Basic Cooking Tips

​https://www.msn.com/en-ca/lifestyle/lifestylefood/50-basic-cooking-tips-you-should-memorize/ss-BB130EqR?li=AAggxAX#image=1

I found this article through MSN and thought it would be a great article to share with you guys and speak a bit about. Throughout my years of cooking and learning, I've learned the hard way about some very basic tips and techniques in the kitchen. You can bet that I've burnt it, overcooked it, undercooked it, or just flat out messed it up at least once. That's why I wanted to share this article (although some of the tips are meat focused, ignore that) and speak on the importance of some of the tips shared!

1. HEAVILY SALTING PASTA WATER
There are a million different salt to water ratios out there if you look hard enough but what it boils down to is the importance of heavily salting your pasta water. This is the very best way to ensure your pasta comes out with some flavour but also gives that pasta water some much needed salty flavour in case you're going to scoop some out for a pan sauce. When you taste your pasta water, it should be salt ater ocean style salty.
TAKEAWAY - Always, always, always salt your pasta water.

​2. KEEP YOUR KNIVES SHARP
Dull knives affect your every move in the kitchen. A dull knife means you have to put more effort into slicing, dicing, and chopping. It means your cuts are likely uneven and your fingers are in danger of slips and slices. Dull knives are actually more dangerous in the kitchen than sharp ones.
TAKEAWAY - Keep your blades sharp.

3. PREP & MEASURE ALL INGREDIENTS FIRST
This is such a good tip, one that I myself have spoken out about in the past. Every recipe I test, I have my ingredients prepped and set out before me. This helps the flow of the recipe from start to finish and helps to prevent recipe mistakes. Prepping as you go distracts you and results in food being burnt, overcooked, or timing of recipes to be way off. 
TAKEAWAY - Prep everything in advance of a recipe for a smooth process.

4. CLEAN AS YOU GO
It took me many messy kitchens and being overwhelmed with my surroundings before I smartened up and kept things tidy. I try to keep a sink of hot, soapy water available so that I can toss dishes in there as I go to avoid clutter. When things get cluttered and messy, it's very easy to get overwhelmed which results in many a kitchen mistake.
​TAKEAWAY - Keep things clean, period.

5. SAVE VEGGIE SCRAPS
I swear by this tip! Save all of your vegetable scraps in an airtight container in the freezer and when the container is full, make fresh vegetable stock. Fresh veggie stock is as simple as some veggie scraps like onion ends, garlic skins, carrot tops, celery ends, mushroom stems etc., some peppercorns, bay leaf, and salt. It's so incredibly simple and keeps for about a week in the fridge!
​TAKEAWAY - Waste less!

6. USE UNSALTED STOCKS & BUTTERS FOR RECIPES
​Have you ever oversalted your food? It's probably one of the worst outcomes in the kitchen because once you've drastically over salted, everything seems rather hopeless. That's why it's super important to purchase salt-free additions like vegetable stock and butter. This way, you can have full control over the salt in your dish.
TAKEAWAY - Minimize the opportunity for oversalting by purchasing salt free items like vegetable stock and butter.

7. DON'T OPEN THE OVEN WHILE COOKING
Believe it or not, a significant amount of heat escapes the when you open the oven to take a peek at whatever masterpiece is in the oven. Every time you open the oven and that heat escapes, your food will take longer to cook and may cook unevenly.
TAKEAWAY - Patience is a virtue.

​8. SEASON OFTEN
I like to add ingredients in layers and in doing so, season after every ingredient goes in to the pan. It's so important to season often because that salt and pepper brings out all of the delicious flavours of every ingredient.
​TAKEAWAY - Salt and Pepper are your friend.

9. HOMEMADE VINAIGRETTE IS THE WAY TO GO
Often times, store bought vinaigrette seems harmless enough but a peek at the ingredients label tells an entirely different story. What should be as simple as oil, vinegar, and some seasonings, turns into a 30 ingredient nightmare. Whip up your own at home, it's easy and will save you tons of chemicals.
TAKEAWAY - Homemade is always best.

10. DON'T PEEL EVERYTHING
Too often, we peel our veggies before adding them to soups, stews, stir fries etc., but a lot of nutritional value hides in the peels. In almost every case, the peels will cook down just fine so don't be so quick to peel them off.
TAKEAWAY - Use ALL of the veggies.