Culinary, cooking, food and restaurant

For some campers, camp cooking is one of the most exciting activities in a camping vacation. The thrill of putting up a menu of different sumptuous meals, of putting together ingredients, of smelling the sweet aroma of meat, seasonings and vegetables, and of seeing the satisfied look on your family after feasting on the dinner you prepare can really ignite your excitement.

No matter how exciting, it is important to stress that camp cooking is more complicated than regular home cooking. Aside from the fact that you can’t bring your entire kitchen with you to the camp and that if you forgot a type of ingredient, there is no convenience store you can easily buy a rosemary or thyme, it also entails a lot more effort and hard work to ensure that you have a successful camp cooking experience.

Here are some useful tips for more fun cooking time:

Tip Number 1: Write down a menu of all the dishes you intend to cook in the camping trip. It is better to opt for simple dishes that wouldn’t take your entire day preparing. From this menu, create a checklist of the ingredients, cookware and utensils you need to bring to ensure that you don’t forget anything.

Tip Number 2: Prepare ingredients at home. Measure them and put them in resealable plastic bags with labels so that you don’t spend all day cooking. Remember, there are still other activities to do.

Tip Number 3: Half-cook meat, poultry of fish at home. This will save cooking time as well as fuel for the stove. Place them in plastic containers and then freeze in the cooler. What’s also great about this is that pre-cooked meat last longer than raw meat.

Tip Number 4: Rely on dependable camping stoves. You don’t want your grand cooking endeavor be ruined by a stove that wouldn’t lit up. It is better to opt for trusted brands like Coleman for your camping stoves.

Tip Number 5: Don’t forget to bring a grate if you plan to grill. Don’t assume that the camp site will have all the amenities that you need.

Tip Number 6: Bring extra matches and keep them dry by putting in waterproof containers like film canisters. These canisters are also great as containers for salt and pepper.

Tip Number 7: Be flexible in your menu. Don’t wail or send your family to the next town to get you a green onion for your dish. Improvise or use an alternative ingredient that can be found within the perimeters of your campsite.

Tip Number 8: Bring small amounts of seasonings, condiments, and other food supplies to save packing space. Instead of bringing the huge bottle of ketchup, just bring sachets or transfer an amount enough for the whole family in a smaller container.

Tip Number 9: It is better to use block ice in your ice chest because it lasts much longer than cube or tube ice.

Tip Number 10: Rub the bottoms of pots and pans with dishwashing soap before cooking. This will make cleaning time afterwards easier.

Tip Number 11: Pocket knives come in handy during camp cooking. Use those that have locking features to avoid accidental folding of the blade when you cut up meat or slice a loaf of bread.
Tip Number 12: Never leave food outside your tent to prevent attracting bears or other animals.

Tip Number 13: Don’t forget to bring a heavy duty aluminum foil and a couple of ziplock bags. They don’t take up much space and have a wide variety of uses.

Tip Number 14: Cover pots and pans during cooking so the meals will get done faster and to save fuel. This will also keep unwanted insects out of your food.

Tip Number 15: Apply a little cooking oil on your camp grill so that food will not stick on it.

We know that you know your way around cooking but you’ll surely find these cooking tips helpful and amazing.

For decades, broiled chicken has been the meat of choice for those on low-fat and low calorie diets. Unfortunately, broiled white chicken has also acquired a reputation for being bland, rubbery and dry.

That’s a real shame, because chicken – especially white meat chicken – is one of the most versatile proteins available. All it takes is a bit of knowledge about how to broil (or grill) chicken so that it stays moist and flavorful and you will find that chicken tastes great even without all the sauces and gravies.

How to Broil Chicken That Melts in Your Mouth

One of the most important things to keep in mind about chicken white meat is that it has little fat of its own. The fat is all in the skin. While that makes it relatively easy to cook chicken with almost no fat, it also means that chicken white meat is prone to becoming very dry when cooked without the skin. Want to avoid dried out broiled chicken breasts? Here are some tips for broiling chicken that will be moist and delicious.

