Top 10 Quick Fix Tips (For Busy Days)

Top 10 Quick Fix Tips (For Busy Days) :

    Tomato paste or sauce can be used instead of fresh tomatoes. This saves a lot of chopping time.
    Soak chik peas in boiling water if you forget to soak it ahead of time. In this way only 1 hour of soaking in needed.

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    Make ginger garlic paste in bulk and put it in the fridge. Similarly, make green chilly paste and keep in the fridge. This saves a lot of cooking time.
    You can also make a big batch of chapatti dough using your grinder atta attachment or food processor. Divide into smaller portions, put in ziploc bags and freeze it. Whenever you need, take one bag, thaw it and use. This stays good for more than a month.
    While chopping vegetables, chop in a bulk, use what is needed and put the remaining in the fridge for later use. Chopping a vegetable at a stretch saves a lot of time.

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    Have lots of peeled garlic in an air tight box in the refrigerator.
    Grate a whole coconut at a time and refrigerate/freeze it so it can be used easily whenever needed. You can use the grater attachment in the wet grinders to get it done easily. I prefer freezing as it stays fresh longer (upto 3 months). Thaw it for 5 minutes before each use.
    Fry grated coconut in bulk with curry leaves and store it in the fridge. This can be used easily whenever gravies have to be made.
    Whenever you boil potatoes or cauliflower make some extra and put it in the fridge. This can be used to make stuffed parathas, cutlets etc.
    Use the microwave to saute onions, tomatoes and to cook up the vegetables.

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Top 10 Preparation & Chopping Tips:

    Soak the onions in water for about 10 minutes before chopping to avoid tears.
    For peeling garlic easily, separate the cloves and soak it in water for 15 minutes. Another option is to put the cloves in a closed jar and shake vigorously for a minute. Most of the skin comes loose and the rest can be removed easily.
    For chopping dry fruits, freeze them for an hour before cutting. This is also true for meat and processed meat like bacon, panchetta etc.
    Do not wash the mushrooms with water as it will absorb the water. Clean it with a damp cloth instead. This way the preparations will not be soggy.
    To peel the skin of almonds, tomatoes or peaches, simply soak in boiling water for 5-10 minutes. The skin can be easily removed.

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    To remove the corn from its cub, hold it straight with one end on the bottom of a big vessel. Then strip the corn with a knife. This will prevent messing up of the entire place.
    When cutting raw banana, potatoes or eggplant, soak it in water to avoid discoloration. Similarly, to prevent apples, avocados, bananas or peaches from browning, add lemon juice.
    Before grating cheese, apply some oil in the grater to prevent it from sticking. Also, spray the cup with oil before measuring honey so that it comes out fully without sticking.
    While adding curd to gravies or biryani, beat it nicely and reduce the temperature before adding.
    Wash the rice thoroughly until the water runs clear so that the excess starch gets drained away and the rice is not very sticky after cooking.

Most Essential Kitchen Secrets

When boiling milk, smear ghee on the edges of the vessel to prevent overflow.

While making dosas, put two tbsps of cooked rice into the batter. The dosa will flip over easily and will be crisper.

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If you want to keep any salad fresh for an evening party, first chill the bowl or tray in which you intend to serve the salad.

Store mushrooms in paper bags rather plastic bags or trays. This stops them from becoming ‘slimy’ and prolongs their life.

While boiling corn on the cob, add a pinch of sugar to help bring out the natural sweetness.

While cooking cabbage, add a bay leaf. This will reduce the smell during cooking and also give a subtle flavor.

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While cooking mince, put a whole carrot in with the mince. The carrot will absorb the excess fat in the meat. Remove the carrot when cooked and cut up with other vegetables for soup or simply discard.

To peel an orange or a tomato less messily, dunk it in hot water for a minute or two and then in cold water for the same amount of time. You will have an easy to peel orange or tomato.

Place rolled ‘puris’ in the fridge for 10 minutes before frying them. They will consume less oil and turn out crisper.

To boil a cracked egg, add some vinegar to the water and place the egg in it. The egg shell will remain inside.

To remove seeds from lemon, just roll it on hard surface applying a little pressure from your palm. Now cut it, you will find all seeds coming out easily.

When you prepare butter at home, you get buttermilk as a by-product. Boil this buttermilk at medium heat, and you will get paneer at no extra cost.

Sprinkle some salt in a frying pan to prevent oil from splashing.

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Do not add salt to ‘rajma’ and ‘urad dal’ while boiling. It will take half the time to boil when salt is subtracted.

While steaming fish, place a piece of cheesecloth at the bottom of the pan. The fish can be lifted out without breaking.

Add a little sugar while frying onions; they will turn pink or brown faster.

