We have all been in the kitchen wondering “how could I do it easier”. Below you will find cooking tips and tricks to avoid home cooking chaos.
It is one of the most loved arts worldwide. Cooking forges bonds by creating nationwide family tables of flavors. However, the fast pace of our daily lives deprives us of the opportunity to devote more time to preparing meals for both ourselves and our loved ones. What makes homemade food stand out is control. You know exactly what ingredients your meal contains and you don’t have to worry about their quality, as is often the case with”fast food”.
I dropped more salt, what do I do now?
In case we dropped more salt in food, there are some easy ways to absorb a significant part of it.If we are talking about the case that we dropped more salt in a meat that we are going to sauté or bake, the solution is obvious.A quick wash in running water will carry away the salt we do not want.
The food was burned!
In this case, since we are talking about food cooked in a saucepan, what we can do is carefully remove the amount of food that has not come into contact with the bottom of the pot. Be careful not to scratch the cookware at all, and carefully transfer the contents to a clean, dry dish. Top up with sauce or broth and continue cooking.
My egg-lemon sauce got separated, how can I save it?
Above all, we are not stressed. A separated egg-lemon sauce means that pieces of egg and specifically the egg white, as they come into contact with the hot broth, are baked and give a bad look to the sauce. If this happens, with the help of a fine sieve, pass the sauce and essentially the pieces of egg stay in the strainer.
The main thing is the next time you make egg-lemon sauce, is to use only the yolk, gradually add the broth, which should not be at a boiling point and stir constantly to achieve the ideal homogenization.
Excess oil or fat in food
There are cases where we may have added unnecessary oil to our food or the meat we cook is fatty, so that when we have finished cooking, the fat floats on the surface of the pan or pot.
If we are referring to a preparation such as a soup, we can add 3-4 ice cubes to the pot and with circular movements essentially “pull” on the excess fat and easily remove it.
Otherwise, with the assistance of paper towels, dab the oil shown above or simply put the food in the refrigerator for a while.
The drop in temperature will freeze the fat and make it easily visible so that it can be removed.
Why does my béchamel sauce “clump”?
A common question, which I need to answer quite often.
The mistake that most people make when preparing a béchamel sauce is firstly the use of the wrong tool for stirring and secondly the wrong temperature in the liquid element, i.e. milk.
During the preparation of roux (butter and flour), the use of an egg maker will help us achieve uniform baking and texture, while at the same time we should stir constantly until the end of the sauce.
At the same time, when we are ready to add the milk, it should be warm, but not boiled. A temperature between 70-85 degrees is ideal. Simultaneously, stir constantly to achieve a velvety texture.
If we want to add egg yolks, this should be done at the end of cooking, after we have removed from the heat and after we have mixed the yolks well, incorporate them into the béchamel, stirring vigorously.
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