1. If fat is not a concern, broil breasts with the skin on, and turned toward the heat source. For broiling, start with the skin side down, and then flip chicken pieces halfway through. Broiling breasts with the skin on will not appreciably increase the fat content of the meat as long as you remove the skin before eating it.

2. If using skinless breasts, rub them lightly with olive oil or marinade before broiling. Experiment with flavored olive oils to find flavor combinations that you like. Or, brush breasts with Italian dressing – or spray lightly with cooking spray to give them a light coating.

3. Precook chicken breasts in chicken stock before putting them under the broiler. They will start out infused with extra moisture and flavor, and spend less time drying out under the broiler.

4. Use an herb rub to crust the chicken on the outside. You will a get browned, crusted outside and moist, tender inside.

5. Your heat source should be about 5 to 6 inches away from the top of the chicken for best broiling.

6. Flavor chicken meat with herbs, salt and spices before broiling.

7. Preheat the broiler for 9 to 10 minutes before putting the meat in. If you try to broil chicken in a broiler that is not preheated, they will dry out before they cook through.

8. Keep your eye on the chicken while it is cooking. If edges are cooking too quickly, rearrange the pieces on the pan or adjust the heat.

9. Conversely, shield the thinner edges of chicken breast with foil to prevent them burning before the rest of the chicken is cooked.

10. Flip chicken when top side is browned. Since breasts will not all cook at the same rate, keep an eye on the chicken so that you can remove breasts when they are done and prevent them from drying out.

11. Use tongs to turn chicken. Do not pierce with a fork or juices will escape, leaving chicken dry and stringy.

12. Brush top side of chicken with marinade, barbecue sauce, Italian dressing or flavored olive oil after turning. A light basting will refresh the moisture and infuse flavors into the meat.

Broiling a Whole Chicken

Generally, whole chicken is roasted, often after being stuffed with forcemeat of some kind or other. However, a whole chicken can be cooked under the broiler for a very different taste. You just need to flatten the chicken before cooking. Follow these directions for flavorful broiled whole chicken.

1. First, butterfly the chicken

2. Remove the backbone: Using a heavy knife or kitchen shears, cut close to the backbone from neck to tail on each side of the bone, and then remove it.

3. Flatten the chicken: Spread the chicken skin side up on your table or counter, and bang the breast with your fist to break the collar bone and some of the ribs.

4. Fold the wings to either side of the shoulders.

5. Cut a slit in the skin at either side of the breast tip.

6. Insert the tips of the drumsticks through the slits in the skin.

7. Brush the chicken with olive oil and spices. Or use flavored olive oil.

8. Put chicken skin side down in broiler pan – not on a rack.

9. Broil about 5 inches from the heat for five minutes.

10. Brush the chicken with oil and spices and place back under the broiler.

11. After five minutes baste again, using the juices in the pan, and place back under broiler for five minutes more.

12. Baste chicken, and then sprinkle with salt, pepper and spices and turn skin side up.

13. Broil and baste skin side for fifteen minutes more, basting every five minutes to ensure meat remains moist.

14. Chicken is done when juices run clear yellow from pricked drumstick.

Despite the fact that most people believe grilling is easy and that anyone can be successful on the barbeque grill, grilling is actually one of the most challenging of cooking methods. Now more than ever, savvy home cooks are looking for the best cooking tips for gas grills. As the weather starts to get nicer and the great outdoors beckons, attention starts to turn to outdoor cooking – and gas barbeque grills can’t be beat for simplicity and convenience. But grilling only becomes EASY when you know the basic procedure for grilling and the important cooking tips for gas grills that ensure better results every time. The greatest challenge presented by grilling is that it is the most intense form of direct heat cooking there is. If cooking is like driving a car, grilling is like being strapped to a rocket ship! The good news is that grilling, like any basic cooking method, can be mastered. And these cooking tips for gas grills will get you started on the road to awesome grilling all year round.

