Herbs are fun and easy to grow. When harvested they make even the simplest meal seem like a gourmet delight. By using herbs in your cooking you can easily change the flavors of your recipes in many different ways, according to which herbs you add. For more details go to: www.dishadvice.com Fresh herbs are great in breads, stews, soups or vegetables. Every time you add a different herb you have completely changed the taste.
If you are a beginner start slowly, add just a little at a time adjusting as you go along until you have it just right. You will see in most instances that an individual herb is associated with a particular food item. Basil is paired with tomatoes, Oregano with sauces, Rosemary with lamb and Chives with butter or cream cheese. Of course, none of them are limited to these items, but you will see them paired most often with that particular food. Use your imagination and experiment, experiment, experiment!
You can make herb vinegars for salad dressings, marinades, or soups. Herb oils are very useful in cooking whenever a recipe calls for it.
Fresh herbs as garnishes dress up any dish making it look truly spectacular. Lay individual sprigs of rosemary over broiled lamb chops. Chop fresh parsley and sprinkle it over the top of your potato salad. The combinations are endless and the outcome delicious.
Fresh herbs will keep in the refrigerator for several days but then you must freeze them. They can be frozen by laying them a paper towel and putting them in a plastic bag. Once they are frozen only use them in cooking not as garnishes. A friend of mine washes them, puts them an ice cube tray, covers them with water and then freezes them. When she needs them for soup, stews or sauces she just drops a cube in.
My favorite herbs to grow are basil, oregano, lemon balm, parsley and mint. Mint is great but be careful, mint can over run your garden. A tip here would be to bury an empty coffee can and plant the mint in it. The can prevents the mint from creeping all through your garden.
I love to make herb butters. Take a half of a cup of softened butter and mix in about 4 tablespoons of a fresh herb. For help visit: www.camping-outdoors-recipes.com Lay out a piece of saran wrap, place the butter in the middle roll the saran wrap up to form a log out of the butter. Put in the refrigerator and anytime you need a pat of butter just cut it off the log. (Hints for log butter: potatoes, bread, steaks, noodles or any kind of sauce).
A fresh herb in any salad dressing really makes it sparkle. You can use any herb or a combination, be creative.
I learned a trick a long time ago using basil, lemon and avocados to create and instant natural face mask. Put a big handful of basil in a blender and run it on high. Once the basil has been pulverized, throw in a half of an avocado and a large teaspoon of lemon juice, mix until smooth. Wash your face, pat it dry and gently rub the avocado mixture on. Leave it on as long as you like, then use warm water to it wash off.
These are just a few ways you can use fresh herbs from your garden. I am sure you will come up with many more.
By Free Vegetable Recipes
One of the ways in which people can enjoy cooking is through Down Home cooking. There are actually varied down home cooking meals and recipes that you can choose from. Some try their constant favorite or try a new one. Enumerated below are just some of the recipes of Down Home cooking that you may want to try yourself. Of course, the recipes of Down Home cooking are not limited to the ones listed below.
