Becoming The Cook You Always Wanted To Be

Do you ever sit in a restaurant enjoying a delicious meal, and think about how it was prepared? Have you ever tried to recreate a dish you had a restaurant at home? By following the tips below, you can not only learn to cook your favorite meals, you'll also be able to create new ones. Cooking is an enjoyable hobby for many people.

When you store your spices and herbs, keep them in a place that is cool and dark. Their flavors will be weakened when they are exposed to light, heat or humidity. Generally speaking, properly stored herbs and ground spices can keep a good portion of their flavor as long as one calendar year. You may retain your spice's flavor for about 5 years. If you store them the right way, they will be fresher.

One thing that you can do is to bake a pie or tart crust longer to optimize quality. Your objective is to cook them past the point of being pale blonde, to the point where they become a golden caramel color. This golden color means that the sugar has caramelized, leaving a sweet flavor.

Use a heavy duty, zip-lock plastic bag to separate pan drippings. After roasting meat, pour the pan drippings into a zip-lock plastic bag. Let the fat rise to the top. Carefully snip off one of the bottom corners on the bag, and pour out the fat-free broth. The fat will stay in the plastic bag, and you will have a tasty broth as a base for gravy or a sauce.

If you use the informatin from this article you have the choice of becoming a great cook-at-home chef. Think of new and innovative recipes and techniques that will make your meals fit for a gourmet. For some new flavors, go to an ethnic market for exotic spices and seasonings.