Cooking isn’t like baking — precise quantities are rarely needed, and in many cases the ingredients can just be chucked in together and will produce a great result. However there are a few top tips that will elevate the food you make.
Toast whole spices
Before grinding or using whole spices toast them (gently) for a few seconds. This helps to express the oils in the spices which are often where the desirable flavours are held! Use a medium (not high) heat and if you burn the spices do not use them. Throw them and start again. Burnt spices are no good.
Bloom / temper your spices
Similar to toasting spices, but this happens AFTER grinding, not before. Blooming spices is basically gently frying them in a reasonable amount of oil. Plenty of oil! Again it is about liberating the complex flavours which are are oils in the spices — oil is not water soluble so if you don’t bloom the spices some of the flavours will stay locked in the spice grains.
Retain moisture in minced meat
Ever noticed how when you cook minced beef (and other meats) that you are swiftly left with a pool of liquid in the bottom of the pan? You want that juice to stay in the meat to keep it moist and tender. And of course that pool of liquid is also ‘boiling’ your beef rather than browing it. To help prevent this process you can add a small quantity of bicarbonate of soda. This common baking ingredient is a base (the opposite of acid) and will help to prevent proteins in the meat tightening up and hence helps avoid water being squeezed out. Some sources also suggest that the higher pH will also speed up the Maillard reaction which is what leads to the browning that you do want as well. I recommend 1⁄4 tsp of bicarb for 350g of meat. Don’t use too much as it can start to add a soapy mouthfeel to your food if you use too much. Whilst the same process will work with all meats most larger cuts don’t require it to remain moist and tender so I only advise using it with minced / ground meat.
Acid and salt for chicken
If you are marinading chicken make sure you add some acid — either fresh lemon or vinegar. Chicken also always needs a little salt. You’d be surprised how much flavour you can give chicken with JUST lemon and salt!
Let meats stand
Protein will continue to cook after it is removed from heat. This is why so many recipes instruct you to let a meat “stand” after being removed from the heat. If you cook it until it is “done” on the heat, then it will be “overdone” by the time it gets to the plate. Use a meat thermometer to ensure meat is safe and learn when to remove it to let it stand.
Hold your nerve when browning meats
If you are cooking steak, or browning/sealing other meat in a pan don’t be tempted to move it around constantly as it will initially stick to the pan but once browned it will pretty much unstick itself again. In a hot pan give things 3 minutes (or more) before turning over.
Get the right number of portions
Some recipes don’t always give reliable sizes. As a quick check a typical main meal portion for an adult (including met, veg, grains, etc) is around 400–600g. If you’re making a buffet or BBQ with 4 different things then assume you need 100–150g of each per person. So you can make a rough estimate before starting.
Deglaze
After cooking in a pan if there is anything stuck to the pan add a little hot water (or a splash of alcohol) to “deglaze” the pan — i.e. to dissolve all those flavour particles that are stuck so they add great flavour to your food, rather than being stuck and burned to the pan.
Don’t be afraid to use olive oil
I am forever seeing recipes that give various reasons not to use olive oil. Some worry about smoke point — which is lower for extra virgin olive oil than for many other oils. Some insist on a “neutral flavour” oil. Some insist an oil that is solid at room temperature is needed. In 99% of cases these concerns are not justified. I wouldn’t recommend deep-frying in olive oil — but mainly because it’s rather expensive to be throwing a large amount of after 1 round of deep frying, and I wouldn’t recommend reheating it many times. When shallow frying it is possible to burn any oil — and any burnt oil should always be discarded and replaced. You’ll quickly learn to avoid burning whatever oil you use and it’s easier if you’re always using the same oil.
Don’t skimp on the fat
Fat has been demonised for far too long. You’re cooking at home with fresh ingredients already which is already far healthier than eating highly processed foods. Added sugars are likely worse for you but with home cooking you don’t often need to add much sugar and when you do you can add unrefined sugar or honey. Your home cooked food is also very unlikely to contain any trans-fats and if your “go to” oil is olive oil you’re getting healthy fats. Fats are important for mouthfeel, for the flavour they directly add, and for the oil-soluble flavour compounds that they liberate from other things, so if you skimp on the fat you’ll probably find yourself using extra salt to compensate.
Timing the salt
Do you want to draw moisture out of the meat or not? If you do then salt early — when the meat arrives home before you put it in the fridge! If you don’t then hold off with the salt until just before you put the meat in the pan.