To make your omelettes more spongy and soft, add two - three spoons of milk to the egg batter and mix properly.

If oil used for frying turns dark, add a teaspoon of white vinegar, cover with a lid and keep on slow flame. When the spluttering stops, remove the lid; the oil will have cleared and it can be strained and re-used.

Soak two slices of bread in a cup of coconut-water and with half a tablespoon of sugar. Then blend and use the mix in your ‘idli’ or hoppers batter to ferment it.

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If you sauté sliced onions without oil, the moisture content in the onions will be reduced faster. You can then add a little oil to sauté the onions. This way, you tend to use less oil and your sautéing is faster.

Simple Kitchen Tips You Wish Someone Told You Earlier

1.Use tongs to cooking pretty much everything

Spatulas are awesome for anything that needs to be flipped or scraped, like eggs and pancakes. For everything else, tongs are the way to go. They’re much more nimble and less awkward to use, and you’ll find far fewer things jumping from your pan onto the floor. If you have non-stick cookware, be sure to use tongs with nylon tips. And always go for the 12-incher’s.

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2. Store everything in tupperware

As much as I’d like to be the kind of person who trims their herbs, puts them in an vase then wraps them in a damp paper towel so they last a week, I’m way too lazy for that. The good news though is that tupperware keeps almost everything fresh for much longer than your crisper, including berries, salad greens and produce that has already been cut. Because it is reusable, it is also more ecofriendly.

3. If you own a knife, don’t use a garlic press

Peeling and pressing garlic is a huge waste of time. To use a clove of garlic, set it on a cutting board and smash it with the flat side of a big knife (any chef’s knife will do). The papery skin will come right off, and you can mince it real quick right there in about 10 seconds. Done.

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4. Keep a separate cutting board for things you don’t want flavored with garlic and onion

Assuming you follow any recipe ever, you’ll probably be using your cutting board for cutting onions or garlic. If so, I recommend getting a separate board you keep aside for cutting fruit, cheeses and other things that you’d prefer didn’t absorb the odors of previous meals.

5. Herbs that are supposed to be green should be purchased fresh, not dry

With the possible exception of dried oregano (great in Mexican, Greek and Italian foods), herbs are always better fresh. They’re also cheap and available almost anywhere. In particular, always buy fresh parsley, basil, cilantro, thyme, tarragon or chives if you can help it (a few should be in your fridge at all times). The dried versions are OK if not too old, but they’re very delicate and the jar will probably go bad before you use it twice.

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6. Don’t bother with pre-filled spice racks

If you want spices to serve their purpose (making food taste better), you shouldn’t own a pre-filled spice rack. Spices go off quickly, and when their color starts to dull they’ve lost a lot of their flavor. There are several dried spices that are invaluable in my kitchen (cinnamon, cloves, curry powder, cumin,coriander, chili pepper, etc.), but you should purchase them as you need them, and in small quantities unless you use them frequently.

7. Overcooking is probably your biggest kitchen mistake

Overcooked vegetables are mushy and flavorless, overcooked meat is tough and chalky, overcooked grains are soggy and fall apart. In other words, overcooked food is bad food. Learn the art of taking food off the heat just before it is done, and let it finish cooking with its internal temperature. You can always cook it more, but you can never cook it less.

8. If it tastes OK but not great, it probably needs salt—and maybe some vinegar or olive oil

The media loves to bash salt, but I’m not convinced that sodium (rather than processed food) is the real problem. Also, the small amount you use when cooking at home won’t compare to what you’d get at a restaurant or in a packaged meal. Though over-salted food certainly tastes bad, under-salted food is bland and boring and a little dash can often save a dish.

If you think you’ve added enough salt but something is still off, try a small splash of vinegar or lemon (any acid) to brighten the flavor. If the food is dry or sticky, try adding a touch of olive oil. These three things can fix almost any lackluster meal.

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9. Don’t buy regular big onions, use shallots or leeks

For most everyday cooking, milder onions will enhance your dish and give it more nuance. Big, strong onions certainly have their place in cooking (soups, roasts, etc.), but most kitchen experiments will be improved by more subtle onion flavor.

10. Fruit (other than berries) shouldn’t be stored in the fridge

Refrigerators dull the taste of most produce, so if you bought something that doesn’t need to go in there leave it out. Most fruits including apples, oranges, pears and bananas don’t belong in the refrigerator unless you’re not planning on eating them soon. I don’t refrigerate tomatoes, avocados or peppers either. Very hot climates are an exception, however.

5 food items to avoid in instant pot

Instant Pots were the gift of the year in 2017 thanks to their ability to handle half a dozen kitchen tasks in one. The handy device functions as a slow cooker, pressure cooker, and rice cooker, and can be used to sauté, brown, or warm food. It's also being used as a healthy eating tool with impressive results.

