Tips and Methods

Cooking Tips

• Substitute for Cake flour and Self raising flour:

1. Cake flour : Take 1 cup of maida/All purpose flour and remove 2 tbsp of flour out. Use this as a substitute for 1 cup Cake flour.
2. Self raising flour : Take 1 cup of maida/All purpose flour and remove 2 tbsp of flour. Add 1 tsp baking powder + 1/2 tsp salt to it. Use this as a substitute for 1 cup self raising flour or 1 cup self raising cake flour.

• How to sterilise a bottle for preserving Jams or pickles?

• The bottle should have a tight lid, so that the air cannot get in once the lid is closed.
• Wash the bottle and the lid very nicely and place it in the boiling water for about 10 minutes.
• Take it out and let them dry completely.
• Now u can use them for storing your preserves.

• Toss nuts, raisins and chopped fruits in flour first if you wish to add it in your cake.This will help keep them suspended in the batter and these wont go to the bottom while baking. It will be evenly spread in the cake.

• When you cook green coloured vegetables (like ladies finger, spinach etc) never cook them covered as it will change its colour and won't retain its green colour.

• When onions are deep fried, it turns soggy after sometime. To keep the fried onions crispy for long time, soak the thinly sliced onion in milk for some time and then take the onions from the milk and deep fry it. When the onions turn deep golden brown, transfer it to a tissue paper. It will remain crispy for a long time.

• When frying fish, mostly it sticks to the bottom of the pan and it becomes very difficult to turn as it breaks into pieces. To avoid this, after putting oil in the pan, add 1 tbsp of raw rice and once it turns its colour (you can either take out the rice or leave it in the pan itself), put the fish for frying. The fish won't break and it won't stick to the bottom of the pan.

• If you want to add curd (dahi) to any dish, it might get curdle. To avoid that, add a tablespoon of oil in the curd, mix it well and then add it to the dish, dahi wont curdle.

• To keep green chillies for a long time, wash them, dry them and take their stalks off. Then wrap them in newspaper and put it into a polythene bag.

• Add Ajwain while making parathas as it increases taste and has lots of health benefits too.

• To keep coriander leaves fresh for a long time, put it in a zip lock bag and keep in a refrigerator. It stays fresh for more than a week.

• While boiling egg, add little salt in the water. It will help the egg to cook faster and the egg will not break.

• To thicken milk for kheer or basundi faster, add some coarse rice powder dissolved in little cold milk.

• Do not store potatoes and onions together. The potatoes will rot quickly. Instead, store potatoes together with a slice of ginger to keep them fresh for a longer period.

• Adding eggs while baking cake, gives binding and moisture to the cake. By beating the eggs before adding to the cake batter makes the cake light because of aeration process. 

• Indications to know whether the cake is perfectly baked or not:- 

1. You see that the edges of the cake is slightly pulled-out off the baking tray.
2. The cake slightly springs back when you touch the cake lightly in the center.

• While baking bread or buns, if you are adding dry yeast, you should prepare the environment for it to develop. For this add luke warm water to the yeast and little sugar for it to feed on. Don't add hot water (will kill the yeast) or cold water (it won't multiply).

 

Cooking Methods

Saute - Quickly fry in a little oil.

Blanch - Immerse briefly in boiling water.

Marinate - Soak meat, fish etc., before cooking, in a mixture of oil, spices and for a few recipes yogurt.

Puree - Make a soft pulp of vegetables or fruit or any mixture and reduce to a smooth paste.

Roast - Heat/lightly fry, before grinding in cases of spices.

Tempering - (Tadka) The first step in certain recipes. Heat oil. Add mustard, cumin seeds to it. After they crackle, add the other spices/curry leaves.

Deep frying - frying in lot of oil/ghee.

Shallow frying - frying in very less oil/ghee.

Baste - Moisten with gravy or butter while cooking.

Broil - Roast or lightly fry. Commonly used for cooking meat.

Creaming - Beating butter and sugar till light and soft.

Aeration - the process by which air is circulated through a liquid or substance. eg: beating eggs by using an electric beater.