Hot topics for both consumers and webmarketers on WebmasterRadio.FM
Every Wednesday, 4PM Eastern.
Paper in the Microwave
Use paper products in your microwave only if you are cooking for less than 10 minutes, otherwise it could ignite and catch on fire. Do not use recycled paper products as they can contain metal bits; or dyed paper products, as the dye could leach into your food.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Julienne
To julienne food, cut it into thin matchsticks about 2 inches long. First cut food into slices about 2 inches long and 1/8 inch thick. Stack slices; cut lengthwise into 1/8 inch wide sticks.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Rice Alternatives
Try quinoa or whole wheat couscous instead of rice for a change of pace. They cook faster than rice and will provide nice variety to your diet.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Freshen Up Tomatoes
If you want to use fresh tomatoes, but all you can find are tasteless, out-of-season ones, you can freshen canned tomatoes and liven up their taste in order to make them into a viable substitute. Simply drain a can of plum tomatoes and cut each one into 2 or 3 slices. Place them in a shallow glass dish and pour orange juice on top. Refrigerate overnight, then drain, chop and use for your favorite recipe. Great on pizza.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Cleaning Fresh Herbs
Whenever cooking with fresh herbs, be sure to wash herbs well. Dirt and soil will hide in crevices and leaf centers. Even a few granules of dirt can spoil a delicate dish. For large bunches of herbs, bathe the leaves in a bowl of cool water, then dry them well on paper towels before using.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Avoid Getting in a Rut
To keep yourself from getting into a diet rut, choose a different cookbook each month to plan your meals around. There is a real abundance of vegetarian cookbooks out there, and you will find recipes you never would have otherwise thought of. Plan your meals ahead of time, and make sure you have the necessary ingredients on hand.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
How to Cook Beans
For each 1/2 cup soaked beans, do the following: 1) Put the beans in a large pot and add 4 cups water. 2) Bring to a boil, skimming off any foam that forms on the surface. 3) Turn down the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until you can pierce the beans with a knife. This will take anywhere from an hour (kidney beans, pinto beans, chickpeas) to an hour and 40 minutes (black beans, white beans). Note: To cook lentils, refer to specific recipes.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Using Fresh Herbs
When cooking with fresh herbs, add them near the end of cooking time. Unlike dried herbs, which are best added to cooked dishes early on, the flavors of fresh herbs stand out best when just picked and barely cooked.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Prep Work
When cooking a meal, always do all of the prep work - chopping, peeling, grating, etc. first. YouŽll be able to complete your meal quickly, and you wonŽt be stuck dicing carrots while the rest of your stir-fry burns.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Leftover Rice
When you make a pot of rice, make more than you need at one meal. The leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 2 weeks. Rice can be reheated and served with steamed vegetables, bean burritos, tacos, vegetarian chili, used to fill cabbage rolls, make fried rice or rice pudding.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Baking Bread
When bread is baking, a small dish of water in the oven will help to keep the crust from getting too hard or brown.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Quickly Cooling Food
To cool food quickly and evenly, spread it out and make more surface area by transferring it to a shallower pan or dividing it among several small shallow containers. You could also try placing the hot pan in the sink on a cooling rack with cool water running underneath it. You can help hot liquids like soups and sauces cool by stirring them constantly.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
No Tough Beans or Corn
To avoid toughening beans and corn when they are cooking, only add salt to the pot when cooking is half finished.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Planning, Cooking, Preparing
More than likely youŽll be pleasantly surprised to find the planning, cooking and preparing of vegetarian foods to be fun, simple, convenient, and less costly than you are used to. It just takes a shift in thinking and a few variations. And, just like meal planning in general, it can be as simple or elaborate as you make it.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Baking Powder Substitute
For each 1 teaspoon of baking powder called for in a recipe, you can make a substitute by using 1/4 teaspoon baking soda and 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Rolling Pin Substitute
If a rolling pin isnŽt handy, try using a chilled, unopened bottle of wine with straight sides as a replacement. The weight and temperature of the bottle let you roll out your dough with very little effort.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Homemade Strainer
If you find yourself without a strainer or colander, you can make your own by poking holes in an aluminum pie plate with a knife. This should work great for straining vegetables or pasta.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Homemade Egg Substitutes
In many recipes, you can create your own egg substitute by any of the following methods: use one ounce of mashed tofu; use 1/2 mashed banana in sweet recipes; mix one tablespoon of flax meal with two tablespoons water; or use one tablespoon of cornstarch or arrowroot mixed with two tablespoons of water. These techniques will help the recipe to "bind" when eggs are included for that purpose.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Low-Fat Cooking
When you use less fat in cooking than is called for in a recipe, spend more time stirring and check the food more often. Foods lower in fat tend to burn more easily.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Recipe Modifications
When you modify a recipe, use a pencil to make notes on the original recipe of what substitutions you made and how much of each ingredient you used. After tasting the dish, write down suggestions for improvements or any minor adjustments youŽd like to make next time. Whenever you make an adjustment, erase and update your notes on the recipe.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Dice
Diced foods are small, uniform cubes of about 1/4 inch in size. To dice, first cut the food into matchsticks or shreds. Bundle pieces together; slice cross-wise into uniform cubes.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
How To Soak Beans
Soaking beans serves two functions. It cuts the cooking time by up to half and it makes the beans easier to digest. When you throw out the soaking liquid, you are getting rid of much of the indigestible sugars that cause gas. Also, the beans retain their nutrients.
