(Information taken from Cuisine at Home Magazine: February 2010)
Olive Oil:
Olive oil is made from pressed olives. The highest-grade olive, extra-virgin, is the type we use most often at Cuisine because it's healthier and tastier than lower-grade olive oils. Just like olives, olive oil contains healthful monounsaturated fat, considered good for the heart. Because it can burn at high temperatures, use olive oil for dressings, marinades, drizzling over finished foods, and low-heat cooking.
Canola Oil:
Canola oil is produced from the tiny black seeds of the flowering canola plant. It has the highest percentage of healthful unsaturated fats and the lowest amount of unhealthful saturated fat - just 7%. Canola is a good all-purpose cooking oil. It doesn't impart flavor to food and has a relatively high smoke point, the point where oil begins to break down.
Vegetable Oil:
Vegetable oil often is made entirely from soybeans. The oil is refined to remove any impurities and to extend the oil's shelf life. About half of the fats in 100% soybean oil are linoleic acid, a healthful omega-6 fatty acid. Most vegetable oil oils have a very high smoke point. They are good, cheap frying oils.
Peanut Oil:
Peanut oil is made from pressed or ground peanuts. It's often used in Asian cuisine, largely because its higher smoke point makes it popular for stir-frying. While it does make a good frying oil, peanut oil can be costly and it contains almost 20% saturated fat, the highest among commonly used oils.
Sunflower Oil:
Sunflower oil is made by crushing small black sunflower seeds that have a high oil content - the same type of seeds used for bird feed. Sunflower oil labeled "high-heat" contains more linoleic acid and vitamin E (an important antioxidant) than any other oil. Its "good fat" ratio makes sunflower oil a healthful choice for a frying oil, but it can be expensive.
Corn Oil:
Corn oil is a chemically extracted oil with a very high smoke point. Darker yellow corn oils are made from the whole kernel, while lighter versions are pressed from the seed germ. Corn oil contains about 13% saturated fat, and its an inexpensive, all-purpose oil.
Sesame Oil:
Sesame oil is made from hulled white sesame seeds or dark, toasted sesame seeds. The lighter variety makes a mild cooking or frying oil, while the darker variety has nutty taste and aroma, making it an excellent flavor-enhancing oil for dressings and marinades. Like other nut and seed oils, sesame oil is a good source of vitamin E, which can lower cholesterol.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Sunday, January 23, 2011
SALT
(Article was taken from the Cuisine at Home cooking magazine.)
Salt to Taste
Don't think for a moment that salt is salt. If you're into cooking, here's the information you need to know to make all your food taste even better!
Salt just might be one of the most important commodities in our world - thank goodness there is plenty of it. I'm frequently asked why food in restaurants tastes so much better than food prepared at home. The secret? Besides years of training, chefs use plenty of butter and salt. What's not to love? Real butter makes everything better, but salt is a different story. The proper amount of salt is even more important. Top chefs know this and have been using specialty salts for years.
Salt has always played a role in society. The ancient Greeks traded salt for slaves resulting in the phrase "not worth his salt." Roman soldiers were partially paid in salt - the word "salt" comes from the Latin word salarium, meaning salary. Today, salt has over 40,000 applications from manufacturing to medicine, but to most of us, its main function is in the kitchen.
Like so many things, salts have become trendy - red salt from Hawaii, Jurassic salt from Utah, and the multitude of sea salts from Europe. Is the salt trend overrated, or are some of those Mediterranean sea salts really worth $30 a pound? Well, maybe, but you need to know the basics before deciding.
Table salt (granular salt) is what most of us know. It is mined and processed to form small, uniformly shaped cubes. Additives are added to prevent caking and some medical problems. Most table salt is mined like coal or extracted by forcing water down into subterranean salt deposits. The resulting brine is pumped out and processed to form tiny, dense, cube shapes that don't dissolve very well.
Kosher salt is made by compacting granular salt between rollers which produces large irregular flakes. This shape allows the salt to easily draw blood when applied to freshly butchered meat (part of the koshering process). Unlike table salt, most kosher salts contain no additives.
Sea salt is created when ocean waters flood shallow beds along coastlines. During the summer months, the water evaporates leaving large salt crystals. The different waters and minerals from the surrounding land lend their flavors to these flaky salts.
WHAT TO USE:
TABLE SALT:
Except for baking, I haven't used table salt in years. It always seems to taste really salty and harsh. The reality is that it isn't any saltier than other salts, it's just that the crystals are small and don't dissolve well. Because of this, the crystals tend to linger on the surface of the tongue.
KOSHER SALT:
Kosher is granular salt that is pressed together. If you look at it microscopically, each grain resembles an ancient Egyptian pyramid - stacked cubes that have weathered. Why am I telling you this? It's the design that makes kosher salt so good. This structure dissolves easily and imparts plenty of flavor (without over salting) because of its large surface area. We use it in our test kitchen.