Preparing Recipes for the Grill

When preparing recipes for the grill, the most important thing to consider is how the grilling method of cooking acts differently on different types of foods. To begin, careful product selection is extremely important. Marinating meats when making recipes for the grill is the best way to apply some tenderizing properties before cooking because the grill will not tenderize meats. You must start with a tender product if you want to end with a tender product. You want to also make sure the product you choose will be able to withstand direct high-heat cooking. Different products will handle this differently and some are just not the best choice for standard grilling. A very delicate fish, such as tilapia, will not perform very well on the grill because the high heat may burn the outside of the fish before the inside cooks at all. Vegetables all cook at different rates, too, depending on their texture and firmness. When cooking different combinations of vegetables together (as in skewering), you will achieve far better results by par-cooking the “harder” items prior to skewering so that all vegetables are the correct done-ness at the same time.

Once you have considered the differences in the types of foods you will be grilling and preparing them accordingly, the basic procedure for creating recipes for the grill is the same across the board. First, heat up the grill as hot as it can get. Brush the food item with the oil of your choice and place it on the hot grates – presentation side down. Leave the cover open and let the item cook. After a few minutes inspect the item. You are looking for the item to start to brown around the edges and to see pink (almost clear) moisture bubbling up to the top. This will be your signal that the item is 75% cooked on one side and that is the time to flip it. Do not use a fork to flip the item and do not puncture it in any way. This will allow precious juices to escape, drying out your product. The ONLY way to know when your product is finished cooking is with a thermometer – testing internal temperature. Because there will be some carry-over cooking, remove the item 5-10 degrees BEFORE the desired final internal temperature.

A Gas Grill Cooking Twist

Although GRILLING is always done with the lid cover open, gas grill cooking can incorporate additional cooking methods that make it preferable to cook with the grill cover closed. With the grill lid closed, the grill changes from a CONDUCTIVE cooking vehicle to a CONVECTIVE cooking one – more like your oven. Of course you could just use your oven for using these cooking methods, but outdoor cooking does have some advantages over indoor cooking – particularly in warmer weather. So how do you turn your dry heat, direct source cooking vehicle (the grill) into one that can utilize a moist convective cooking process? It’s actually a pretty cool technique for gas grill cooking. This is a trick I use most often with delicate fish, such as tilapia. First, I turn the heat OFF on the side of the grill that my tilapia will cook. Then, I add a pan of water to the bottom of the other side of the grill – right on top of the heat elements. Keep in mind that this “water” can be any kind of liquid you like. I use shrimp stock sometimes with fish, but you can season it with chicken broth, wine – anything that is liquid and imparts nice, complimentary flavors to the product you are cooking. Then, the fish is placed either directly on the grill (if you have a flat grate option) or you can put it in a cast iron pan and put it on the grill grates. The rest of the procedure for this type of gas grill cooking follows the normal grilling process – cook with your eyes and observations, flip after 75% done, use a thermometer to determine final temperature and remove a bit “early” to allow for the carry-over cooking that occurs. And that’s it, now you can consider gas grill COOKING in addition to standard GRILLING for great outdoor cooking results.

Gas Barbeque Grills vs Charcoal Grills

It is hard to argue that the charcoal grill provides opportunity for a deep, smoky flavor that is not fully achievable with the gas barbeque grill. But other than that all of the “pros” go into the gas grill’s column. You may hear many self-proclaimed GRILLMASTERS insist that the traditional charcoal grill is far superior to the gas barbeque grill, but the gas grill has many advantages that make it a great choice for any outdoor cooking situation. For starters, gas barbeque grills provide consistent heat throughout the cooking process. With the charcoal variety, the cook has to really control the heat by actually moving products closer and further as heat increases and decreases. This takes some practice and experience to do well. The gas grill is also much easier and safer to start because it uses propane as fuel and starts at the press of a button. Charcoal grills can be easily started with lighter fluid, but this can be dangerous, and can impart an undesirable taste into the food. Nothing like the taste of lighter fluid to ruin a good steak! Plus, the gas grill turns OFF as easily as it turned on! No waiting for coals to cool so that you can empty and clean the grill and no messy coals to dispose of. For convenience, gas barbeque grills make it easy to grill outdoors everyday.