Venision Stew
4 slices of bacon, cut into half inch pieces
2 cups of water
1 pound of boneless vension, cut into one inch cubes
1/2 tsp. of salt
1 cup of red wine
1/4 tsp. of dried marjoram leaves
1/4 tsp. of dried thyme leaves
1/4 tsp. of pepper
1 piece of large potato, cut into one-inch pieces
4 ounces of pearl onions
2 medium-sized carrot, cut into one-inch pieces
1/2 cup of cold water
1/2 tsp. of browning sauce, (optional)
3 tsp. of Gold Medal
By Free Vegetable Recipes
Home cooking network - A Pandora box for all the foodies. A never before array of recipes are a rare collection of specialties form all over the world. It can serve all sorts of individual needs that are vegetarian, quick & easy, traditional, etc. Ranging from gourmet to the simpler ones, these recipes can be broadly divided in to 4 heads. These are as follows:1. AppetizersUnlike the regulars such as bruschetta or deviled eggs, Home Cooking Network offers the individuals an opportunity to try various cuisines. Chinese, Mexican, French..... the list is amazing!i. Spicy Appetizers For spicy pre meal snacks check out the Mexican & Chinese appetizers.ii. Soups Soups make great appetizers and attribute to quite a healthy meal. If beef & chicken recipes do not tickle your taste bud being a vegetarian, look out for the vegetable soups such as carrot soup. For playing off the league try your hand with the French onion soup.iii. Salads Whether appetizers or a meal, salads are just perfect for all of us. And for the lazy ones, these are far more simpler & quicker recipes to opt from. They take almost no time, don't believe me, try potato salad or pasta salad! For some adventure & experience go for the Mexican salad.2. The Main CourseDo you wanna be different this time? Choosing the main course could be rather hard but with Home Cooking Network, the choices are endless.i. Beef In place of the plain steak, try some corned beef or beef casserole, or the beef stroganoff.ii. Chicken Recipes enlist things as simple as the grilled chicken to something special like the low carb recipes and the chicken cordon bleu.3. Traditional Home CookingThis can be defined in many ways as per one's own perception. Home Cooking Network consists of many recipes that can be used as main course, appetizers, desserts or just simple snacks. These recipes are representatives of different cultures like i. Polish ii. Kosher iii. German iv. Indian v. Mediterranean vi. Phillipino, etc.4. DessertsDesserts are surely delicious end to the meals. Home Cooking Network believes in trying different recipes, that are new, uncommon and easy to cook.i. Greek, Mexican and Phillipino desserts form a major chunk of the list. ii. Alongside it enlists all time favorites like pies. Among pies, Home Cooking Network contains recipes for key lime, fruit filled and pecan pies.5. Vegetarian SpecialAmong vegetarian cuisines, Home Cooking Network offers various new & exquisite recipes like:i. Pasta dishes ii. New recipes for asparagus and sweet potatoes iii. Cajun cooking iv. Vegetarian meatloaf6. OthersTo tickle your taste buds further, Home Cooking Network's recipes include many other categories to serve any purpose you have on mind that is a festive treat pleasing a cherished guest or thanking a friend, or simply sharing a relishing moment with the family. These recipes might be time consuming but the time is all the worth. Its rich culinary list includes:i. Cajun ii. Gumbo iii. Sweet breads, and iv. Collard greens.
By Free Vegetable Recipes
Home cooking network - a Pandora box for all the goodies. A never before array of recipes are a rare collection of specialties form all over the world. It can serve all sorts of individual needs that are vegetarian, quick & easy, traditional, etc. For more help visit to: www.atkins-diets-recipes.com.Ranging from gourmet to the simpler ones, these recipes can be broadly divided in to 4 heads. These are as follows:Unlike the regulars such as brochette or deviled eggs, Home Cooking Network offers the individuals an opportunity to try various cuisines. Chinese, Mexican, French..... The list is amazing!For spicy pre meal snacks check out the Mexican & Chinese appetizers.Soups make great appetizers and attribute to quite a healthy meal. If beef & chicken recipes do not tickle your taste bud being a vegetarian, look out for the vegetable soups such as carrot soup. For playing off the league try your hand with the French onion soup.Whether appetizers or a meal, salads are just perfect for all of us. And for the lazy ones, these are far simpler & quicker recipes to opt from. They take almost no time, don't believe me, and try potato salad or pasta salad! For some adventure & experience go for the Mexican salad.Do you want to be different this time? For more detail go to: www.cooking-groundbeef.com.Choosing the main course could be rather hard but with Home Cooking Network, the choices are endless.In place of the plain steak, try some corned beef or beef casserole, or the beef stroganoff.Recipes enlist things as simple as the grilled chicken to something special like the low crab recipes and the chicken cordon bleu.This can be defined in many ways as per one's own perception. Home Cooking Network consists of many recipes that can be used as main course, appetizers, desserts or just simple snacks. These recipes are representatives of different cultures likeDesserts are surely delicious end to the meals. Home Cooking Network believes in trying different recipes that are new, uncommon and easy to cook.Greek, Mexican and Pilipino desserts form a major chunk of the list.ii. Alongside it enlists all time favorites like pies. Among pies, Home Cooking Network contains recipes for key lime, fruit filled and pecan pies.Among vegetarian cuisines, Home Cooking Network offers various new & exquisite recipes like:To tickle your taste buds further, Home Cooking Network's recipes include many other categories to serve any purpose you have on mind that is a festive treat pleasing a cherished guest or thanking a friend, or simply sharing a relishing moment with the family. These recipes might be time consuming but the time is all the worth. Its rich culinary list includes:
By Free Vegetable Recipes
There are so many good reasons to reduce the amount of sugar in the foods that we eat. Processed sugar, especially in the amounts that we eat it here in the United States, is a major contributor to obesity, and provides very little substantive nutrition for the number of calories that it delivers. While it is easy to reduce sugar in some aspects of your diet, there are some sticking points. If you love to bake, for instance, you’ll find that just cutting out the sugar in many recipes will result in a failed recipe. In many recipes, sugar is more than just a sweetener. It provides texture, contributes to browning and may serve to help other chemical processes happen.That does not mean you have to give up on baking if you want to cut out sugar. There are a number of tips that can help you reduce sugar in your favorite cakes, cookies and other sweet baked goods and still enjoy them. These tips are helpful for cooking with sweeteners such as Splenda Granular.AmountIn some recipes, sugar is important for the structure and texture. This is especially true in candies and confections like nougat, and in frostings and sweets. For best results, you really can’t replace the entire amount of sugar with a sugar substitute. You can generally replace about 25% of the sugar called for in the recipe. If you must cook completely sugar free, then try recipes that use other natural sweeteners for flavor and sweetness.Volume/HeightIf your cakes, breads and muffins don’t rise as high when using a granulated sugar substitute, try adding ½ cup of nonfat dry milk powder and half a teaspoon of baking soda for every cup of sweetener that you use.Bake your cakes and muffins in smaller pans. Instead of 9 inch round cake pans, use 8 inch pans with two inch high sides.TextureCookies and cookie bars often need brown sugar for their texture. If you want to keep that chewy-crunchy bite, you’ll probably need to keep the brown sugar, and only replace the white sugar with a sweetener.Experiment with your favorite recipes. You can get excellent results by replacing the sugar and much of the fat with applesauce or fruit purees. The best choice for fruit purees? All natural baby food, for more details visit to www.chicken-wing-cookbook.com with no sugar, salt or preservatives added. Bananas, peaches, prunes, carrots and sweet potatoes are all great choices for dense cakes, cookie bars and muffins.Cookies made with artificial sweeteners often don’t spread well when they bake. To help them bake better, use a fork sprayed with cooking spray to flatten each cookie slightly before placing them into the oven.Jams and jellies often rely on sugar to help activate pectin in recipes. You may need to use some extra fruit pectin to help your fruits set up properly if you are using an artificial sweetener, or going au natural.If your sugar free baked goods are coming out a bit too dry, for more details visit to www.chef-123.com try adding a bit of thinly sliced or grated zucchini to the recipe. The flavor is neutral, but it will add moisture to your breads, muffins and cakes.Pick the Right SweetenerSome sweeteners react badly to heat. Aspartame, for instance, loses most of its sweetness during baking, so sweeteners that use aspartame should be confined to recipes where you can add the sugar at the end of the cooking – puddings, frostings and the like.FlavorUse flavor enhancers to emphasize sweetness in recipes. For instance, an extra teaspoon of vanilla per cup of sugar substitute will bring out the sweetness. Hone or molasses in quick breads and muffins will add a bit of a flavor boost. Other possibilities for enhancing flavors include lemon and orange zest, almond flavoring, and butter flavoring.AppearanceSugar free baked goods often look pasty and uncooked because sugar caramelizes during baking to give everything a golden brown color. You can simulate the browning by spraying the surface of the batter or dough with a bit of cooking spray before putting it in the oven.Other ways to simulate browning include adding cinnamon or nutmeg to the batter.Most granular sweeteners do not appear to get as creamy and smooth, when mixed with butter, margarine and shortening and it may even separate when you add eggs. It won’t affect the final product; just continue on with the recipe.Cooking with YeastSugar substitutes won’t activate yeast, so if you’re making yeast breads with a sugar substitute, you’ll need to retain at least two teaspoons of sugar in the recipe, or replace the sugar with another natural sweetener like molasses or honey.Adjust Bake TimesBaked goods cooked with granulated sweeteners may bake more quickly than the recipe dictates. Check cakes 7-10 minutes before the recipe’s bake time, and brownies, quick breads and cookies 3-5 minutes before the recipe says it will be done. Remember that sugar free recipes may not brown during baking and rely on other indicators.