MALDON SEA SALT:
Besides fleur de sel, England's Maldon sea salt is worth $11 a pound price. This is a good "finishing salt" that gets its delicate flavor from a tradition of boiling the sea water to form hollow, pyramid-shaped crystals. You can actually crush the crystals between your fingers. This makes for a light taste on your tongue.
SEL GRIS:
"Gray Salt" is harvested on France's Atlantic coast where shallow basins are flooded with ocean water. Evaporation takes place between May and September when artisan harvesters rake the salt to the edge of each bed. The salt picks up its gray color and distinct flavor from minerals in the bed's clay bottom.
FLEUR DE SEL:
A finishing salt that I think is worth its high price tag. A by-product of sel gris, fleur del sel is created only when the winds are calm and the days are warm. It is on these rare few days that the gray salt "blooms" lacy, white crystals. This is the "flower of salt" and is carefully skimmed from the surface. Use sparingly on foods just before serving.
RED ALAE HAWAIIAN SEA SALT:
Hawaiian red and black sea salts are specialty finishing salts. While they look cool, their flavor is a bit strange. Red salt has an iron taste from the soil that's used to add color, while the black salt tends to have a sulfuric aroma from added purified lava.
Salt to Taste
Don't think for a moment that salt is salt. If you're into cooking, here's the information you need to know to make all your food taste even better!
Salt just might be one of the most important commodities in our world - thank goodness there is plenty of it. I'm frequently asked why food in restaurants tastes so much better than food prepared at home. The secret? Besides years of training, chefs use plenty of butter and salt. What's not to love? Real butter makes everything better, but salt is a different story. The proper amount of salt is even more important. Top chefs know this and have been using specialty salts for years.
Salt has always played a role in society. The ancient Greeks traded salt for slaves resulting in the phrase "not worth his salt." Roman soldiers were partially paid in salt - the word "salt" comes from the Latin word salarium, meaning salary. Today, salt has over 40,000 applications from manufacturing to medicine, but to most of us, its main function is in the kitchen.
Like so many things, salts have become trendy - red salt from Hawaii, Jurassic salt from Utah, and the multitude of sea salts from Europe. Is the salt trend overrated, or are some of those Mediterranean sea salts really worth $30 a pound? Well, maybe, but you need to know the basics before deciding.
Table salt (granular salt) is what most of us know. It is mined and processed to form small, uniformly shaped cubes. Additives are added to prevent caking and some medical problems. Most table salt is mined like coal or extracted by forcing water down into subterranean salt deposits. The resulting brine is pumped out and processed to form tiny, dense, cube shapes that don't dissolve very well.
Kosher salt is made by compacting granular salt between rollers which produces large irregular flakes. This shape allows the salt to easily draw blood when applied to freshly butchered meat (part of the koshering process). Unlike table salt, most kosher salts contain no additives.
Sea salt is created when ocean waters flood shallow beds along coastlines. During the summer months, the water evaporates leaving large salt crystals. The different waters and minerals from the surrounding land lend their flavors to these flaky salts.
WHAT TO USE:
TABLE SALT:
Except for baking, I haven't used table salt in years. It always seems to taste really salty and harsh. The reality is that it isn't any saltier than other salts, it's just that the crystals are small and don't dissolve well. Because of this, the crystals tend to linger on the surface of the tongue.
KOSHER SALT:
Kosher is granular salt that is pressed together. If you look at it microscopically, each grain resembles an ancient Egyptian pyramid - stacked cubes that have weathered. Why am I telling you this? It's the design that makes kosher salt so good. This structure dissolves easily and imparts plenty of flavor (without over salting) because of its large surface area. We use it in our test kitchen.
MALDON SEA SALT:
Besides fleur de sel, England's Maldon sea salt is worth $11 a pound price. This is a good "finishing salt" that gets its delicate flavor from a tradition of boiling the sea water to form hollow, pyramid-shaped crystals. You can actually crush the crystals between your fingers. This makes for a light taste on your tongue.
SEL GRIS:
"Gray Salt" is harvested on France's Atlantic coast where shallow basins are flooded with ocean water. Evaporation takes place between May and September when artisan harvesters rake the salt to the edge of each bed. The salt picks up its gray color and distinct flavor from minerals in the bed's clay bottom.
FLEUR DE SEL:
A finishing salt that I think is worth its high price tag. A by-product of sel gris, fleur del sel is created only when the winds are calm and the days are warm. It is on these rare few days that the gray salt "blooms" lacy, white crystals. This is the "flower of salt" and is carefully skimmed from the surface. Use sparingly on foods just before serving.
