Are You A Stranger In Your Kitchen? Try These Simple Cooking Tips!

How many times have you dreaded going into the kitchen to make breakfast, lunch, or dinner? You might need a new perspective. Cooking can be enjoyable and relaxing if you try to see it in another way. Here are a few cooking tips that are sure to get your taste buds tingling and entice your inner chef to come out.

Try going to a library or buying a cook book if you are wanting to cook different foods. Create at your own pace and allow for patience as you get the trick of cooking down.

When you are seasoning meat, try a small piece prior to adding seasoning to the entire thing. Foods like meatloaf, meatballs, and even hamburgers can require careful seasoning. Don't cook it all at once after you have seasoned it. Try cooking a small patty first. If it tastes good, then cook it, if it needs some additional seasoning, then you can adjust your recipe before making the entire meal.

Apples are used in cooking mostly during the fall, but you must make sure they are properly kept so that they do not rot. When exposed to dry, warm air, the apples will rot. To prevent this, apples should be stored in plastic bags and placed in the fridge or perhaps a basement. You'll want to monitor them, though, because if one goes bad, it can cause the all the others to spoil also.

Adding cauliflower to your mashed potatoes is a great way to reduce the amount of fat and calories they contain. You should use equal portions of potatoes and cauliflower when making this delicious side. Cauliflower blends perfectly with your potatoes without changing the taste of your mashed potatoes. You'll still be able to enjoy mashed potatoes, but with less fat and calories!

Are you planning to use freshly picked basil in a recipe? Take some fresh basil and put some of it in a glass. Now fill the glass with water to just above the stems. Just set it on the counter top, and it will be good for several weeks. You can even grow new basil plants if you feel like changing the water every day or so. The stems will sprout roots; that's the wonder of plant life. Occasionally trim the basil, which will encourage more growth, and you will be able to have the benefits of fresh basil for quite some time.

A useful tip when making chicken stock is to think big! Make sure that you prepare a large amount of stock so that you will have more than enough to store and use for future kitchen adventures. Excellent chicken stock that is homemade is a great base for use in stews, soups, casseroles, and more. First, cool the stock and then stick it in the freezer.

Try some of these handy tips the next time you make a meal. After you have given a few new dishes a try, you might just understand that cooking isn't so awful after all! Actually, you might like it enough to make a hobby out of it, and find yourself making all sorts of new dishes. Try out some new cooking techniques and start enjoying the process!