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Are you one of those people who can't cook to save your life? Have you burned water or spilled an entire carton of milk? Don't worry -- cooking is easy, and this article is here to show you how! Read on to find out simple tips to help you cook better!

Store your spices and herbs in a cool and dark spot when you decide where to keep them. When exposed to light and heat, spices will lose their sharpness and flavor. Herbs and spices that are ground usually remain flavorful for a year. Though if you have whole spices, you will notice the flavors are strong for 3-5 years. When spices are stored in the correct manner, they will stay fresh for much longer.

A good tip to do when it comes cooking and preparing food is to prepare all the necessary ingredients that you need at night, that way when morning comes you are not stressing about them. This will help you concentrate at the task at hand which is preparing food in the best way possible.

When you are chopping herbs before your meal, a tip that you can follow is to throw a little bit of salt on the chopping board. This will give you extra friction so that you can maximize your cuts. Quality cuts of herbs will lead to a great meal when everything is complete.

One of the best ways to store green vegetables so that you can increase the lifespan that they have, is to store them in a damp paper towel and place them in a plastic bag. This will keep the nutrients in them and retain the freshness that they need to remain tasty.




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Save sauces in ice cube trays. If you make several meals during a week, consider saving sauces from them in ice cube trays. This will allow you to add some interesting variety to http://hilahcooking.com/ might be making later in the week. It will also make the process simple.

A coffee grinder isn't just for coffee. A coffee grinder actually works just as well as a food processor for some jobs. This is especially true with small jobs when you don't want the trouble of lugging out a huge processor and then having to wash all the parts. Nuts and peppercorns grind perfectly in a coffee grinder, even sugar if you need a quick substitute for powdered sugar in a recipe.

No matter what kind of cheese you may have in your refrigerator, be sure that air cannot enter it by wrapping it tightly. Air contributes to mold growth on cheese. If your cheese does happen to have a little bit of mold on it, you can still use it by just cutting off the part with mold.

It is possible to cut back on the amount of calories that are in your favorite dessert by simply using applesauce in the recipe. Many recipes call for unhealthy ingredients that add tons of calories to a desert that really are not needed. Applesauce will add sweetness to the dessert with adding tons of calories.

Salt and pepper are two of the most important ingredients that you can add to your meal when you are cooking. If something does not taste salty enough, make sure to add extra salt in order to avoid a dull taste to your food. Sometimes, it is better to have too much salt than none at all.

Check what you have at home and bring any new recipes with you when you go to the store. When you have the recipe with you, you'll have a handy list of what you need to buy. If you don't check what you already have, you may ending up buying more than you need. If you don't bring the recipe, you may forget something that you won't be able to cook without!

When cooking burgers, no matter what the type of burger, it is important to only flip it one time in order to retain all of the juices. If you don't do this your burger will most likely end up dry and will resemble a hockey puck! Don't let that happen to your burgers.

When you are cooking a hamburger patty, use a fork or other utensil to poke a hole in the middle of it. This way, the hamburgers will cook faster. Do not worry, once the hamburger is cooked, it will still have its great taste and the holes do eventually disappear.

Try to wash dishes when you are cooking to save time on cleaning a mess after dinner. Fill one section of your sink with soapy hot water, and use the other side for rinsing. It is much easier to wash cooking utensils right after using them, and in some cases, you'll need the same utensil again later in the cooking process.

Put vegetables in cold water after you blanch them. Blanching - also known as boiling - a vegetable can be a tasty way to prepare them. Unfortunately, it can quite literally &blanch& your veggies. While this is only an aesthetic problem, it can be easily avoided. By putting the vegetables in cold water after blanching, they will retain their green color.

Cooking is a daily activity that is more than diamond sharpener fine seems. Cooking can be a great way to put on a little show for guests or even yourself. Create a wonderful meal and be proud of what you've done. Use these cooking tips to give you inspiration to express yourself through food.