WAY BETTER Ways to Do Things
As a way to get our 2023 kitchen efforts off to a great start, how about a short compendium of better ways to do things? Some of these ideas are WAY better ways to do things. These suggestions come from the site, www.popsugar.com. Read through and see if there’s anything here you’re already doing or didn’t know about.
First, pasta. I’m guessing most of you Cook’n readers know not to drain the water off your cooked pasta, right? But for our newer cooks, here’s why: Pasta water is the secret ingredient that takes sauce from dry to silky and cohesive. Once your pasta is al dente, the remaining water is starchy and salty (IF you added enough salt before adding the pasta — it should taste like the sea), and the liquid clings to the pasta and aids in creating a creamy sauce, no cream necessary. So, for 2023, no draining allowed!
Next, lemons. If you refrigerate lemons in a bowl of water, they’ll keep for up to three months! This is how to avoid any moldy lemons in your fridge. And if you want to extend the life of a lemon even further, freeze the zest and the juice separately.
And their cousin, limes. Cutting a lime in half is not the best way to cut it. This method barely gives you any juice. To get more, cut all four sides, leaving the center untouched. Cut it this way and you'll squeeze far more juice out of the sides. Try this once and you’ll never going back to the old way—they’re too expensive to not get the most out of them!
Then there’s the way better way to roast potatoes. The best roasted potatoes are boiled in salted water before roasting in the oven. This technique creates a perfectly soft interior and super-crunchy exterior. From there, go the extra mile and add this secret ingredient — whole-grain mustard. It takes their flavor to the next level.
2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes scrubed and quartered
1 tablespoon 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons whole grain mustard
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Directions:
Add Recipe to Cook'n
And how about a better way to cook scrambled eggs? Protein, including eggs, hates heat. If you've always ended up with overcooked and rubbery scrambled eggs, you're probably cooking them too quickly at too high a heat. Low and slow is always best the way for soft, custardy scrambled eggs.
Finally, the way better way to make mashed potatoes. Super star professional chef, Tyler Florence, says that since you're already adding heavy cream and butter to your mashed potatoes, don’t cook them in water, instead, cook them IN the cream and butter. This way no potato-y flavor is lost. Rave reviews of this approach attest to the fact that truly, there's no other way to make them.
I’ll close with Tyler’s instructions (for about 3 pounds of potatoes): “Add cold, peeled, roughly chopped potatoes, cream (or half ‘n half), 3 tablespoons salted butter, and 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil to a large pot. Consider including garlic, some sage, rosemary, and a little bit of thyme for extra pizzaz. The cream should just barely cover the potatoes. Cover the pot and allow it to simmer on medium until the potatoes become fork tender, about 20 minutes.”
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First, pasta. I’m guessing most of you Cook’n readers know not to drain the water off your cooked pasta, right? But for our newer cooks, here’s why: Pasta water is the secret ingredient that takes sauce from dry to silky and cohesive. Once your pasta is al dente, the remaining water is starchy and salty (IF you added enough salt before adding the pasta — it should taste like the sea), and the liquid clings to the pasta and aids in creating a creamy sauce, no cream necessary. So, for 2023, no draining allowed!
Next, lemons. If you refrigerate lemons in a bowl of water, they’ll keep for up to three months! This is how to avoid any moldy lemons in your fridge. And if you want to extend the life of a lemon even further, freeze the zest and the juice separately.
And their cousin, limes. Cutting a lime in half is not the best way to cut it. This method barely gives you any juice. To get more, cut all four sides, leaving the center untouched. Cut it this way and you'll squeeze far more juice out of the sides. Try this once and you’ll never going back to the old way—they’re too expensive to not get the most out of them!
Then there’s the way better way to roast potatoes. The best roasted potatoes are boiled in salted water before roasting in the oven. This technique creates a perfectly soft interior and super-crunchy exterior. From there, go the extra mile and add this secret ingredient — whole-grain mustard. It takes their flavor to the next level.
Mustard Roasted Potatoes
Ingredients:
2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes scrubed and quartered
1 tablespoon 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons whole grain mustard
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Put a half-sheet pan in the oven (it'll heat up while the oven preheats).
2. Add the potatoes to a pot with 1 tablespoon salt; cover with about 1 inch of water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low to maintain a simmer, and cook for 5 minutes, or until easily pierced with a paring knife, but the center is still hard.
3. Whisk together 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, 2 tablespoons olive oil, mustard, and black pepper in a large mixing bowl.
4. Thoroughly drain the potatoes and then toss with the mustard mixture.
5. Take the preheated sheet pan out of the oven, drizzle with 1 teaspoon olive oil, and tilt the pan to spread it evenly. Add the potatoes, arranging them so that a flat side is in contact with the pan, and bake for 25 minutes, or until the bottoms are brown.
6. Flip the potatoes and cook for another 15 to 20 minutes, or until deeply browned and tender.
2. Add the potatoes to a pot with 1 tablespoon salt; cover with about 1 inch of water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low to maintain a simmer, and cook for 5 minutes, or until easily pierced with a paring knife, but the center is still hard.
3. Whisk together 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, 2 tablespoons olive oil, mustard, and black pepper in a large mixing bowl.
4. Thoroughly drain the potatoes and then toss with the mustard mixture.
5. Take the preheated sheet pan out of the oven, drizzle with 1 teaspoon olive oil, and tilt the pan to spread it evenly. Add the potatoes, arranging them so that a flat side is in contact with the pan, and bake for 25 minutes, or until the bottoms are brown.
6. Flip the potatoes and cook for another 15 to 20 minutes, or until deeply browned and tender.
Recipe formatted with the Cook'n Recipe Software from DVO Enterprises.
And how about a better way to cook scrambled eggs? Protein, including eggs, hates heat. If you've always ended up with overcooked and rubbery scrambled eggs, you're probably cooking them too quickly at too high a heat. Low and slow is always best the way for soft, custardy scrambled eggs.
Finally, the way better way to make mashed potatoes. Super star professional chef, Tyler Florence, says that since you're already adding heavy cream and butter to your mashed potatoes, don’t cook them in water, instead, cook them IN the cream and butter. This way no potato-y flavor is lost. Rave reviews of this approach attest to the fact that truly, there's no other way to make them.
I’ll close with Tyler’s instructions (for about 3 pounds of potatoes): “Add cold, peeled, roughly chopped potatoes, cream (or half ‘n half), 3 tablespoons salted butter, and 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil to a large pot. Consider including garlic, some sage, rosemary, and a little bit of thyme for extra pizzaz. The cream should just barely cover the potatoes. Cover the pot and allow it to simmer on medium until the potatoes become fork tender, about 20 minutes.”
Alice Osborne
Weekly Newsletter Contributor since 2006
Email the author! alice@dvo.com
Sources:
- www.thekitchn.com
- www.popsugar.com
- www.countrylivingmagazine.com