By Free Vegetable Recipes
In the world of desserts, baking and food in general, there is nothing quite like the recipe for cheesecake. I am speaking here of the recipe for baked cheesecake, not any of the refrigerated or "no-bake" versions. Nowhere else does the home cook find the peculiar combination of sweetness, smooth texture, velvety mouth feel and overall sweet perfection? The spring form pan can give birth to wonders, if the cook is even moderately skilled and the ingredients are of proper quality.Think about the other main types of desserts. Now there's a thought project we can all get behind, right?How about pudding? It's certainly got that creamy texture, right? It's sweet (often overly so) and has, depending on what kind you make or buy has a very rich flavor. One of my favorite snacks in the world is a cup of creamy pistachio pudding. I'll confess to buying the boxed mix. However, it just doesn't compare to a slice of cheesecake. The mouth feel is not nearly as satisfying and the subtler flavors are lost under the blanket of flavorings.How about cake? Certainly cake can have an amazing array of subtle flavors. A slice of well-made carrot cake, for example, will have the sweetness of the carrots along with hints of any number of spices and undertones. But it still doesn't match cheesecake when it comes to that take-your-breath-away richness that makes you roll your eyes and sink back in your chair, for more details visit to www.cat-head-biscuit.com savoring that first luscious bite. Make sure that cold food is kept cold and hot food is kept hot. When you have a large quantity of hot food, such as a pot of soup that you want to store put the pot in a sink half-filled with ice and water.What else can we compare? How about pie? Well, let's stick to a cream pie, as that form is the closest to our cheesecake. Maybe a chess pie, for more details visit to www.chicken-wing-cookbook.com that marvel of smoothness and buttermilk flavors. Perhaps here we approach most closely to the land of cheesecake. But the egg texture of the chess pie just misses, and have you ever seen a chess pie rise to the dizzying heights a cheesecake can scale?Nope, there's just something about the recipe for cheesecake that brings for a sweet like no other. Everyone should have one in his or her recipe box.
By Free Vegetable Recipes
It can be very frustrating when you are trying to follow a recipe, but you don't understand the cooking terms used. Sometimes even instructions on a packet of pasta can confuse you – what does cook until “al dente” mean? So, let's have a look at some basic cooking terms and the language used in recipes: -
Al dente – This term is often used with pasta and literally means “to the tooth/bite”. Boil the pasta until is tender but still has some “bite”, not soggy and falling apart. Packet pasta usually takes 5-10 minutes in boiling water.
Baste – This term is often used when roasting chicken or cooking meat in a marinade. For more details go to: www.classic-dessert-collection.com you will need to regularly “baste” the meat with the juices or sauce to keep it moist. You can use a spoon to spoon the juices or sauce over the meat or you can use a “buster” which is a bit like a syringe or bulb.
Beat – A term often used in cooking or baking. You may be instructed to beat and egg – simply crack an egg into a bowl and beat (stir rapidly) with a fork or whisk to combine the yolk and white. In cake recipes, you may be instructed to beat the margarine and sugar together – use an electric whisk or beater for ease.
Blanch – A recipe may call for blanching vegetable. This simply means to plunge them into boiling water for about a minute.
Chop – self explanatory but use a good sharp knife and try to chop vegetables etc. so that bits are uniform in size and thickness. Onions often have to be chopped finely so chop them as small as you can.
Cream – Cake recipes often instruct you to cream the butter or margarine with the sugar. Beat them together either with a wooden spoon or electric mixer until they are well combined and the mixture has turned a paler color.
Dice – If you are instructed to dice meat or vegetables, it means that you should chop into uniform squares.
Fillet – This word can either be used as a noun or a verb. A meat fillet is a good quality piece of meat which has been “filleted”, had the bones removed.For help visit: www.cooking-chinese-style.com if a recipe asks you to fillet a piece of meat or fish, it means you need to remove the bones. This is tricky so buy fillet meat or ask your butcher or fishmonger to do it for you.
