Tips and Tricks from the Professionals
Marinades
This is a common Chinese cooking technique called velveting the meat. Basically, the meat is marinated in egg whites and cornstarch (other optional seasonings may be added, depending upon what flavour you wish to achieve), then refrigerated for about an hour before cooking. This helps to create a barrier between the direct heat source and …
In the universe of cooking, fond is the dark matter. Undetectable in a finished dish, these concentrated brown bits may seem small, but the impact they have on flavor is huge. Fond, quite simply, is the stuff that sticks to your pan after browning meat or vegetables on the stove top, or at the bottom …
In recipes that call for milk or water, try substituting more flavourful liquids. Try adding some stock instead of water, or even the water your cooked veggies in. Sour cream, buttermilk and yoghurt make good milk substitutes. Changing up the liquids in your recipes can add nutrition, while livening up a standby dish.
There’s no need to spend money on packaged salad dressing when making your own, preservative-free version is easy. Jess Dang at CookSmarts offers this handy infographic that will help you make a variety of dressings. To make a vinaigrette, the simple formula is: 60 per cent oils, 30 per cent acids and 10 per cent …
Yoghurt is a natural tenderizer. Marinades add flavour to food. They also add moisture, particularly when the marinade contains an oil base. Dairy-based marinades, such buttermilk or yogurt, are probably the only marinades that truly tenderize. Only mildly acidic, they don’t toughen meat the way strongly acidic marinades do. It seems that the calcium in dairy products …
Marinating meat with citrus can give it a mealy texture. If you like citrus, a little squeeze of lemon or lime is always a good way to finish the dish instead.Tim Love – Lonesome Dove Western Bistro, Fort Worth, TX
I love kachri powder, which is available at all good Indian supermarkets. It’s great for tenderising meat, so I like to add it in small quantities to marinades. Kachri is a wild variety of cucumber that grows in desert areas such as Rajasthan. However, you should use sparingly, as it can leave a slight tangy …