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As you can imagine, there are TONS of things you can make in an Instant Pot. However, there has to be a line somewhere. Not to burst any Instant Pot bubbles, but there are a few things you're better off cooking a more traditional way.
Deep-Fried Anything

It's tempting to stick some chicken in there and think southern-fried-chicken will come out, but unfortunately, Instant Pots don't work like that. They don't get hot enough to fry, so you'll need a true deep fryer, Air Fryer, or Dutch Oven to make that happen.

Cookies

Instant cookies do sound pretty great, but you're better off using a regular oven here. Cookies need a flat surface to bake on, and won't heat correctly inside an Instant Pot. Plus, you couldn't fit that many across the bottom surface anyway.

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Yogurt

Yes, it's possible. There's even a button for it! However, we've seen one too many online fails to comfortably say this one's worth it. The process takes over 18 hours, and is easy to mess up if you're not super careful. If you're that big on yogurt, you might as well just head to Costco and stock up.

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Creamy Sauces

As with a slow cooker, dairy products don't do super well in an Instant Pot. The quick-heat function can make milk curdle or scald, or make cheese clump together. If you're making something creamy, try stirring the dairy products in at the end after the pressure cooking has been done.

Bread

Again, it can be done, but it's really not the ideal way to make bread. For one, there's not a big time benefit to baking bread in an Instant Pot. Also, there won't be a crust. Personal preference, but worth noting. Thirdly, from what we've seen, Instant Pot bread isn't very aesthetically pleasing. We say skip it!

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Fillet cutting tips with other kitchen tips

Method

    STEP 1Lay whole salmon onto chopping board.
    STEP 2Make incision behind fin and cut along back of head, breaking through bones. Do the same to the other side and remove salmon head.
    STEP 3Run knife along back bone of fish, slicing whole salmon into two fillets.
    STEP 4Remove ribcage from salmon fillets.
    STEP 5To skin salmon, hold tail and place knife above skin and slice sideways, pulling the skin off at the same time.
    STEP 6Remove ribcage from salmon fillets.
    STEP 7Pin-bone salmon fillets.
    STEP 8Slice fillets into portions.

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If you’re anything like me, you spend a lot of time planning meals and preparing food, making all of those helpful kitchen tips and tricks that save you time (and your sanity) worth knowing! And so, I have rounded up some of the best kitchen tips that just might have you saying “Why didn’t I think of that?”. I certainly wish I had known these a long time ago!

A few of these “secrets” I know I will use often (like fishing out broken egg shells and freezing leftover sauces). Whether you’re a workaholic who barley has time to open the fridge, a busy stay-at-home mom, or are in the running for your own show on The Food Network, I think you’ll find a few hacks here that will make life easier!

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1. Grate Cold Butter

I haven’t tried this little trick just yet, but I love the idea! Your stick of butter has to be close to frozen for it to work, and you must work fast to keep it from melting, but the grated butter is perfect for adding to flour before baking biscuits, scones, muffins, etc.. It also makes the butter melt much faster, so if your butter is too cold to spread, consider grating it first and then topping toast, veggies, or a baked potato!

2. Scooping Up A Broken Shell

It happens every time! I make eggs for breakfast just about every morning, and the brown organic eggs seem to break off into little pieces so much easier. Instead of fishing around with your finger to dig them out of your bowl (yeah, I do that), use one of the egg shell halves to scoop it out!

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3. Egg Freshness Test

I eat too many eggs for them to ever go bad, but this sure is good to know. I got so excited when I saw this, I dug into my fridge to test it for myself. My eggs seemed to be 4-6 days old — good enough! You’re probably wondering how this works, and yes, there is some science behind it. Eggshells are porous, allowing air to slowly get in over time. As more air enters the egg, it gets lighter and lighter, which explains why it will eventually float.

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How to easily fillet your bass?

Ice fishing season in northern Maine is in full swing. Lakes and ponds throughout the region are filling with ice shacks; die hard fisherman staking their claim on the ice like the frontier land rush settlers of yore. Augers have bored access to the lunkers waiting beneath the ice. The tip ups are being set and the jigging rods are in hand.

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While pan-fried trout and smoked salmon are regarded by some as the logical menu choice for their ice fishing endeavors, don’t overlook bass that come through the ice. Garlic and lemon bass fillets over white rice will give your palate a taste of summer, even after the coldest of ice fishing trips.

Here is a quick and easy method I use to fillet fish.

What you’ll need and preparation

The basic items you will need are: two sharp knives (one for cutting, one for filleting), wood or polymer cutting board, access to water for rinsing and a discard container. If you plan on freezing your fillets for later use, a roll of paper towels and a vacuum sealer will come in handy. Regular freezer bags will work just fine if you don’t own a vacuum sealer.

