Kitchen Tips & Secrets

Cloudy Ice Tea - Add just a small dash of boiling water. Or prevent it from becoming cloudy in the first place: 1) Use tea selected for iced tea, or 2) let the tea cool to room temp before you refrigerate it, or 3) Cold brew your tea in the fridge for several hours (extra benefit of this - it's already chilled)
 
Using Shrimp Shells When you peel shrimp save shells. Boil in water about 20 minutes. Strain and freeze for use as fish stock.

Egg stuck to carton Wetting the carton should free the egg.But DON"T use the egg if it stuck because the shell was cracked.

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Substitute for buttermilk:
3/4 cup [175 mL] yogurt plus 1/4 cup [50 mL] whole milk.
OR
2 tsp [10 mL] vinegar or lemon juice to each 1/2 cup [125 mL] of milk
 
-If you want your deviled eggs to be perfect, stir the pot a few times in the first moments they are beginning to simmer. Yolks will be perfectly centered.

-Fill a sink or basin with soapy water before you start cooking. It will help keep batters, eggs, etc. from turning to cement while you're otherwise engaged. If you're doing a meat dish, you can wash your hands without contaminating the faucet handles with meat juices.

-Cook with your ears. Listen for that certain sizzle before you try to turn meat. In fact, cook with all your senses. Your nose will tell you first when nuts are toasted, for example. Your fingers will know when the meat is done if you practice. And, of course, your eyes will tell you when the edges of foods have browned just right. The trick is to practice using your senses.

-ER docs will tell you to slow down and be careful with those knives. Admire a chef's knife skills and then ask him if he's ever cut himself. The myth that only dull knives are dangerous is just that - myth. Ask an ER doc.
 
Freezing leftover casseroles:
Line a casserole dish with foil before filling it, seal tightly and freeze.
When frozen remove from dish, and now you can use your dish.
When it's time to bake, remove foil, place back in the same casserole and bake.
 
No more stuck Meat Loaf: Meat loaf will not stick to its pan if you place a strip of bacon at the bottom of the pan before placing your meat loaf in it.

Perfect Ice cubes: If you use hot water to fill your ice cube tray you'll get clear ice cubes.

Perfect Beaten Egg Whites: For perfect beaten egg whites, always use a stainless steel bowl and do not tap beater on bowl of egg whites. The jarring of beater will cause the whites to lose a great deal of their fluffiness. The beater should be tapped on the hand to clean off the whites.

Frosting that 2 layer cake: Hate it when you try to frost your cake and it slides off to one side. I found sticking a few broken pieces of spaghetti through the top holds it firmly together.
 
-Live long enough and your way of doing things will come back into fashion. Loved it when Alice Waters minced garlic just like my mom, or when Mario Batali cut onions right into the pot, like my aunts. Even America's Test Kitchen eventually decided that tomato paste as an ingredient wasn't anathema.

-Even the chefs disagree, so cook to your liking. Jacques Pepin likes to peel the skins from his red peppers, while Alton Brown prefers to remove the inner surface. Go figure.

-Feast. Feast while you are young and can eat anything. Eat moderately day-to-day - but on occasion, feast!
 
30 Uses for Kitchen Scissors

1. Shred fresh herbs. Roll leaves into a cigar shape, then snip thin slices off the end.

2. For an instant garnish, snip and slice fresh herbs, chives or green onions directly onto a dish.

3. To chop parsley, cilantro or other herbs, put them in a jar or measuring glass and snip away.

4. Snip, don't chop, chives. Hold a bunch tightly in one hand and snip with the other. You can also do this with other herbs. Hold them in a tight bouquet.

5. Chop tomatoes in the can or in a measuring cup. Holding one side of the scissors handle in each hand, snip until you feel very little resistance. For a finer result, pour out the juice first.