Fold – Cake recipes often tell you to fold in the flour after creaming the margarine and sugar and adding eggs. Add the flour a bit at a time using a metal spoon and a figure of eight movement to “fold” the flour into the mixture while retaining the air added by creaming or beating.
Julienne – This term is used with vegetables. Julienne carrots are carrots which have been chopped into matchsticks or strips.
Marinate – To coat a piece of meat or fish in a sauce usually overnight or for a few hours in the fridge. The meat will take on the flavors from the sauce.
Pare – Remove the skin from fruit or vegetables.
Peel – Remove the skin from fruit, vegetables or prawns.
Poach – To cook in liquid. Poached eggs are cooked in boiling water and poached fish is often cooked in hot milk.
Puree – To puree a vegetable or fruit is to blend it until it is as smooth as baby food. Use an electric blender.
Sauté – You can sauté vegetables and this means to fry in hot oil over a high heat for a short amount of time.
Season – To flavor with salt and pepper.
Simmer – This term is often used with sauces or recipes like curry or chili. It means to bring a sauce to boiling and then turn down to a level where the sauce is bubbling but not boiling.
Stiff peaks – If you are instructed to beat cream or egg whites until stiff peaks are formed, then you need to whisk or beat until the mixture forms peaks which do not collapse and you could even turn the bowl upside down without the mixture immediately falling out.
Stir-fry – To stir-fry is to cook meat and/or vegetables in a wok at a high temperature. Stir-fry packs can be found in supermarkets and all you have to do is fry them briefly in hot oil in a wok, add sauce or spices and serve with noodles or rice.
Whisk – Use an electric whisk or a hand whisk to beat something like cream.
Hopefully these explanations will help you to feel more confident when using recipes.
By Free Vegetable Recipes
It can be very frustrating when you are trying to follow a recipe, but you don't understand the cooking terms used. Sometimes even instructions on a packet of pasta can confuse you - what does cook until "al dente" mean? So, let's have a look at some basic cooking terms and the language used in recipes:-Al dente - This term is often used with pasta and literally means "to the tooth/bite". Boil the pasta until is is tender but still has some "bite", for more details visit to www.apples-recipes.com not soggy and falling apart. Packet pasta usually takes 5-10 minutes in boiling water.Baste - This term is often used when roasting chicken or cooking meat in a marinade. You will need to regularly "baste" the meat with the juices or sauce to keep it moist. You can use a spoon to spoon the juices or sauce over the meat or you can use a "baster" which is a bit like a syringe or bulb.Beat - A term often used in cooking or baking. You may be instructed to beat and egg - simply crack an egg into a bowl and beat (stir rapidly) with a fork or whisk to combine the yolk and white. In cake recipes, for more details visit to www.cooking-groundbeef.com you may be instructed to beat the margarine and sugar together - use an electric whisk or beater for ease.Blanch - A recipe may call for blanching vegetable. This simply means to plunge them into boiling water for about a minute.Chop - self explanatory but use a good sharp knife and try to chop vegetables etc. so that bits are uniform in size and thickness. Onions often have to be chopped finely so chop them as small as you can.Cream - Cake recipes often instruct you to cream the butter or margarine with the sugar. Beat them together either with a wooden spoon or electric mixer until they are well combined and the mixture has turned a paler colour.Dice - If you are instructed to dice meat or vegetables, it means that you should chop into uniform squares.Fillet - This word can either be used as a noun or a verb. A meat fillet is a good quality piece of meat which has been "filleted", had the bones removed. If a recipe asks you to fillet a piece of meat or fish, it means you need to remove the bones. This is tricky so buy fillet meat or ask your butcher or fishmonger to do it for you.Fold - Cake recipes often tell you to fold in the flour after creaming the margarine and sugar and adding eggs. Add the flour a bit at a time using a metal spoon and a figure of eight movement to "fold" the flour into the mixture while retaining the air added by creaming or beating.Julienne - This term is used with vegetables. Julienne carrots are carrots which have been chopped into matchsticks or strips.Marinate - To coat a piece of meat or fish in a sauce usually overnight or for a few hours in the fridge. The meat will take on the flavours from the sauce.Pare - Remove the skin from fruit or vegetables.Peel - Remove the skin from fruit, vegetables or prawns.Poach - To cook in liquid. Poached eggs are cooked in boiling water and poached fish is often cooked in hot milk.Puree - To puree a vegetable or fruit is to blend it until it is as smooth as baby food. Use an electric blender.Saute - You can saute vegetables and this means to fry in hot oil over a high heat for a short amount of time.Season - To flavour with salt and pepper.Simmer - This term is often used with sauces or recipes like curry or chilli. It means to bring a sauce to boiling and then turn down to a level where the sauce is bubbling but not boiling.Stiff peaks - If you are instructed to beat cream or egg whites until stiff peaks are formed, then you need to whisk or beat until the mixture forms peaks which do not collapse and you could even turn the bowl upside down without the mixture immediately falling out.Stir-fry - To stir-fry is to cook meat and/or vegetables in a wok at a high temperature. Stir-fry packs can be found in supermarkets and all you have to do is fry them briefly in hot oil in a wok, add sauce or spices and serve with noodles or rice.Whisk - Use an electric whisk or a hand whisk to beat something like cream.
