbs in a cool dry space out of direct sunlight to avoid flavor loss. Exposure to humidity, light and heat all affect the flavor of your spices.

If your burgers seem to be sticking to the surface of your grill, it may be hard to take them off without breaking them. The way to prevent this is to coat the grill with some vegetable oil prior to putting any food on the grill.

If you do any lengthy cooking process like boiling, many of the nutrients will be cooked out. You can keep all those healthy nutrients by using a quick method of cooking like steaming or by eating the vegetables raw.

A great tip to follow if you use oil to cook is to put it on the sides of the pan while cooking, so it’s already heated by the time it reaches the food. This will enhance the flavors of the food when you’re done cooking.

TIP! When using nonstick cookware, be sure to also use nylon, rubber, or silicon spatulas and spoons. Metal and wood utensils may gouge or scratch the Teflon coating and cause your cookware to be both difficult and dangerous to use.

If you’re feeling stressed at the idea of making dinner for the family, try to do most or all of your prep work the evening before cooking. You can cut up ingredients, measure spices, marinate meat and prepare sauces 24 hours in advance to avoid the stress of preparing a more complex meal. This will result in less stress the next day, and you will be more than ready to begin the cooking process.

As this article has discussed, cooking is revered by many as an excellent and enjoyable hobby. However, some people don’t know where to start, in terms of picking the right recipes or using the proper techniques. Follow this article’s advice and you will be on your way to cooking great food.