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Cooking tips and resources
Ever wish you could head into the kitchen and whip up a delicious dinner? The good news is that if you've read this far, you'll have no problem at all - because if you can read, you can cook! The trick is knowing some kitchen basics, what kinds of recipes are best, and where to find inspiration for making mouth-watering meals. Read on for some ideas about how to get started.
Kitchen 101: The Basics
Even world-class chefs have to start somewhere. Here are some basic cooking tips for getting off on the right foot in the kitchen.
- Choose recipes that aren't too complicated when you first start cooking. You don't want to be overwhelmed by a recipe that has unusual ingredients or difficult steps, or that is time consuming. Try one- or two-pot dishes, and be sure to check out our recipe section for some simple meal ideas.
- Read the recipe through from beginning to end before you start. Do you have all the right ingredients? Utensils? Appliances?
- Make sure you understand all the directions.
- Check the clock and make sure you have enough time to make the recipe. You don't want to spend tons of time in the kitchen - and with the right recipe, you won't need to. If you have to get dinner on the table by a certain time, figure out when you'll need to start in order to have the meal ready. Most recipe instructions include the amount of time it takes to prepare the dish. It might be a good idea to add 10 or 15 minutes to that time when you first try to conquer the kitchen - just to be on the safe side.
- Assemble all your ingredients in one place before you start. Some chefs like to measure out each ingredient ahead of time before cooking. Pull out the utensils, measuring cups, and spoons you'll be using and keep them handy so you won't need to run all over the kitchen.
- An apron is a good idea if you want to keep your clothes from getting dirty. (You can skip the chef's hat, but it's smart to tie back long hair.)
- Always wash your hands with warm water and soap before any kind of food preparation. You may need to wash your hands several times as you cook, especially after touching raw meat, poultry (chicken and turkey), fish, and egg products.
- Never put cooked or ready-to-serve foods on plates, cutting boards, counters, or other surfaces where you have placed raw meat, poultry, fish, or egg products without first washing these surfaces with hot, soapy water.
- Don't cook without a parent's permission.
Today's Featured Cooking Tips 
Cooking Tips: Making Pies Shine
Before baking your pie, simply brush the crust with a beaten egg white. When your pie is done, your crust will shine! Also remember to use top quality bakeware for best results.
Cooking Tip: Drip-less Ice Cream Cones
Having trouble keeping your ice cream inside the cone? If you are constantly wiping up drips from the bottom of a sugar cone, simply pop a mini marshmallow in the bottom of the cone before adding the ice cream...no more drips!
Cooking Tip: Easy Sifting
If a recipe calls for sifting several dry ingredients, use this useful cooking tip. It´s much simpler to put everything in a bowl and stir with a whisk. Sifters are great, but there are more versatile cooking utensils you can use!
Cooking Tip: Cake Flour
Having a flour dilemna? You can substitute cake flour for regular flour when you bake cookies, but your cookies will most likely spread out more than they would with regular flour. Cake or pastry flour is a fine-textured, soft-wheat flour with a high starch content. It makes particularly tender cakes and pastries. Also remember to use top quality bakeware for best results with any baking, be it cookies or cakes.
Cooking Tip: Whipping Cream
When whipping heavy cream always whip in a stainless steel bowl. Aluminum bowls will cause the cream to turn grayish in color and the cream will taste metallic.
Cooking Tip: Better Baking
A good cooking tip: leave 2 inches of space between the oven walls and your baking sheet for good circulation. Also remember to use top quality bakeware for best results. Without high quality bakeware you risk uneven baking and burning.
Cooking Tip: How to cook brownies
Brownies are cooked properly when the edges look hard, the top has cracked slightly, and the surface has a glassy appearance. The center should not jiggle when you shake the pan. Also remember to use top quality bakeware for best results.
More info about cooking tips, please visit The Nemours Foundation.
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