By Free Vegetable Recipes
It can be very frustrating when you are trying to follow a recipe, but you don't understand the cooking terms used. Sometimes even instructions on a packet of pasta can confuse you - what does cook until "al dente" mean? So, let's have a look at some basic cooking terms and the language used in recipes:-Al dente - This term is often used with pasta and literally means "to the tooth/bite". Boil the pasta until is is tender but still has some "bite", for more details visit to www.apples-recipes.com not soggy and falling apart. Packet pasta usually takes 5-10 minutes in boiling water.Baste - This term is often used when roasting chicken or cooking meat in a marinade. You will need to regularly "baste" the meat with the juices or sauce to keep it moist. You can use a spoon to spoon the juices or sauce over the meat or you can use a "baster" which is a bit like a syringe or bulb.Beat - A term often used in cooking or baking. You may be instructed to beat and egg - simply crack an egg into a bowl and beat (stir rapidly) with a fork or whisk to combine the yolk and white. In cake recipes, for more details visit to www.cooking-groundbeef.com you may be instructed to beat the margarine and sugar together - use an electric whisk or beater for ease.Blanch - A recipe may call for blanching vegetable. This simply means to plunge them into boiling water for about a minute.Chop - self explanatory but use a good sharp knife and try to chop vegetables etc. so that bits are uniform in size and thickness. Onions often have to be chopped finely so chop them as small as you can.Cream - Cake recipes often instruct you to cream the butter or margarine with the sugar. Beat them together either with a wooden spoon or electric mixer until they are well combined and the mixture has turned a paler colour.Dice - If you are instructed to dice meat or vegetables, it means that you should chop into uniform squares.Fillet - This word can either be used as a noun or a verb. A meat fillet is a good quality piece of meat which has been "filleted", had the bones removed. If a recipe asks you to fillet a piece of meat or fish, it means you need to remove the bones. This is tricky so buy fillet meat or ask your butcher or fishmonger to do it for you.Fold - Cake recipes often tell you to fold in the flour after creaming the margarine and sugar and adding eggs. Add the flour a bit at a time using a metal spoon and a figure of eight movement to "fold" the flour into the mixture while retaining the air added by creaming or beating.Julienne - This term is used with vegetables. Julienne carrots are carrots which have been chopped into matchsticks or strips.Marinate - To coat a piece of meat or fish in a sauce usually overnight or for a few hours in the fridge. The meat will take on the flavours from the sauce.Pare - Remove the skin from fruit or vegetables.Peel - Remove the skin from fruit, vegetables or prawns.Poach - To cook in liquid. Poached eggs are cooked in boiling water and poached fish is often cooked in hot milk.Puree - To puree a vegetable or fruit is to blend it until it is as smooth as baby food. Use an electric blender.Saute - You can saute vegetables and this means to fry in hot oil over a high heat for a short amount of time.Season - To flavour with salt and pepper.Simmer - This term is often used with sauces or recipes like curry or chilli. It means to bring a sauce to boiling and then turn down to a level where the sauce is bubbling but not boiling.Stiff peaks - If you are instructed to beat cream or egg whites until stiff peaks are formed, then you need to whisk or beat until the mixture forms peaks which do not collapse and you could even turn the bowl upside down without the mixture immediately falling out.Stir-fry - To stir-fry is to cook meat and/or vegetables in a wok at a high temperature. Stir-fry packs can be found in supermarkets and all you have to do is fry them briefly in hot oil in a wok, add sauce or spices and serve with noodles or rice.Whisk - Use an electric whisk or a hand whisk to beat something like cream.