6. Snip sun-dried tomatoes into slivers.

7. Quickly trim the stem ends of green beans. Hold a handful at a time.

8. Trim the leaves from the base of a cauliflower.

9. Instead of cutting, shave black spots off cauliflower with one blade of your scissors. It looks neater. (You can also use a small, sharp knife for this job.)

10. Cut dried chili peppers in half. (Then brush off the seeds.)

11. Sliver dates and other dried fruit.

12. Halve or quarter marshmallows.

13. Evenly trim the edges of pie pastry after laying it in the baking dish.

14. Divide yeast dough – cutting it with scissors is easier than using a knife.

15. Cut stale bread into cubes for croutons.

16. Snip hunks off bread straight into the food processor for fresh bread crumbs.

17. Neatly trim the ragged whites on poached eggs.

18. Remove sausage casings. Run cold water over the sausages for a minute to make them easier to slit.

19. Trim the fat from meat.

20. Cut pork crackling.

21. Snip raw bacon right into the skillet.

22. Cut boneless chicken.

23. Cut the tips off chicken wings.

24. Trim the sharp fins of a whole fish before cooking it.

25. Cut fresh or cooked lasagna noodles to fit your pan. (By the way, remember to slightly overlap the noodles.)

26. Cut yourself a slice of pizza.

27. Slice unruly spaghetti strands on your plate – if no one's looking.

28. Serve French onion soup with scissors alongside to snip the stringy cheese.

29. Salad for one- snip greens right in the bowl.

30. Cut the thighbones of chicken or turkey when making stock; it lets the broth get at the bone for more flavor.
 
My only useful kitchen tip today is...

These can be considered a fast acting laxative substitute.
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There's a waxy orange kind of wheel bearing grease that they are packed in.
Each one individually wrapped in a paper sleeve.
I needed to remove them from the can & unwrap from the paper sleeve on one plate, then change plates to heat them, due to the excess wheel bearing grease.
Notice how they look exactly like the mouthwatering image on the can (NOT).

Taste wise, not horribly bad.
But sadly not even close to the Tom Tom tamales that I loved as a Chicago kid at local hot dog stands.

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The verdict, unless you're very constipated, keep your distance.
 
20 USES FOR COFFEE FILTERS
1. Cover bowls or dishes when cooking in micowave. Filters make excellent covers.
2. Clean windows,mirrors and chrome- they will leave glass sparkling clear.
3. Protect china by separating your good dishes to pack or store. Great for Christmas ornaments!
4. Use a filter if you have broken a cork in a bottle of wine- works well for anything you have to strain.
5. Protect a cast iron skillet after oiling down- Keeps the grime & grease off other items in your cabinet.
6. For applying shoe polish.
7. Use as a sieve to recycle frying oil.
8. Weigh chopped foods on your food scales.
9. Use as a taco holder- filters make a convenient wrapper for messy foods.
10. Prevent the soil from leaking out of a plant pot. Line the pot with a filter to prevent the soil from going through holes.
11. Keep popsicles from dripping- poke a hole through a filter for a holder.
12. Put a few on a plate to microwave bacon, or to drain french fries, chicken, etc. they soak up grease great!
13. Keep in bathroom for "razor nick fixes."
14. As a sewing backing- use a filter as an easy-tear backing for embroidery or applique projects.
15. Put baking soda in a filter & place in athletic shoes as odor absorbers!
16. Use them to strain soup or to blot grease from the top of your chicken stock.
17. You can use them to sprout seeds... Just dampen the filter- place seeds inside,fold it & place it in a plastic bag until they sprout.
18. Use as a disposable snack bowl for the kids- popcorn, chips anything they could create greasy hands.
20. Make a removable spice sachet by tying whole spices such as bay leaves, peppercorns and herb sprigs in a coffee filter with string. Float the sachet in simmering soups and stews, and simply remove and discard the bag after cooking.
 
A piping hot pan and a cool piece of meat = a perfectly seared crust every time.

