Cooking Knowledge For Beginners

Understanding the Recipe  You will feel more confident, organized and well prepared when trying a recipe for the first time if you read through the entire recipe before starting to cook.  The recipe is easier to assemble if you prepare each ingredient first, so it is ready to use when you need it.  If you will be using the oven or broiler, check the shelves or racks in the oven to be sure they are in the right place before turning on the heat

Understanding the recipe ( Continued )  The first time you make the recipe, it’s a good idea to follow the recipe exactly and use the ingredients called for.  Sometimes a certain flavor may seem too strong or be one you don’t like, if that happens, the next time you make the recipe, try adjusting the flavorings, herbs or spices slightly.  Finally, cleanup will be easy if you was utensils or rinse and put them in the dishwasher, as you use them.

38 Cooking terms you should know:  Al Dente: doneness description for pasta cooked until tender but firm to the bite  Bake: cook in oven surrounded by dry heat  Batter: an uncooked mixture of flour, eggs, and liquid in combination with other ingredients; thin enough to be spooned or poured  Beat: combine ingredients vigorously with spoon, fork, wire whisk, hand beater or electric mixture is smooth and uniform  Blend: to combine two or more ingredients thoroughly  Boil: heat liquid until bubbles rise continuously and break on the surface and steam is given off

And Moreeee….  Broil: cook directly under or above a red-hot heating unit  Brown: to make food brown either in a small amount of hot fat on top of the range, or by exposing it to dry heat in the oven  Chill: place food in the refrigerator until it becomes thoroughly cold  Chop: to cut into small pieces with a knife  Cool: allow hot food to stand at room temperature for a specified amount of time.  Cover: place lid, plastic wrap, or aluminum foil over a container of food  Cream: to combine shortening, butt, or other fat with sugar until the mixture is light and blended; or to soften foods

And More…  Cut in: distribute solid fat in dry ingredients until particles are desired size by crisscrossing two knives, using the side of a table fork, using a wire whisk, or cutting with a pastry blender in a rolling motion  Cube: cut food into squares ½ inch or longer, using knife  Dice: cut food into squares smaller than ½ inch, using knife  Dough: mixture of flour and liquid in combination with other ingredients ( often including a leavening) that is stiff but pliable  Drain: to remove mixture by straining  Drizzle: pour topping in thin lines from a spoon or liquid measuring cup in an uneven pattern  Fold in: to combine mixtures lightly while preventing loss of air

And some more…  Fry: cook in hot fat over moderate or high heat  Grate: rub a hard-textured food against the small, rough, sharp edged holes of a grater to reduce it to tiny particles  Knead: work dough in a floured surface, using hands or an electric mixer with dough hooks, into a smooth elastic mass  Mince: Cut food into very fine pieces, smaller than chopped food  Mix: combine ingredients in any way that distributes them evenly  Pare: to remove the peeling with a knife  Peel: to remove the outer covering of a fruit of vegetable  Puree: mash or blend food until smooth and uniform consistency  Rolling Boil: a rapid boil that cannot be stirred down  Roll: flatten dough into a thin, even layer  Shred: cut into long thin pieces by rubbing food across large holes of a shredder or by using a knife to slice very thinly  Sift: to make dry ingredients fine or finer, or to make lighter, by passing through a sieve or sifter  Simmer: cook in liquid on range top at just below the boiling point

And the rest  Slice: cut into uniform-size flat pieces  Steam: to cook over, but not in, boiling water  Stew: cook slowly in a small amount of liquid for a long time  Stir: combine ingredients with a circular or figure eight motion until uniform consistency  Whip: to beat rapidly with a wire whisk or beater in order to add air and make a substance light and fluffy

How to Measure Ingredients  Successful cooking starts with measuring correctly. Not all ingredients are measured the same way or with the same type of cups or spoons.  Measuring cups can be used for measuring a liquid, dry, and a solid ingredients.  Measuring spoons are special good spoons that are designed for measuring and should be used instead of spoons that are intended for eating. They are used for both liquid and dry ingredients.  Liquids: when measuring a liquid you should use the smallest measuring cup size you have that is large enough to hold the amount needed.  Dry: when measuring dry ingredients, gently fill the measuring cup to the top and DO NOT SHAKE OR PACK THE CUP DOWN. You should level the cup off, using a straight edge such as a knife

Measurements Cup=C. Tablespoon=Tbsp. or T. Teaspoon=tsp. Or t. Pound=lb.Ounce=ox.Dozen=doz.Pint=pt.Quart=qt.Gallon=gal. 3 tsp.=1T. 4T.=1/4C. 5T. & 1 tsp. = 1/3 C. 8T.=1/2C.1C.=1/2pt.2C.=1pt.4C.(2pt.)=1qt. 4qt.=1 gal. 16oz.=1lb. A Dash or A Pinch= less than 1/8 of a tsp