How To Find Success With Cooking Thanks To Our Advice

Becoming a better cook can be accomplished with a little time, patience and following a few simple steps. The basics of cooking are easy to master and accomplish. In order to cook meals and dishes that will make your friends and family say "Wow!" you need to try these simple steps and you can be on your way to being the best cook you can possibly be.

When not in use, put your spices in an area that receives the lowest amount of light and heat. Leaving your spices out will expose them to moisture and light, which will diminish their quality. When a spice is placed in a cool area with very little light, its life is extended and it will taste better. Using fresh spices makes meals even more delicious.

You can save the sauce if you use the following information. Mix 2 tablespoons water and 1 tablespoon cornstarch into a bowl. Stir this mixture into the sauce while its simmering and this will make it more thick. Avoid over-thickening by adding the starch mixture slowly and stirring the sauce often.

Always add oil to the side of the pan when saut�ing. If you find that you need more oil in your pan while you are cooking, never put it right in the middle. Add it to the side of your pan. That way, it will be sufficiently heated by the time it reaches the food.

To improve your level of convenience in the kitchen, one of the things that you can do is to freeze the excess sauces that you create, in ice cube trays. This will allow you to reheat them when you need sauce again and also to save money on the excess sauce that you kept.

Kneading is a tiring task, but the constantly moving board makes it even more difficult. Have you tried a few unsuccessful tricks to secure the board? Try the simplest of all which always deliver the best results. Place a damp towel under the board you are using to knead the dough. It will keep the board in place.

Cook pasta for one minute less than instructed on the box and then place the pasta in a sauce pan. By making pasta this way, the sauce will absorb into the pasta and the overall quality of your meal will be better. You can even add some spices into the saucepan.

Add some chicken broth to your pan when cooking vegetables. Chicken broth is a great way to add flavor to your vegetables while keeping them from sticking to your pan. Chicken broth doesnt cost much, and is widely available at most grocery stores.

Nutrition

Try different liquids in recipes calling for water or milk to add some new flavors to your meals. Use chicken broth, beef, or juice in places where you would normally use water. Sour cream, buttermilk and yogurt make good milk substitutes. Using a variety of liquids can add a bit of zest to a favorite recipe and even make it more nutritious.

To preserve more of the nutritional value of your vegetables dont cook them for too long. As you cook a vegetable, its nutrient content diminishes. Good techniques for quickly cooking vegetables are steaming and stir-frying. Slow cooking has its place, but dont neglect the quicker techniques with their greater nutrition.

After trying these steps, you should be well on your way to being a much better cook. The great thing about these tips is that if they dont work the first time keep trying and you are sure to get better. You should notice the difference right away and your friends and family will thank you.