These cooking tips for gas grills seem simple but they truly are the difference between great grilling results and disappointing meals. The next time you get ready to grill, remember that careful product selection and a basic understanding of cooking methods is all you need to master the barbeque grill, creating outdoor meals and memories for life.

Shrimps Cooking Tips Boiling is the common method of cooking shrimp. In a large pot, add 4 cups of water for every pound of shrimp. You can add seasonings of choice to the water if you want. Bring the water to a boil before adding thawed shrimp. How long to cook shrimp depends on whether the shrimp are large or small. Shrimp are done cooking when the skin turns bright pink to red in color. The meat will be opaque, and the shrimp will float to the top of the water. Average cooking time is 1 to 3 minutes. When the shrimp are done cooking, remove from the pot and place on ice. Steam shrimp by filling a large pot with water and bringing it to a simmer. Turn the heat on low before adding a steamer basket filled with shrimp. Cover the pot and cook until the skin or shell of the shrimp turns bright pink and the meat turns opaque. Shelled shrimp can be deep-fried. Dip the shrimp into milk and then coat with flour or cornmeal. Fry in a deep fryer filled with peanut oil and heated to 360 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove shrimp from the fryer once they are golden brown, usually after 2 to 4 minutes of deep-frying. Drain it and serve it hot and enjoy the taste. Cocoa Tips There are quite a lot of ways to cook meat. Pork should not be overcooked. Your cooking method determines how long the pork should be cooked. Broiling pork ribs in the broiler takes about 35 minutes for them to get done. Turn ribs frequently while broiling. Boneless center cut pork chops should be broiled for 5 or 6 minutes on each side. Thin cuts only need to be broiled for 2 minutes on each side. Pork chops can also be pan broiled over medium to high heat. Brush the bottom of the pan with some olive oil before broiling boneless center cuts for 3 minutes on each side. Center cut chops with the bone will need a slightly longer cooking time. Roast a pork loin 28 minutes for every pound. A center cut roast with the bone in needs additional cooking time and should be roasted for at least 35 minutes per pound of roast. Roast pork in an oven preheated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Cook the meat in a shallow pan.

Shrimps Cooking Tips

Boiling is the common method of cooking shrimp. In a large pot, add 4 cups of water for every pound of shrimp. You can add seasonings of choice to the water if you want. Bring the water to a boil before adding thawed shrimp. How long to cook shrimp depends on whether the shrimp are large or small. Shrimp are done cooking when the skin turns bright pink to red in color. The meat will be opaque, and the shrimp will float to the top of the water. Average cooking time is 1 to 3 minutes. When the shrimp are done cooking, remove from the pot and place on ice.

Steam shrimp by filling a large pot with water and bringing it to a simmer. Turn the heat on low before adding a steamer basket filled with shrimp. Cover the pot and cook until the skin or shell of the shrimp turns bright pink and the meat turns opaque.

Shelled shrimp can be deep-fried. Dip the shrimp into milk and then coat with flour or cornmeal. Fry in a deep fryer filled with peanut oil and heated to 360 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove shrimp from the fryer once they are golden brown, usually after 2 to 4 minutes of deep-frying. Drain it and serve it hot and enjoy the taste.