More garlic
Garlic is great stuff — it adds lots of flavour, it’s full of healthy things, and it keeps the vampires away. So unless you have a job interview or a first date the next day don’t hold back. You can safely double the amount of garlic any recipe calls for.
Garlic and Ginger
Garlic and Ginger. Both great. Both a bit of a pain to prepare. Have you noticed that any recipe with ginger in it almost always also has a similar amount of garlic in it? OK, so prepare a batch of garlic-ginger paste (which keeps great in the fridge for a couple months or more) and then whenever you see a recipe with ginger you can just chuck in a couple tablespoons of the mix. Hassle reduced!
Caramelising onions isn’t fast
Want to caramelise some onions to get them brown, soft and sweet? Do not believe anyone who says you can do it in less than an hour. Caramelisation needs the Maillard reaction and with onions the process takes some time. I recommend starting briefly on a high heat and then turning down to very low and cooking for 90 minutes or more. You can always turn the heat off and then back on too. And if they are going dry just splash in a little water.
Use a meat thermometer!
A typical large supermarket chicken will advise cooking at 200C for 2 hours. I tested this recently. After 2 hours the breast in my chicken was a scorshing 98C. Chicken breast needs to be 74C for at least 30 seconds. The brown chicken meat (e.g. the thighs) need to be 80C. So get a “leave in” meat thermometer and get your meat cooked both safely AND keep it tender and moist. I found I can cook that same large chicken in under 90 minutes. The same applies to other meat of course.
Deflame fresh onions
If you’re using fresh onions (uncooked) in a salad or similar then seriously consider deflaming them. This means cutting them and then rinsing them well for around 10–15 seconds with cold water. This removes some of the acids emitted by the onions and “takes the edge” off the sharpness. It generally will produce a better balance in the dish they are being used in.
Use the right onions
“Normal onions” are yellow onions which are very versatile, but ther are others which you should consider… Sweet onions look similar to yellow but are a little paler and often a little larger — they work well uncooked e.g. in salads. White onions also look similar to yellow and are often used in mexican food and in salads. Red onions look great but can be a little more peppery / spicy. Shallots are smaller and milder with a taste somewhere between onion and garlic, yellow onions substitute quite well. Scallions/Green Onions/Spring Onions are different names for the same thing — they look very different and have a small bulb with a long stem which is also edible.
Always use pure salt
Salt. It’s basically a rock right? Sodium-Chloride. It floats around in the sea and forms salt-flats in some old deserts. It doesn’t “go off” — ever. But pick up some basic cheap supermarket salt and look at the ingredients — all sorts of tampering has often taken place. Did you realise there was “anti-caking agent” in there? If you use that salt to pickle things it will make everything horrible and cloudy. And you may not want to eat it either. Look for a minimum to get kosher salt as it doesn’t contain anti-caking agents. Nor do most coarse (unground) salts. So get a salt that is JUST salt. I tend to get Himalayan salt as it appears to have fewer microplastics than sea salt. I have heard that “Redmond” salt is also lower in microplastics although I haven’t looked into this in detail
Add things and taste at the right times
Some things can be added at any time (e.g. salt) and you can taste them immediately. Others need to go in at the right time and will take time to impart their flavour. Garlic can go bitter if cooked too soon so err on adding it later. Whereas tomato puree can go in early and will get sweeter over time. Alcohol is generally better added sooner as it gives more time for the alcohol itself to boil off — you don’t want too much left in your food. Spices and dried herbs take time to impart their flavours so most should be added early and then wait 15–20 minutes before you expect to get their full flavour. Fresh herbs should be added at the last minute.
You can grind herbs too
I never use thyme (dried OR fresh) without putting it thru the spice grinder. Thyme in particular often has little gritty bits of stem which can ruin the mouthfeel of a dish. A spice grinder will swiftly turn herbs into a smooth consistency and can easily be wiped out afterwards.
Use preserved lemons for reduced bitterness
If a dish calls for whole pieces of lemon (not just juice or zest) the pith of the lemon can add a lot of bitterness. Preserved lemons have less of this bitterness and are commonly used in dishes like tagines. You can make your own preserved lemons at home too.
Carrot in tomato sauce
When making a tomato sauce for pizza or paste top and tail a whole carrot and put in the sauce whilst it cooks. Remove before serving. Some people recommend blending the carrot and including it in the sauce but traditional Italians will tell you to leave it whole and remove it again after.
