Brisketexan
1,000+ Posts
Some of these seem elementary, but it's surprising how many folks don't know them:
-- smash garlic cloves lightly with the flat side of your knife before peeling - it makes them much easier to peel.
-- when whisking eggs to make scrambled eggs, add a splash of milk, or even club soda (makes them lighter and more airy)
-- learn to make a simple white sauce (flour, butter, and milk). It's the base for so many good things.
-- if you are cooking with tomatoes and you don't want the peel in there (like when you're making a sauce), dunk the tomatoes in boiling water for about 30-45 seconds, then remove and put in a bowl of ice water. The skin will peel right off.
-- if you're making GOOD crab cakes, the ratio of crab to binder/filler will be like 10-1. So, to make sure that they don't fall apart when you cook them, chill the formed cakes at least 2 hours in the fridge before cooking.
-- Cut the brisket into two parts -- the flat and the point -- before you start slicing. This allows you to trim the fat some, and allows you to properly orient the grain, as the grains of the two pieces do NOT run the same way.
-- sea salt beats table salt, every time.
-- Learn what a tablespoon of oil, etc. looks like in the pan, so you don't have to actually measure it every time you're cooking and need to add "1 tablespoon olive oil."
-- roast a chicken breast side up (yeah, I know, but my wife managed to mess that up, so there you have it).
-- pancakes are ready to flip when you can see lots of bubbles in the uncooked side (again, seems elementary, but . . . . )
-- serve cobbler (a) warm, and (b) topped with ice cream. Failure to do so is an affront to God.
-- smash garlic cloves lightly with the flat side of your knife before peeling - it makes them much easier to peel.
-- when whisking eggs to make scrambled eggs, add a splash of milk, or even club soda (makes them lighter and more airy)
-- learn to make a simple white sauce (flour, butter, and milk). It's the base for so many good things.
-- if you are cooking with tomatoes and you don't want the peel in there (like when you're making a sauce), dunk the tomatoes in boiling water for about 30-45 seconds, then remove and put in a bowl of ice water. The skin will peel right off.
-- if you're making GOOD crab cakes, the ratio of crab to binder/filler will be like 10-1. So, to make sure that they don't fall apart when you cook them, chill the formed cakes at least 2 hours in the fridge before cooking.
-- Cut the brisket into two parts -- the flat and the point -- before you start slicing. This allows you to trim the fat some, and allows you to properly orient the grain, as the grains of the two pieces do NOT run the same way.
-- sea salt beats table salt, every time.
-- Learn what a tablespoon of oil, etc. looks like in the pan, so you don't have to actually measure it every time you're cooking and need to add "1 tablespoon olive oil."
-- roast a chicken breast side up (yeah, I know, but my wife managed to mess that up, so there you have it).
-- pancakes are ready to flip when you can see lots of bubbles in the uncooked side (again, seems elementary, but . . . . )
-- serve cobbler (a) warm, and (b) topped with ice cream. Failure to do so is an affront to God.
