Cooking Tips
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To reduce fat in the chicken by about 10 grams
per serving, remove the skin before marinating it. |
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If you have forgotten to soak pulses like chana
overnight, just put the chana in a flask full of boiling water for an hour. They
are ready for cooking. |
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To make a soft fluffy omelet heat a non-stick pan
and add a little more butter than usual. Now beat the egg and stir briskly (even
while frying) with a fork. This way more air goes in your omelet, making it
light and fluffy. Cook till done and serve hot. |
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Coconut milk when kept overnight in the fridge
forms a white layer on top. This layer can be used as fat instead of oil for
frying mutton or chicken. |
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Add a little oil and turmeric powder to the dal
before placing it in the cooker. It will get done in ten minutes flat. |
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Adding a cupful of grated carrot or beetroot to
the coconut while making coconut burfi will give you natural colouring and
nutritional benefits. |
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To refresh stale bread, sprinkle it with water,
wrap it in a foil and heat it in the oven on 200 ºC for about five to ten
minutes. |
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Adding a spoonful of curd to ladyfingers while
cooking will ensure that they do not stick to the vessel or turn
black. |
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Sprinkle a bit of salt in the frying pan before
adding chicken. It will cut down on the amount of grease splattering. |
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Peel and cut potatoes and boil them in water to
which a little vinegar is added. They will be done in no time and will retain
the texture as well. |
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While grinding the batter for idlis replace 1/5
quantity of rice with pressed rice (poha). This will make the idlis
fluffier. |
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Place rolled puris in the fridge for ten minutes
before frying them, they will consume less oil and will be crisper. |
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To make dosas more crisp, add a little fenugreek
seeds to the lentil and rice mixture while soaking. |
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Rather than using food colors, use a mixture of
limewater and turmeric to get (almost) tandoori color. |
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Always add salt to the water while boiling
vegetables. This enhances their natural flavour and diminishes the need to add
salt at the table. |
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Add a pinch of salt to the oil while frying
"pakodas" or "koftas" and you will use up less oil. |
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To preserve the white colour in cauliflower and
cabbage, add a teaspoon of milk or milk powder while cooking. |
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When soups or stews get slightly burnt you can
renew the taste by transferring it gently and carefully into a clean pan and
flavouring with curry powder or mustard to camouflage the burnt taste. |
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The art of making good naan khatais lies in
beating of the mixture till it becomes light and fluffy. Also only vanaspati
should be used to make them. |
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When boiling potatoes for cutlets add the salt to
the water itself as potatoes absorb salt better this way. |
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Onions will brown faster if half a teaspoon of
salt is added to the onions while frying. |
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While cooking ladyfingers (okra) add a few drops
of lemon juice or a spoonful of yogurt to avoid becoming sticky. |
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Use crushed vermicelli to coat your cutlets for a
change. The cutlets will have a nest-like appearance. |
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Onions will boil faster if you make X-shaped cuts
in the root ends. |
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A pinch of turmeric powder and a teaspoon full of
ghee added to dal before pressure-cooking it will give it a better
flavour. |
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To roll out the perfect bhatura, roll out small
portions of he maida dough into small puris, cover with a damp cloth. Roll them
out to the desired size just before frying. The dough will be elastic, makes
rolling more efficient. |
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Curry leaves used in any dish are usually
discarded. To prevent this, here is a simple idea. In about one to two teaspoons
of oil, fry washed curry leaves till crisp. Now, crush with hands or coarsely
powder in a mixie. Store this curry powder in an air-tight bottle and use it to
flavour gravies, chutneys, idli batter, etc. |
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If you are making an apple and banana fruit
salad, add a pinch of crushed mustard seeds. It will prevent the fruits from
turning black and also help retain their flavour. |
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Add a small piece of beetroot while making tomato
puree, it will give it a bright red colour. |
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If you have stale ghee do not throw it away. You
can freshen it by boiling it with a little yogurt – two tablespoons of yogurt to
half a kilo of ghee. Cool, strain and use it again. |
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If brown sugar has hardened, do not despair. Just
place it in a bowl, cover it with a clean, damp cloth and leave overnight. Next
morning you will find it softened. |
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If you want your yogurt firm and thick, place a
small slit green chilli in warm milk while setting it. |
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The best way to clean cauliflower florets before
cooking is to soak them in water mixed with a little vinegar for about fifteen
minutes. This not only removes the dirt but also kills the insects. Rinse in
fresh water and use for cooking. |
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If you want to store eggs without refrigeration
just keep them immersed in lime water. |
