Guy kitchen tips:Shopping:
Unless you have an unlimited food budget NEVER shop hungry. You’ll buy everything that looks interesting, and when you get home none of it will go together. Always eat (or at least snack) before going on an excursion into the vast food mega-malls.Tips:ALWAYS take a list. Women already accuse us of having no memory. Shop without a list and you will prove them right!
Keep a white board on your refrigerator as a place to jot down items as you run out of them.
Shop at the larger markets in your area. The selection is generally larger, fresher and cheaper.
Keep a basic list of items on hand in the pantry and freezer. You’ll always be able to make SOMETHING interesting.Cleanup: The most dreaded part of any guy’s cooking.Buy chopped garlic in jars from the produce section. Its simpler than crushing your own and much more flavorful than the powdered stuff.
Buy good olive oil. It tastes great and helps fight cholesterol.
When frying, add a little olive oil to the skillet to keep butter from burning.
Marinate and coat ingredients in large zip-top plastic bags. You don’t clean them up - you throw them AWAY!
When you chop vegetables, chop extras and freeze them.
Brown a couple pounds of ground beef and onions. Package in 1 cup containers and freeze them. Perfect for sloppy joes, stuffing peppers or spaghetti sauce in a flash.
Toast nuts in a frying pan over medium heat. Shake the pan until you just barely detect the smell of toasted nuts - they’re done.
Zap lemons and limes in the microwave for 30 seconds before cutting them to get more juice out of them.
Put green bananas in a 350 degree oven for 5 minutes to ripen them.
Freeze left over gravy in ice cube trays, then transfer to zip-top freezer bags for later use.
Buy boneless-skinless frozen chicken breasts
Buy bags of mixed greens for your salads.
Keep a bottle of Italian dressing on hand to use as marinade for meats and seafood.
Use a leafy celery stalk to baste foods. It adds flavor and tastes great when you’re finished!
To extend the freshness of garlic, peel it and then store it in salad oil in the refrigerator.
Frozen fish may be thawed quickly by placing in cold water. This will not harm the quality of the fish.
When cutting biscuits, dip the biscuit cutter in flour to prevent sticking.
When forming meatballs by hand, coat the palms of your hands with a little salad oil. The rolling will be easier and the meat will not stick to your hands.
When checking food to be used for freshness the rule of thumb is, if in doubt, throw it out.
If the meat or fish smells bad, it usually is.
If you over-salt while cooking, drop in a raw peeled potato. It will absorb the salt and not flavor the dish
Remember FIFO (first in first out) when putting your food away.
Bacteria grows most rapidly between 40 degrees F. and 140 degrees F. so keep foods above or below this range as much as possible.
When placed in a bowl of water, fresh eggs will sink to the bottom: while older eggs will float.
Room temperature eggs will beat better and will provide better volume.
When whipping heavy cream always whip in a stainless steel or copper bowl. Aluminum bowls will cause the cream to turn grayish in color and taste metallic. Plastic bowls absorb oil from previous uses and won’t let the cream stiffen.
When sautéing apples, add brown sugar to add to the flavor.
When cooking any fruit add a few drops of lemon juice to enhance the flavor.
To crumble blue cheese easily, place the cheese in your freezer until frozen. Now the cheese will crumble in your hands.
Wrap your open cookbook in plastic wrap. It will keep it open to the correct page and protect it from getting grease spattered.
Spray a grater with cooking spray before grating cheese to keep it from sticking.Use disposable foil pans when you won’t have time to clean up.
Use spray-on oven cleaner to get everything off the REALLY grungy pans
Soak dirty pots and pans in hot soapy water while cooking to minimize cleanup.
Spray measuring cups and spoons with cooking spray before using molasses and honey. The gooey stuff will slide right off.
Buy a dishwasher!