Freshly cracked black pepper and a variety of salts, from kosher to sea, make your food better with virtually no extra effort, as opposed to pre-ground pepper and table salt. (I keep kosher, pink Himalayan, and large-flake Maldon sea salt near the stove. And the very handy Pepperball one-handed pepper mill is always within reach.)

Homemade stocks are always worth it. Like exercising, nobody ever regrets the time and effort it took to do it afterward!

Mise en place is the key to sanity in the kitchen for complex dishes.

Music makes food turn out better. ;D

Nothing will EVER beat a quality set of knives.

Freeze your flour to keep it from going rancid, or allowing grain weevils to get in.

Ramekins are for so much more than creme brulee. Buy a few inexpensive ones and use them to hold ingredients, or even just a little salt and pepper, and be amazed.

Always fluff flour before measuring, use room temperature butter and eggs for baking, and use a little coffee in chocolate recipes to intensify the delicious flavor.

When making whipped cream, put the beaters and the bowl you'll be using in the freezer, and take them out right when you get the cream out of the fridge. It makes better whipped cream for me every time.

LET MEAT REST BEFORE CUTTING! I didn't know this when I cooked my first steak, and I learned the hard way!

Let pancake batter sit for a few minutes before actually cooking it; my pancakes are picture-perfect when I give my batter about 5 - 10 minutes to just hang out.

Keep practicing, keep watching other people cook, and keep experimenting! You never know when you'll stumble upon something ingenious, or just delicious.
 
The Pepperball, just grab & squeeze:

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The traditional "chef's secret" for removing garlic and onion smell from hands is to:
(1) wet the hands with cold water,
(2) rub them with salt,
(3) rinse off the salt, then rub with lemon juice, and
(4) finish off by washing with soap and water.

But if you have a stainless sink, rubbing your hands on that will remove the smell like magic!
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Get odors out of a cutting board by liberally sprinkling it with salt, then scrubbing it with half a lemon
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Keep a permanent marker in your butter compartment to date opened bottles of salsa and sauce. If the fridge temp is 40 degrees F., you can store opened salsa for about 1 month, commercial salad dressings for 3 months, and ketchup for up to 6 months.
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Have handy a set of cheap steak knives for those times when you need a serrated tool for just one quick, inconsequential cut or to slice the plastic off something. Saves having to dirty/hand wash/damage your good knives.
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Use uncooked spaghetti to skewer rolled things together (rolled stuffed chicken breasts, rolled eggplant etc), then you dont have to fish the toothpick out of the cooked food.

You can also use it as a long match for lighting gas burners or canned Sterno for fondue.
 
Puffing uncooked rice in a hot pan (kind of like popcorn), then pulverizing it in a food processor, will yield a fresh, beautifully fragrant alt-flour that's a perfect match for lighter proteins, like fish. It crisps up beautifully when fried, thanks to its light-as-air texture.

You can also buy pre-milled rice flour at many health food stores. It isn't puffed but still makes a great coating for fish.

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Potato flakes make a great substitute for breadcrumbs in things like meatballs and coatings; add some melted butter and they make a good casserole topping substitute too.

Secret tip: Try seasoned ones, like the Idahoan instant mashed in various flavors.
 
OK, I'll join this groovy thread. Here's a secret I'll share from Goldmember's kitchen:
Add a half teaspoon of Marmite (or Vegemite) to your red gravy/marinara/spaghetti sauce, or whatever the hell you call it! LOL
It will add warmth and depth to the flavor...kind of like what a tube amp does to a guitar's sound.

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Shirley O. Corriher's top cooking tips:
1. Most recipes are over leavened. You should only have 1 tsp of baking powder per 1 cup of flour or 1/4 tsp of baking soda per 1 cup of flour.
2. You should cook green vegetables for less than 7 minutes. If there is salt in the water, the vegetables cook faster. Rinse vegetables in cold water to stop the cooking right away when they're done to taste.
 
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