Cooking: Tips - What to do with very greasy pot of soup

-          When the pot of soup is too greasy, wrap some ice cubes in a plastic bag or use cellophane of ice by dragging it slowly through the surface of the warm soup. The oil will harden and stick to the bag. Wipe the bag and repeat the process if necessary.

Cooking: Tips - What to do with very salty (oversalted) pot of soup

-          When the pot of soup is accidentally oversalted, add 1 or two raw peeled potato/es to the soup and heat it for 5 minutes. The potato/es will absorb some saltiness and can be removed after the 5 minutes heating.

Food: Tips - What to do with hardened or dehydrated cheese in the refrigerator

-          If the cheese is dehydrated of hardened inside the refrigerator, you may grate or cut it in small pieces to be used in cooking or grate it for topping.

Food: Tricks - How to remove nut shells when it got mixed with the nuts

       If working with nuts and the nut shells were mixed with the meats, put the whole mixture into a bowl of water. The shells will float and you can scoop them out. If necessary, stir the thing so that the shells underneath will float that you can scoop out again, repeat the same process until there is no more shells to float. Drain the water and put the nuts to dry before using them.

Food: Tips - Recycling Leftovers by Seasoning, Sautéing, Spicing and Hash

• -        Ingredient can be cooked more quickly when it is diced, chopped or shredded in finer sizes.

• -        Seasoning can be tasted and adjusted only after a minute or two after adding all the ingredients or after sautéing.

• -        Leftovers are likely to be seasoned. For a change, vary the spices and herbs used for seasoning.

• -        Leftovers can be sautéed with different cooking oils to create a new dish from the same ingredients. Consider using healthy oil available from the store.

• -        Hash ingredients can be sautéed in clarified butter or fat skimmed from the used oil of a roast.

• -        Hash food can be turned into a crusty “pancake” when puréed or thickened ingredients are added. The binding ingredients may include leftover mashed potatoes, puréed squash, bread crumbs soaked in milk, gravy, leftover oatmeal, egg beaten with milk, grated hard cheese, leftover stuffing thinned with small amount of milk or cream, etc.

Cooking: Tips - Hot Greased Griddle Test

After preparing the griddle by greasing and heating, test it if it is ready for cooking your food by sprinkling a little amount of water over it. If the water sputters, the griddle is ready.

Food: Facts - Eggs

• -          An egg is approximately 1/3 yolk and 2/3 white.

• -          The yolk of a large egg is about 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon and the white is about 2 tablespoons.

• -          White and brown eggs have no difference in their nutritional value.

• -          An egg that has an odor, natural discoloration, or old crack may mean that it is destroyed and must be discarded.