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While it is not an absolute necessity to clean fish before filleting them, I recommend it. Best practice is to “Gut & Gill” the fish immediately after the catch. In Maine, we are required to either release the fish alive after the catch or immediately kill it and add to our daily bag.

TIP: Cleaning the fish and removing the gills after the catch keeps the fish fresher and helps avoid spoiling. It also makes for much neater work on the cutting board.

Making the cuts

Make your first cut just behind the pectoral fin vertically, using your cutting knife. The scales are very tough and will dull a knife quickly – use one knife for cutting and use the other only for the actual filleting step.

Make your cut to the backbone and stop, being careful not to cut through it. You can cut off the pelvic fins at this point if they are getting in your way. The pelvic fins are the ones on the belly near the head of the fish.

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Next, insert the tip of your knife at the leading edge of the first cut you made at the top of the backbone. Make a cut along the backbone about an inch deep all the way to the middle of the caudal peduncle. That’s the place where the back and the tail meet. This will act as your guide when you start to fillet.

TIP: Be careful of that dorsal fin. It’s the spiky fin on the spine and will poke you if you grab the fish the wrong way!

Start the fillet

Run the fillet knife flat on a 45 degree angle from the top of the backbone where your first two cuts meet and “swing” the tip down and in along the rib cage until the knife is perpendicular to the backbone.

Let the fillet knife glide over the ribs and along the backbone in one long slow motion. Avoid “sawing” with the fillet knife. If you find that you need to saw, your knife is too dull.

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Continue the cut until you reach the caudal peduncle. Use the backbone cut you made as your guide for depth and end the fillet where you stopped the backbone cut before the tail.
TIP: Use the palm of your hand to keep slight downward pressure as you glide the fillet knife. Make sure to keep your hand flat!

Flip and finish

Next, flip the fillet away and over with the skin still attached at the caudal peduncle. Use the same method as before to get the fillet knife started. Ease the knife between the fillet and the skin, bringing the knife perpendicular again.

The best tips for chopping and dicing

In general, you really want to avoid serrated knives for small dices, opting for a smooth, thin blade and a knife that is strong enough to cut through some tougher veggies, but not so large that you can’t get what you need into tiny 1/8-inch cubes.

Small Dice (Fancy name: Macedoine)

“I find that a small dice, roughly 1/4-inch cubes, are one of those knife cuts we use for many things. The size of it fits well on a spoon, and lets you get multiple things into one bite. It works for soups, salads, and raw dishes," says Ted Hopson, head chef of L.A.'s The Bellwether. For this, you start off by cutting 1/4-inch planks, then turn those on their side, and cut them into 1/4-inch strips. Gather those strips up, turn them again, and cut them into a small dice.

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Super-Small Dice (Fancy name: Brunoise)

This cut will allow you to cut things into 1/8-inch cubes. To do this, use the exact same method mentioned previously, just make it smaller. “I usually use this when working with strong-flavored items, like onions. People don't love huge bites of onions—so we cut them smaller, then you get the flavor but it blends nicer into whatever you're cooking,” Hopson says. “When working with raw dishes, like tartare and crudo, this works great to add lots of flavors in small bites. This knife cut is probably too small for hearty vegetables, like celery root, but perfect for shallots.”

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Now go dominate your prep-work like the master chef you are (just please, don't cut yourself!).

Dicing an Onion

Start by slicing off the smallest possible amount from the stem of the onion to create a flat surface, but keep the root intact. Then, with the stem end on the counter, cut the onion in half.

Place the flat cut side of the onion down on the counter with the root end away from your knife. Slice into the onion from stem end toward the root, but don’t cut all the way through the onion. Stop before you get to the root, which will hold the onion together while you dice it.

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Next, make more slices down the onion from root to stem, but again, don’t slice all the way through the stem and leave the root intact. Finally, make a third set of slices across the onion, and the onion will fall into perfect dice (we say "perfect" lightly).

Chopping Herbs

According to Chef Daniel Holzman, co-founder of The Meatball Shop and founder of Project Foodie, chopping herbs tends to crush them, releasing all of their subtle flavors before they get to your dish. To keep this from happening, he says it’s important to use a very sharp knife and always slice rather than rough-chop the herbs.

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“I start by chiffonading them, which is a fancy French word for cutting them into thin strips. Start by bunching, stacking, or rolling a small pile of leaves, then slice them thinly in one direction. After that, rotate the stack 90 degrees and slice the strips into tiny squares. This gives you an even chop at whatever size you’d like with a minimal number of cuts. It saves time and keeps your herbs fresh and flavorful.”