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To freshen up shriveled vegetables, keep them
immersed in cold water to which drops of lemon juice have been added for about
an hour. |
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To make peeling of boiled potatoes easy, add a
little bit of salt to the water before boiling. |
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You can replace sweetened, condensed milk or mawa
with skimmed milk thickened with wheat flour or arrowroot powder to make
desserts less calorific. |
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It is healthier to garnish soups with popcorn in
place of fried croutons. |
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If using desiccated coconut in place of fresh
coconut, soak it in a bowl with equal proportions of warm milk and water for
about half an hour and then grind. It will taste as good as ground fresh
coconut. |
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Add a few pieces of raw mango while cooking
bitter gourd. It will not only remove the bitterness but also add to the flavour
of the curry. |
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A tablespoon of honey added to meat before
cooking improves its taste and flavour. |
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Do not throw away the syrup from canned fruits.
Add some cornstarch to it and cook till it thickens, add some flavouring and use
it as a sauce with cakes or puddings |
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Grate the rinds of lemon, grapefruit and orange
and store in the freezer. They make excellent flavouring for muffins, cakes and
frostings. |
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If after halving a jackfruit you find it has not
ripened enough wrap the halves tightly in a muslin cloth and keep it in a dark
place. It will ripen in a few days. And you will know it is ready when you get
the strong flavour of a ripened jackfruit. |
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If you use powdered sugar instead of granulated
sugar to sweeten whipped cream, it will make the cream fluffy |
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If you add one teaspoon of glycerine to every
half kilogram of flour, it will help make the cakes light and spongy. |
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If you add a little boiled tur dal to the besan
batter it will make the batata vadas crispier |
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Add a little malai (cream) to the dholkla batter
to make them softer and richer. |
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Left over coconut milk can be frozen in ice trays
and used whenever required. |
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While making bread, warm the ingredients in the
oven before kneading the dough. It will help make the dough softer and the bread
too will have a better texture. |
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Add a teaspoon of condensed milk while preparing
the icing for a cake in order to prevent it from cracking. |
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If the curd has not set well place the bowl of
curd in a bowl of warm water and it will set within fifteen minutes |
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In the winter if you add a little fruit salt to
the idli batter it will help ferment faster and also make the idlis
softer |
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If you add a carrot to tomatoes while making
soup, it will not only reduce the sourness but also increase the nutrient
value. |
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Drop raw banana and brinjal slices into water
mixed with curd .This will prevent them from turning black |
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If the potato chips you brought for your party
turn soggy, simply pop them in microwave for 30 to 60 seconds . they will turn
crispy again. |
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Add a little boiled toovar dal to the besan
batter for batata vadas. They will be crisper. |
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Add a little malai (cream) to dhokla batter to
make them softer and richer. |
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Left over coconut milk can be frozen in ice trays
and used whenever required |
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Add a teaspoon of condensed milk while preparing
glace icing. This prevents it from cracking |
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When the curd is not set well, place the bowl in
a pan with warm water. It will set within fifteen minutes. |
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In winters, adding a little fruit salt to the
idli batter helps it ferment faster and also makes idlis softer. |
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Adding a carrot to tomatoes while making soup
reduces the sourness and also increases the nutrient value. |
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Drop raw banana and brinjal slices into water
mixed with curd. This prevents them from turning black. |
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Add a little sugar to the dosa mixture to make
them brown nicely and become crisp. |
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You can make delicious ‘makki ki rotis’ without
breaking them by adding some wheat flour while kneading the dough. |
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To make thick curd, add one teaspoon of milk
powder to the milk while setting the curd. |
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If cream does not whip properly, add some white
of egg and it will beat up really fluffy. One egg white is enough for two cups
of cream. |
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To make puris tastier add four to five slices of
bread soaked in water, to the dough. |
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Punch numerous holes in amla and soak it in honey
for about a month. Eat two amlas everyday as a general health tonic. |
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Fill cooked, drained and cooled pasta shells with
corn, ham or chicken salad. Or cheese based mixtures. |
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The secret of the great kebab is in its
marination. Ideally you should marinate kebabs twice. First, in a light marinade
like garlic, salt and lemon juice. Then for a few hours in the main
marinade. |
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Add pasta to the sauce as soon as it is drained.