RED ALAE HAWAIIAN SEA SALT:
Hawaiian red and black sea salts are specialty finishing salts. While they look cool, their flavor is a bit strange. Red salt has an iron taste from the soil that's used to add color, while the black salt tends to have a sulfuric aroma from added purified lava.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Menus
I have been trying to plan my menu for the week ALL day. I am trying not to spend too much money but I am also trying to make things yummy and fresh. At this point, this is my plan for the week:
Sunday (Breakfast): Mexican Scrambled Eggs
http://www.angelarecipe.com/Mexican_Scrambled_Eggs.html
Sunday (Lunch): Grilled Chicken Salad With Lemon Curry Vinaigrette
Sunday (Dinner): Simple Perfect Enchiladas
http://www.angelarecipe.com/Simple_Perfect_Enchilada.html
Monday: Cuban Black Bean Soup With Deer Sausage (Cuisine @ Home)
Tuesday: Asian Beef & Cabbage Salad
http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/asian-beef-and-cabbage-salad-00000000027639/index.html
Wednesday: Grilled Zucchini Rolls-Ups With Herbs & Goat Cheese
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=10000001713091
Thursday: Chili Glazed Pork With Sweet Potato Hash
http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/chili-glazed-pork-with-sweet-potato-hash-00000000050940/index.html
Saturday (Lunch): Fettuccine With Sausage & Cabbage
http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/fettuccine-sausage-cabbage-00000000044025/index.html
Saturday (Dinner): Roast...haven't decided on the side.
OH I ALSO HAVE TO MENTION SOMETHING SUPER COOL! I just downloaded the "Real Simple App" for the I-phone. I absolutely love it - got a few recipes for this week. Very cool and user friendly!
Sunday (Breakfast): Mexican Scrambled Eggs
http://www.angelarecipe.com/Mexican_Scrambled_Eggs.html
Sunday (Lunch): Grilled Chicken Salad With Lemon Curry Vinaigrette
Sunday (Dinner): Simple Perfect Enchiladas
http://www.angelarecipe.com/Simple_Perfect_Enchilada.html
Monday: Cuban Black Bean Soup With Deer Sausage (Cuisine @ Home)
Tuesday: Asian Beef & Cabbage Salad
http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/asian-beef-and-cabbage-salad-00000000027639/index.html
Wednesday: Grilled Zucchini Rolls-Ups With Herbs & Goat Cheese
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=10000001713091
Thursday: Chili Glazed Pork With Sweet Potato Hash
http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/chili-glazed-pork-with-sweet-potato-hash-00000000050940/index.html
Saturday (Lunch): Fettuccine With Sausage & Cabbage
http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/fettuccine-sausage-cabbage-00000000044025/index.html
Saturday (Dinner): Roast...haven't decided on the side.
OH I ALSO HAVE TO MENTION SOMETHING SUPER COOL! I just downloaded the "Real Simple App" for the I-phone. I absolutely love it - got a few recipes for this week. Very cool and user friendly!
Sunday, January 16, 2011
My New Goals for 2011! (Fresh Herbs VS Dried)
I now have a new GOAL for 2011!! I have never been one to read anything that was not fiction. Even after cooking for 4 1/2 years, I still only read the recipes. Any neat information I retained was from watching cooking shows. I know, I'm sick. As I move forward in my journey of cooking, I have learned that I enjoy reading the information behind the recipe. I recently read some very informative pages on cakes. I am learning that the science and reasons for the things I am doing it pretty cool. My goal for 2011 is to post more information on the "whys" of cooking and neat tips.
For example:
Fresh Herbs Versus Dry Herbs
(Information taken from: Cuisine at Home)
Dry herbs lack the moisture of fresh herbs, their flavor is more concentrated. The general rule is to use 1/3 the amount of dried herbs as you would fresh. Therefore, if a recipe calls for 1 tablespoon of fresh thyme, use 1 teaspoon dried instead.
In addition, when cooking with fresh herbs, it's best to add them at the end of the recipe, so the heat doesn't destroy their bright color and flavor. If using dried herbs. add them at the beginning. This way, their flavor has time to better infuse the dish.
I was so excited when I read this little bit of information. More than a few recipes I have cooked recipes that call for fresh ginger. I have a hard time buying a root of ginger because it usually goes to waste. Now I am excited to use the "ground ginger" in a recipe. I actually know how much to use and I don't have to leave it out. I hated it when I used too much and ruined the dish! Hope this little bit of info helps!
For example:
Fresh Herbs Versus Dry Herbs
(Information taken from: Cuisine at Home)
Dry herbs lack the moisture of fresh herbs, their flavor is more concentrated. The general rule is to use 1/3 the amount of dried herbs as you would fresh. Therefore, if a recipe calls for 1 tablespoon of fresh thyme, use 1 teaspoon dried instead.
In addition, when cooking with fresh herbs, it's best to add them at the end of the recipe, so the heat doesn't destroy their bright color and flavor. If using dried herbs. add them at the beginning. This way, their flavor has time to better infuse the dish.
I was so excited when I read this little bit of information. More than a few recipes I have cooked recipes that call for fresh ginger. I have a hard time buying a root of ginger because it usually goes to waste. Now I am excited to use the "ground ginger" in a recipe. I actually know how much to use and I don't have to leave it out. I hated it when I used too much and ruined the dish! Hope this little bit of info helps!
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