By Free Vegetable Recipes
It can be very frustrating when you are trying to follow a recipe, but you don't understand the cooking terms used. Sometimes even instructions on a packet of pasta can confuse you - what does cook until "al dente" mean? So, let's have a look at some basic cooking terms and the language used in recipes:-
Al dente - This term is often used with pasta and literally means "to the tooth/bite". Boil the pasta until is is tender but still has some "bite", not soggy and falling apart. Packet pasta usually takes 5-10 minutes in boiling water.
Baste - This term is often used when roasting chicken or cooking meat in a marinade. You will need to regularly "baste" the meat with the juices or sauce to keep it moist. For more details www.tailgating-recipe.com .You can use a spoon to spoon the juices or sauce over the meat or you can use a "baster" which is a bit like a syringe or bulb.
Beat - A term often used in cooking or baking. You may be instructed to beat and egg - simply crack an egg into a bowl and beat (stir rapidly) with a fork or whisk to combine the yolk and white. In cake recipes, you may be instructed to beat the margarine and sugar together - use an electric whisk or beater for ease.
Blanch - A recipe may call for blanching vegetable. This simply means to plunge them into boiling water for about a minute.
Chop - self explanatory but use a good sharp knife and try to chop vegetables etc. so that bits are uniform in size and thickness. Onions often have to be chopped finely so chop them as small as you can.
Cream - Cake recipes often instruct you to cream the butter or margarine with the sugar. Beat them together either with a wooden spoon or electric mixer until they are well combined and the mixture has turned a paler colour.
Dice - If you are instructed to dice meat or vegetables, it means that you should chop into uniform squares.
Fillet - This word can either be used as a noun or a verb. A meat fillet is a good quality piece of meat which has been "filleted", had the bones removed. If a recipe asks you to fillet a piece of meat or fish, it means you need to remove the bones. This is tricky so buy fillet meat or ask your butcher or fishmonger to do it for you.
Fold - Cake recipes often tell you to fold in the flour after creaming the margarine and sugar and adding eggs. For more details www.apples-recipes.com .Add the flour a bit at a time using a metal spoon and a figure of eight movement to "fold" the flour into the mixture while retaining the air added by creaming or beating.
Julienne - This term is used with vegetables. Julienne carrots are carrots which have been chopped into matchsticks or strips.
Marinate - To coat a piece of meat or fish in a sauce usually overnight or for a few hours in the fridge. The meat will take on the flavours from the sauce.
Pare - Remove the skin from fruit or vegetables.
Peel - Remove the skin from fruit, vegetables or prawns.
Poach - To cook in liquid. Poached eggs are cooked in boiling water and poached fish is often cooked in hot milk.
Puree - To puree a vegetable or fruit is to blend it until it is as smooth as baby food. Use an electric blender.
Saute - You can saute vegetables and this means to fry in hot oil over a high heat for a short amount of time.
Season - To flavour with salt and pepper.
Simmer - This term is often used with sauces or recipes like curry or chilli. It means to bring a sauce to boiling and then turn down to a level where the sauce is bubbling but not boiling.
Stiff peaks - If you are instructed to beat cream or egg whites until stiff peaks are formed, then you need to whisk or beat until the mixture forms peaks which do not collapse and you could even turn the bowl upside down without the mixture immediately falling out.
Stir-fry - To stir-fry is to cook meat and/or vegetables in a wok at a high temperature. Stir-fry packs can be found in supermarkets and all you have to do is fry them briefly in hot oil in a wok, add sauce or spices and serve with noodles or rice.
Whisk - Use an electric whisk or a hand whisk to beat something like cream.
Hopefully these explanations will help you to feel more confident when using recipes.
By Free Vegetable Recipes
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