1) Rinse the beans in a sieve and pick through them, throwing out any pebbles or discolored beans you may find. 2) Put them in a large pot and add enough water to cover them by at least an inch. 3) Cover and refrigerate overnight. Drain any remaining water, and add fresh water for cooking.
For a quicker version:
1) Rinse beans, put them in a large pot, and add water to cover them by an inch. 2) Bring the water to a boil over medium-high heat, cover, lower, the heat and simmer for 2 minutes. 3) Turn off the heat and let the beans sit, covered, for 1 hour. Drain the soaking water, and add fresh water for cooking.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Mince
In recipes requiring minced ingredients, cut the food into tiny irregular pieces, less than 1/8 inch in size.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Pressure Cookers
Modern pressure cookers are a great tool and can make cooking vegetarian meals very convenient. They seal in nutrients, reduce cooking time, and cut down on the number of pots needed. They are definitely a worthy investment if you would like to make meal preparation faster and easier.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Be Prepared to Prepare
The key to preparing great meals, however, isn't just having the food, it's being prepared. There are some things that a good kitchen just shouldn't be without and the following list is composed of these things:
8" or 10" Chef Knife: A good chef's knife makes chopping all of those vegetables a cinch.
Cutting Boards: Aside from providing a place to cut up all those veggies for those vegetarian dishes, a good chopping board can also help to keep your knives sharp.
Dental Floss: It may sound silly but dental floss is a useful tool to have in the kitchen. You can use floss to cut things that are gooey or that stick to your knives.
Potato Ricer: This handy tool can help you make perfect mashed potatoes and can help to prepare almost any root vegetable.
Zip Lock Bags: These can be used to store leftovers or to make a pastry bag in a pinch.
Scissors: Great for snipping fresh herbs and spices for that special sauce or to open tricky packages.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Cooking Green Vegetables
If you prefer to cook your vegetables you should know how to test them to be sure they are neither undercooked or overcooked.
Steam or boil until your greens are tender but still a little crispy. After about 4 minutes of cooking test them by piercing a small piece with the tip of a sharp knife, or take a bite and if it resists slightly then they are ready. To stop cooking as well as maintain their color, rinse with cold water immediately after draining.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Preparing Vegetarian Dishes
It's true that you could never get through every great vegetarian food recipe out there but that doesn't mean that preparing one will take you hours on end. Choosing to prepare a fabulous vegetarian dish doesn't have to entail slaving away in the kitchen. In fact, many veggie recipes can be pulled off in less than thirty minutes.
By taking a short trip to you local library, browsing the Internet, or picking up a simple cookbook at the bookstore, you can easily put together a collection of quick and delicious meatless meals to keep in your kitchen. If you really don't have the time to cook at all, there are countless preprepared packaged vegetarian dishes available as well.
Save Tip
Comments
Tip Rating
Chopping
If a recipe asks you to chop the ingredients, this means to cut the food into small, irregular pieces about the size of peas.
LifeTips is part of ideaLaunch, the hub for a group of websites offering
solutions that help clients improve mind share, market share and profit online.