Cocoa Tips

There are quite a lot of ways to cook meat. Pork should not be overcooked. Your cooking method determines how long the pork should be cooked. Broiling pork ribs in the broiler takes about 35 minutes for them to get done. Turn ribs frequently while broiling. Boneless center cut pork chops should be broiled for 5 or 6 minutes on each side. Thin cuts only need to be broiled for 2 minutes on each side. Pork chops can also be pan broiled over medium to high heat. Brush the bottom of the pan with some olive oil before broiling boneless center cuts for 3 minutes on each side. Center cut chops with the bone will need a slightly longer cooking time.

Roast a pork loin 28 minutes for every pound. A center cut roast with the bone in needs additional cooking time and should be roasted for at least 35 minutes per pound of roast. Roast pork in an oven preheated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Cook the meat in a shallow pan.

Have you been frustrated by cracks in the top of your cheesecakes? Would you like tips to make flaky biscuits? Or would you just like to know a bit more about sweet potatoes? Try these cooking tips from the Good Cooking Central website today for better results in your kitchen endeavours:

• BISCUIT TIPS:

If you want biscuits that are crispy on the outside and flaky on the inside, you roll the dough thinly and fold it over once before cutting out the biscuits. They will then split open easily when you’re ready to butter them.

To re- heat biscuits, put them in a well-dampened paper bag. Twist the bag closed and put in a 300º oven for several minutes or until warm.

For soft-sided biscuits, bake them in a pan with sides and put the biscuits close together. For crusty biscuits, bake them on a cookie sheet and separate them from each other.

• PREVENTING CHEESECAKE CRACKS:

Grease the sides of the pan before adding batter. The surface will not stick to the sides of the pan and crack when the cheesecake starts shrinking as it cools.

Run a knife or a metal spatula around the edges of the pan immediately after removing the cheesecake from the oven.

Drastic temperature changes can also cause a cheesecake to crack. Avoid putting a warm cheesecake from the oven into the refrigerator.

To disguise cracks, top the cheesecake with fruit or some other topping.

• SOUR MILK:

Since sour milk is not really sold in the grocery stores, when a recipe calls for sour milk, simply add 1 TBSP. of vinegar or lemon juice to regular milk. You can also use buttermilk to replace the sour milk called for in a recipes.

• BAKING POWDER:

If you use too much baking powder in a recipe it will produce a product with a coarse grain, and will cause the product to eventually fall. If you use too little baking powder, the product will not rise enough and be heavy.

Baking powder tends to lose its strength over time and should be kept in a tightly covered container. Moisture will cause the baking powder to deteriorate faster.

When increasing the amount of eggs in a recipe, decrease the baking powder by 1/2 teaspoon for each extra egg added.

• CUTTING FAT WITH APPLESAUCE:

To reduce the fat content in your baking recipes, substitute applesauce for half of the amount of vegetable oil called for in the recipe. Using all applesauce produces a low-calorie, moist product.

• ADJUST TEMPERATURE FOR DIFFERENT PANS:

Keep in mind that the type of pan you use when baking can determine the outcome of your finished product. For glass pans, turn down baking temperature by 25?. If you substitute a shallow pan, reduce the overall baking time by one quarter. If you use a deeper pan than suggested in the recipe, increase the overall baking time by one quarter.

• ALTERNATIVES TO COOKING WITH BUTTER:

When browning or sautéing onions, hamburger, etc., replace the butter by spraying your skillet with non-stick spray or use chicken or beef broth instead.

When baking, use reduced-calorie margarine instead of butter (but note that the texture may not always come out the same). Non-fat margarines currently on the market do not tend bake well.

Cutting butter in some of your recipes can cut a lot of the calories making it a diet-friendly option.

• SWEET POTATOES:

Due to rapid spoilage, keep sweet potatoes fresh, by storing them in a dry, cool (55-60°) place at a temperature of about 55-60°. If stored in the refrigerator, they may develop a hard core and an “off” taste. Sweet potatoes will keep for a month or longer if stored at the proper temperature. At normal room temperature, they should be used within a week of purchase. Brush off any excess dirt before storing, but do not wash them until you are ready to cook them.