Mise en place
This is french — it basically means “be organised before you start”. Get everything you need ready so you’re not rushing around or leaving things to burn. It should be obvious but it really does pay off.
Roll citrus before using
Much of the flavour in citrus is found in the oils. This is why zest is often used for stronger flavours than juice. You can help to liberate more of these oils before zesting but giving the fruit a vigorous roll on a hard surface — treat it as though you’re trying to soften it up a little and roll for several minutes.
Use scrap veggies and leftovers to make home-made stock
Keep leftover off cut parts of veggies (not bitter veg like brassica family though) — e.g. any parts of onions, carrots, apple, etc. Also keep any leftover meat parts and bones. Put in a freezer bag in the freezer until next making a stock.
Strain fresh cut tomatoes
After cutting tomatoes tend to release quite a lot of liquid over the next few minutes. If you are using them in something with a dressing then this liquid will collect your dressing flavours in a puddle at the bottom of the serving dish. If you cut your tomatoes and sit them in a sieve for 30–60mins you can prevent the juice from washing away your flavours. Once they have sat you can then use the tomatoes as normal in your salads etc.
Remove the pith and seeds from chillis for more flavour
If you want to get the flavour of chillis without annihilating your tastebuds with crazy levels of heat you can use more chillis by removing the pith and seeds which contain a lot of the heat but very little of the flavour.
Salt isn’t the only flavour enhancer
If when you sample a dish it is bland don’t automatically reach for more salt. There are other (healthier!) flavour enhancers too. Acid is a key one — so try adding some lemon juice (or vinegar) first. Another that seems to work in many dishes is cumin.
Make your own spice mixes and sauces
You can buy ready-mix spice mixes in most supermarkets. But they are a big rip off. And who knows what “extras” might be in there. If you already have a decent selection of whole spices at home then why not lookup the recipe and make your own spice mix. It’ll be fresher and more flavourful. It’ll be cheaper. And you will know exactly what is in it. Sure it will take a few minutes, but if you didn’t enjoy cooking you wouldn’t be here right? There are a a few (and growing) spice mix recipes on this site already and lots more out there.
Better milk
OK, so you probably don’t use a lot of milk in most cooking, but some recipes do have it. And baking certainly does. Most supermarket milk comes in plastic containers which both increases the amount of microplastics found in it and contributes to the world plastic waste mountain. Supermarket milk is also “homogenised” which is a process that breaks down the longer chain fats into short ones — this is done to prevent a little layer of cream forming at the top of the bottle — it’s done purely for visual reasons. Of course this extra “processing” turns out to be not beneficial for health — milk that has NOT been homogenised is (unsurprisingly) healthier. So if at all possible source your milk from a delivery service (the “milkman” of 20th century Britain) or equivalent. You might pay a little more but you’ll be doing good for you health, the environment, and the producer (who will get a much higher proportion of the price).
Spatchcock whole chicken
Spatchcocking (basically cutting out the spine to open the bird up to be wider and flatter) helps a chicken to cook faster and in turn that results in a more even cook — so you don’t have to overcook some parts to make sure all of it is cooked.
Whole tinned tomatoes, not chopped
Many tins of chopped tomatoes have various things added. Avoid that — get whole tinned tomatoes and check the ingredients. I also recommend getting several varieties and then try them straight out of the can as a test. Find the ones with a good depth of complex flavour that aren’t too sharp. Get those in future!
Use duck or goose fat or ghee when you need animal fat
For 95% of things extra virgin olive oil is great, but just ocasionally you will need an animal fat — e.g. for nice crispy roast potatoes. Instead of butter you can use duck or goose fat. Ghee is also worth considering — it is clarified butter. The clarified part means the non-fat parts found in normal butter have been removed, making it a purer fat — so people who are lactose intolerant are usually fine with ghee even if they aren’t ok with butter.
For key ingredients it’s worth paying a bit more
I’ve already mentioned milk and salt but these aren’t the only key ingredients you should seriously consider paying a little more for good ones. Others include…
- Wine — never use a wine in food that you wouldn’t drink.
- Eggs — Free Range every time. They look better, taste better, and they’re healthier for you and the chicken
- Balsamic vinegar — You don’t have to go mad, but do get something reasonable it will make a big difference
- Tomatoes — Regular salad tomatoes are SO bland. Avoid! Try to get locally grown (in season), cherry tomatoes, or where possible use tinned tomatoes
- Olive Oil — you can bulk buy quality olive oil imported from Greece or Italy — why settle for less?
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