Tips n Tricks

I was reading my man Tony's(Yes, I think he is hot) book, "Kitchen Confidential" and decided not to buy the "Garlic Press". Why? because he said it's no good and I blindly follow whatever he says ;). Ok, Jokes apart, I did buy one from Ikea few years ago, that thing is a piece of crap and I don't use minced garlic as much as garlic chips or slivered.

I told you all to go take a knife skills class in my last post. And the question I get asked most form my family is if they should by Wushtoff or Henckles or the latest from Rachel Ray. Rachel Ray is making knives? WTF? I don't care what brand you buy or how much you spend, just get a 8 or 10 inch thats made with High-Carbon stainless steel. I have one 10" that I bought for $12 in 2001 when I took a basic cooking class at community college in NJ and it still works as good as brand new.

I am also thinking of starting to store mint and coriander and other fresh herbs in a tall glass with water than in the fridge. America's Test Kitchen magazine recommended this Progressive Herb-Saver which doesn't seem like a bad idea too.

Coriander Cubes

I do not like coriander at all. I very rarely use it as a garnish. I do use it discretely in many dishes as long as I don't see the leaves. I started buying the frozen coriander cubes from Trader Joe's as I hate all the work associated with cleaning, chopping of these leaves.

However, I am also trying to save money for this ;), so I decided to try making these cubes myself. I bought the ice cube tray from ikea.

Here's what you need and here's how I did.

Ingredients:

Coriander - 3 bunches
Water - 1/2 to 1 cup

Procedure:

- Tear individual leaves nad tender stems of coriander and rinse them thoroughly under cold water.
- Mince them in a food processor with 1/2 to 1 cup of water. It should be a tad bit liquidy.
- Pour the coriander into the ice molds and freeze them

Tips.....

Random things I do in the kitchen. Just wanted to share. You might have heard about them, read somewhere but never hurts to read again ;).

- Never store tomatoes in the fridge. They lose all their nutritional value. Take them out of the plastic bag as soon as you bring them home from the store and leave them in an open space.

- Frozen vegetables are as good as fresh and sometimes better.

- Take a knife skills class at your local community college or a supermarket that has cooking classes. It's well worth it. Once you know how to handle a 10 inch knife, cooking is much easier and faster.

- Pre-cut veggies and keep them on hand - you can make your own salad bags and keep them ready.

- This is an awesome website to look into for anything and everything. America's Test Kitchen


I will add more to this list when I remember more.