When preparing, wash sweet potatoes well. It is best to cook them whole whenever possible as most of the nutrients are next to the skin. Also, the skins are easier to remove after they have been cooked. Pierce the sweet potato skins with fork. Place potatoes in a pan and cook in an oven heated to 375° F for about 45 minutes or until tender. Cool potatoes slightly before removing skins. To cook sweet potatoes in a microwave, wash and pierce potatoes. Place them on a paper towel. For 2 medium sweet potatoes, cook on high for 5–9 minutes, or for 4 potatoes cook for 10–13 minutes.

Sweet potatoes are high in vitamins A and C, and are a good source of fiber.

• SUGAR SUBSTITUTES:

To substitute for 1 cup of sugar use any of the following:

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 ½ cups molasses

2 cups corn syrup

3/4 cups honey

1 ½ cups maple syrup

Note: If you use molasses, corn syrup, honey, or maple syrup you need to reduce the amount of liquid in the recipe.

• BROWN SUGAR SUBSTITUTE:

If you need to substitute brown sugar in a recipe, for each 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar use 1 ½ Tablespoons molasses plus 1 cup granulated sugar.

To make 1 cup light brown sugar from dark brown sugar, use ½ cup firmly packed dark brown sugar and ½ cup granulated sugar.

To make 1 cup dark brown sugar, use 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar plus 1 tablespoon molasses; or 1 cup granulated sugar plus 1/4 cup molasses.

If you would like to see more hints to help you in the kitchen, and get great recipes too, visit the Good Cooking Central website.

We have all been there, you grow up and at some point need to start your young adult live on your own two legs. You get you own place to stay, sleep and, of course cook so you can eat. The first time was a very strange and maybe even a scary moment. People who had the biggest problem in this stage of their lives are the ones that were not given any cooking tips when they grew up. People who never got any advice on cooking when they were young could even a problem warming up some hot dogs. We need to make sure that our children learn how to cook so they won’t be surprised the moment they need to cook on their own. We don’t want to see them eating out in all kinds of, maybe fast food, restaurants.

Even if you didn’t get any cooking tips in your childhood and because of this hardly know how to cook for yourself, it is not to late. You just need to get good tips on cooking but you have to make sure that you learn from someone who has been giving lessons for a long time or who knows how to pass on this knowledge to others. Another option is to get a good book on the subject and try it that way, you could even consult the internet for good recipes and try it that way. The main thing is that you learn to do it your self so you can teach your own children then they don’t have to go down the same path that you gone. And isn’t the idea nice that maybe one day the recipes you thought your children will passed towards their children.

Trial and Error come before Success

We all would love to just learn something and then reproduce that in to a successful end result but we all know that almost never happens. The same goes for cooking tips you learn. The first time you will probably fail but by doing this and knowing what you did wrong you can perfect it for the next time you try it. When you teach your children the fine art of cooking and you them making a mistake let them make it. And after they see what went wrong they will learn from it. There is no harm in a little experimenting in the kitchen, great recipes were born from doing just that, probably it will taste less then is should but they will learn what happens if you mix certain things together and they will have fun in the kitchen. Always give some of your personal tips and secrets to the ones you teach so they will see it as a reward of their efforts. When we speak of letting them make mistakes we mean the kind that doesn’t burn the house down but only influences the taste of the recipe a bit.

It is important we know how to cook when we start living on our own, teach your children the fun of being in the kitchen. Make the kitchen a place the family likes to stay in when your cooking. That way you will interest them for cooking food and will benefit them once they become adults.