Time your cooking such that the sauce is ready when the pasta is. The hotter the
pasta the better it will absorb the sauce. |
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While presenting snacks, pay attention towards
the colors combinations. Like top a pale green cucumber slice with white
cheese. |
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The best kebabs are made in charcoal ovens. Home
electric oven will slow cook and dry out the kebab, robbing it of tenderness and
flavour. |
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While cooking hard meat like lamb chunks in a
tandoor or in an oven, it is best to add tenderizers like raw papaya or
pineapple and let the meat absorb the flavours of the marinade overnight or at
least four to six hours. |
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While cooking pasta, add plenty of salt to the
water. Use a minimum of one teaspoon salt per one liter of water. Pasta cooked
in unsalted water will taste flat and lifeless, no matter how well you salt and
flavour the sauce. |
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Use powdered (confectioner's) sugar to sweeten
cream for it not only dissolves quickly, but also helps stabilize the whipped
cream since it contains cornflour. |
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While whipping cream, you can decrease
splattering, by gradually increasing the speed of the mixer from low to high. To
protect yourself and your clothes, drape a kitchen towel over the bowl of an
electric standing mixer to catch any fly away cream. |
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An egg slicer works great for slicing fresh
mushrooms too. It makes even slices in a jiffy. |
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Use a cooking spray or grease the measuring cup
every time you need to measure honey. No more messy process of scraping the cup,
as the honey slides out easily this way. |
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The best way to crush nuts is to place them in a
zip lock bag and pound with a mallet or the bottom of a small sauce
pan. |
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To heat rice quickly, spread it on a serving
plate, sprinkle a little water, cover with a domed shaped glass lid and
microwave for three to four minutes |
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Store extra baked potato skins in the freezer.
Just before serving spread them on a microwave-safe platter sprinkle with grated
cheese and mixed herbs and microwave until the cheese melts. |
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To keep fresh herbs fresh put them in a plastic
bag, blow air into the bag as if it were a balloon and seal it tight. |
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To prevent basil leaves from turning brown, keep
them on short stems, rinse and dry gently, layer between paper towels enclosed
in a large plastic bag with air trapped inside and refrigerate. |
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While grilling shrimps, thread them onto skewers
lengthwise so that they do not curl as they grill. |
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It's quicker, easier and neater to use scissors
than a knife to trim the extra pastry overhanging from a pie dish. |
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Best way to separate egg white from yolk is to
break the egg into a funnel set over a bowl - the white will slide through while
the yolk will remain in the funnel. |
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While making any stock, start the cooking in cold
water because it brings out the flavour, whereas hot water seals it
in. |
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Since salt does not dissolve in oil, dissolve it
in the vinegar or lemon juice, then whisk in the oil while making a vinaigrette
dressing. |
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Puree leftover vegetables, add a little mashed
potatoes or bread crumbs, shape into patties, sprinkle crushed potato chips and
bake to make an excellent meal. |
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You can store cooked rice in one-cup portions in
the freezer for up to three months. To reheat sprinkle about two tablespoons
water and microwave for two minutes. |
