Learn To Be A Better Cook With These Helpful Hints

The joy of cooking is experienced by many people. Whether you like to make simple snacks that tickle your taste buds, or multiple course meals and desserts that rival even the best thanksgiving feasts, you cant help but appreciate the art of cooking. The tips in this article will help you become a better cook.

Consider recipes to be guidelines rather than rules. Feel free to branch out and switch up the spices or add an extra ingredient. Before long you will be compiling your own personal collection of altered recipes that are better than the original thing. Not only will you will also be able to impress your friends with unique dishes, but you will become a better cook as you experiment with changing recipes.

Keep all spices stored out of the sunlight. Exposing spices to heat, humidity, and light will shorten their lifespan. Always keep your spices in a dark and cool location to extend their longevity. Better tasting meals are the result of the ingredients you use, including the freshest spices possible.

Whenever you are cooking and you feel the need to add more oil, the best way to add oil is to add it through the side of the pan. By doing this, the oil will be heated when it gets to the ingredient that is being cooked. This is a good tip to remember.

When you are going to the store, do not always have a large shopping list which can restrain you to just getting certain items. See what you like and what you are in the mood for and purchase based on that. This will give you the spontaneity to cook whatever you choose.

One of the best ways to store green vegetables so that you can increase the lifespan that they have, is to store them in a damp paper towel and place them in a plastic bag. This will keep the nutrients in them and retain the freshness that they need to remain tasty.

Garlic is one of those delicious ingredient that has a drawback; its flavor gets onto your hands. To avoid the lingering, strong odor from working with odoriferous cooking ingredients, thoroughly rub you hands on the stainless steel surface of your kitchen sink. This will remove the scent from your hands and stop it from transferring.

Cooking a big meal? Do the preparations the day or night before! This way, you will have less to do on the day you are going to make your meal. For instance, if a salad will be part of your meal, make it the night before.

Nutrition

If your recipe calls for a liquid, try using something other than water or milk. This will add a spark to that tired old dish. Substitute plain water with juice, broth, or the water that you cooked your vegetables in. Use yogurt, buttermilk or sour cream in place of milk. By using different liquid ingredients in your side dishes, you can increase their flavor and nutritional value.

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.

Furthermore, many people experience the joy of cooking. From stupidly simple snacks to fantastic food feasts, everyone can appreciate cooking. Using the tips on cooking that are found in the article above, you can increase your cooking skills and make as many tasty and flavorful dishes as you desire.