It’s your first day in the kitchen and you have no idea where to start. A haphazard way of doing things will only delay meals and see that you are stuck in the kitchen for a long time! To ensure that you produce quicker and easy-to-prepare meals, as well as please your family’s taste buds, a few cooking tips and hints are in order—

(1) First of all, there has to be a place from where you can pick up cooking tips and hints. There are many classes set up for beginners by various local institutions and organizations. In addition, they are not expensive. Since most of the students are beginners, you feel comfortable in sharing your own experiences and learning from others.
(2) Once you cross the beginner’s level and develop a taste for cooking, further instructions at an advanced level for specifics such as dessert-making, barbecuing, baking and so on, can be obtained. If you do not wish to continue as a student after learning the basics, you could turn your attention to magazines devoted to cooking. Many of them display articles related to specific cooking methodology.

(3) If you are the type of person who can get easily overwhelmed, you can just go for one favorite item and learn the related skills. Once that is mastered, you can move ahead from there.

(4) Another way of getting cooking tips and hints is to browse the Internet. This does require some time and patience, but you will be well rewarded with a number of websites offering answers to all your questions.

(5) Many cooking tips and hints are centered round recipes. Even the preparation of the simplest dish requires following a certain method. Recipes act as guides here. The instructions are presented in a precise and step-by-step format, making them easy to follow. Plenty of cook books are available in the market to help you out. Some of them are good enough to present helpful ideas as well as cooking tips and hints along with the recipes.

(6) Reading a recipe correctly is also an art! The reason is that the measurements related to ingredients presented in each recipe can be quite confusing for a beginner. Some measurements are related to liquids while others are related to solids. Look for cooking tips and hints regarding cooking measurements.

(7) Cookbooks (but not all of them) also talk about utensils required for cooking. All types of utensils are available for purchase, but you need cooking tips and hints to let you know which are more commonly used than others. You can therefore buy what you need immediately before going in for any others.

There are some basic cooking tips that anyone could learn and use to help out in the kitchen. With today’s busy lifestyles becoming more prevalent, learning and using these basic cooking tips will save you time and headache.

The following fifteen is just a tiny handful of the many basic cooking tips that you could integrate into your everyday life to save time and money.

• Bacon: Reduce shrinkage by running cold water over it before frying.

• Beans: Stop gas attacks by adding a tablespoon of bicarbonate of soda in a big pot of beans while they are soaking.

• Boiled Eggs: Add some vinegar or a little salt to the boiling water when boiling eggs. This basic cooking tips will keep the egg in the shell if it cracks.

• Ripening Fruits and Vegetables: Put your unripe fruit and vegetables in a brown paper bag and place the bag in a dark cupboard for few day. Using this basic cooking tips is an excellent way to save money on fruits and vegetables that has to be ripened.

• Salads: Cut your iceberg lettuce into wedges instead of tearing salad greens to save some time making a salad.

• Spaghetti Sauce: Add a small pinch of bicarbonate of soda to your spaghetti sauce to lower the acid taste from the tomatoes.

• Corn: Place the corn directly into boiling water, and do not add salt. Do not boil corn for more than three minutes. Overcooking reduces the taste level.

• Frozen Vegetables: When they are stuck together, simply run boiling water over them.

• Grating Cheese: Freeze for twenty five minutes before grating. It will shred so much easier.

• Pancakes: Use a small amount of sugar in the batter and they will brown more quickly.

• Pie Pastry: Substitute one teaspoon of vinegar for one teaspoon of the cold water called for in the recipe and the pastry will be much flakier.

• Quick Sauces: Use condensed cream soups such as cream of mushroom, cream of chicken, cream of tomato, cream of celery, to make fast and easy sauces.

• Quick Tenderizer: Use vinegar as a meat tenderizer. Add a tablespoon to water when boiling meat or ribs for stews. This basic cooking tips will help tenderizer even the toughest meat.

• Wilted vegetables: Soak wilted veggies in two cups water, one tablespoon vinegar to help bring them back to life.

• Wooden Skewers: Soak all your wooden skewers in cold water for twenty minutes to prevent them from burning.

Inspiration could be considered to be one of the key ingredients to writing. Only if one is inspired, can one get to writing on any subject especially like cooking.

Use some of these basic cooking tips to make your life in the kitchen more enjoyable.