Tips for Cooking Smartly, Efficiently and Economically

If you are looking forward to gaining health, do you know what you will have to do first? You may be perhaps surprised to read my suggestion. My suggestion is “cook at home”! When you cook at home you eliminate the possibility of food poisoning (caused by anything like non-cleanliness, pollution or using substandard raw materials), use just the right amount of fats and sugar, use high quality ingredients, eliminate processed and junk food, and get many more benefits. Cooking gives you an incredible joy of using creativity too. And as time goes, you learn new tricks to cook more smartly, efficiently and economically. Yes, home cooking saves your lots of money. Here are some tips and tricks for making your cooking experience more delightful and smart.

Making Pasta

Pasta is one of the easiest meals to make. If you want to make pasta perfect every time, use this trick. Take a large pot and fill it with water at least to two-third. The more water you take, the less chances of pasta getting stuck to the pan while being cooked. The proportion of salt should be 1 teaspoon for every gallon of water. Turn the heat to high and boil the water. Add pasta only after the water starts boiling, i.e. it shows a lot of bubbles on its surface which won’t go even after you stir it. Add a pound of pasta and cook for around 8 to 12 minutes. Keep stirring and checking in between with a slotted spoon on which you can take out one piece after 8 minutes to check if it is done. You can say that the pasta is done if the piece feels “al dente” i.e. its outer side should feel firm, but the inner side should be a bit soft when you bite in it.

Remember: Pasta becomes double in size after cooking, i.e. 1 cup of uncooked pasta = 2 cups of cooked pasta.

Sautéing Meat

Proper sautéing of meat makes it delicious and moist. For mastering the process of sautéing, you should first choose the right pan. This should be a wide-rimmed, large and heavy-bottomed pan. Non-stick pan is not a good option for this purpose. Keep the flame to medium-high. Taste if the pan is warm by keeping your palm 2 inches above its surface. If your palm can’t stay there more than for a moment, it is heated enough. Now add enough oil, just to coat the pan’s bottom lightly. Let it heat for a minute and then add meat.

Remember to pat dry the meat before adding it to pan, with the least moisture on its outside, so that the outer side will become deliciously crusty. While adding the meat to the pan, take care not to overcrowd the pan, because that will steam the meat and make it wet. Cook first its side against the pan till you start seeing its edges browning. Next, flip and cook the other side the same way. Be careful not to under- or overcook the meat.

Remove the meat from the pan and add chicken stock or white wine to make a sauce. Use a ceramic spatula to remove any stuck bits of meat from the pan’s inner sides and bottom. They will add yummy flavor and thickness to the sauce.

Using the Best Cooking Utensils by LUCENTEE is an additional tip to make your cooking experience pleasant, easy and convenient.

Such small tricks make your cooking great and you can enjoy it along with health.