Add a tiny piece of crushed ginger to
tea, while boiling, for the extra zing
especially during the winter.
Warm garlic flakes a little either in a
microwave or on griddle before peeling, to
make the skin come off easily.
Sprinkle salt in tamarind before
storing, to keep away the worms. Dry well in
sun till a little stiff, cool indoors for
few hours and then add salt. 1 fistful to a
kilogram of tamarind. Store in airtight
plastic or glass container.
Roast cumin seeds on a warm griddle
before dry grinding. They will give a better
flavour and grind faster.
To keep salt from becoming lumpy in
moist climate, add a dash of rice flour to
it. Add a few rice grains in the salt
shaker.
Microwave fresh mint till dry and crisp.
Crush coarsely, mix some salt and chilli
powder and chaat masala. Sprinkle over
freshly fried papads for that extra tang.
Quickest way to extract pure ginger
juice, is to either pound or grate fresh
ginger, sprinkle a wee bit of water, and put
in a clean muslin cloth. Press out juice
with thumb and fingers till only fibre
remains.
If dried herbs are used in a recipe,
crush them first to release their fragrance.
Adding a little dry rice to sugar while
grinding it, will keep it from becoming
lumpy.
Vegetables
Always mash potatoes when they are still
quite hot. They mash more easily and can be
finely mashed too.
To clean the surface of vegetables like
potato, radish, sweet potato, carrots, etc.
use a separate plastic scrubber or
toothbrush kept for the purpose. Hold under
running water and scrub.
When very finely chopped greens or
chillies etc. are required in a recipe, use
a pair of sharp Scissors instead of a knife.
The job will be made faster, more efficient
and safe to cut.
Add a few tsps. of milk to cauliflower
while boiling to rid it of the raw smell.
Drain and wash before adding to the recipe.
Always hold fresh vegetables under
running water for a minute, after boiling
and draining, to enhance their colour, eg.
carrots, greens, peas, etc. Hold in a
colander or strainer so that the water
passes through.
Add a pinch of soda bicarb to green
vegetables while steaming or boiling or
cooking in the microwave to retain the fresh
green colour.
For use of green like sarson ki bhaji
out of season, microwave to dehydrate till
crisp. Soak in hot water for half an hour,
before proceeding as for fresh bhaji.
Store chopped vegetables in airtight
plastic containers in the fridge to keep
from browning and drying up.
Add some salt or vinegar drops while
washing vegetables and greens to make them
clean and germ free, eg. cauliflower,
spinach, etc.
Place tomatoes in hot water for 5-7
minutes, before using for easier peeling and
better taste in any recipe where tomatoes
are required to be cooked.
Add a pinch of turmeric powder to the
oil before adding green vegetables. The
vegetables will retain their greenness
better even after cooking.
Blanch green leafy vegetables (
fenugreek, spinach, etc.) in boiling water
for 2 minutes. Hold under cold running
water, press out excess water, store in
freezer for about 2 weeks without spoiling.
If there is a lot of leftover paneer
crumbs, dry in a warm oven. Fry till crisp
and store in the fridge. Soften in boiling
water, drain and add to thicken gravies of
any vegetables and curries.
Wrap potatoes etc. which you may want to
bake in the coals, in foil, to retain
moisture and also to avoid becoming sooty
black.
To bake potatoes crisp and brown, soak
the peeled potatoes in hot water for a
while, pat dry and pierce all over with a
fork before placing them in hot fat along
with the roast.
Always soak cauliflower in warm salted
water for some time to get rid of the tiny
insects sometimes present deep inside the
florets and not visible to the eye.
Use chilli oil instead of the
ordinary oil, if you want to make the dish
spicier.
If you happen to put excess salt in the
curry, cut a raw potato into about 10 pieces
and drop them into the curry & leave for 15
min. They will absorb the excess salt.
Remove the pieces before serving.
To make thick gravy for mutton, chicken
or vegetables, grate the onions, squeeze out
their juice and brown the onions and the
masala. Add the juice as stock, after the
onions are brown. The onion flavour is not
lost and you don't have to add water to make
the gravy.
Add a few methi (fenugreek) seeds to
toor dal while pressure cooking. This makes
the dal easier to digest.
Use a steel knife instead of iron to cut
brinjals, plantains, ladies-fingers and
mangoes to avoid blackening.
Pressure cook lots of tomatoes, with
adding water to them. Make puree in blender.
Strain, cool, freeze in icetrays. When set,
remove and fill in freezer polybags. Use
cubes as required in recipes.
Others
Grease the grated on both sides with oil
before grating sticky items like cheese or
boiled potatoes, to allow for smoother
grating.
Always hold silver foil with edges,
invert over the dish. Never attempt to hold
with hand. It will stick to the fingers. If
small bits are required, cut folded in paper
and then apply as above. Smoothen out with
the paper itself.
Place a tsp. of soda bicarb in a corner
of the fridge in a small crucible. This will
keep smells of foods in the fridge from
permeating each other.
To allow free flow of sauce from a
sauce bottle to a pourer, insert a drinking
straw half way, into the bottle and hold it
there lightly with one hand while pouring
with the other.
To prevent moulding of papads during
monsoons, slip in a piece of blotting paper
under the papads in the container.
To keep coriander and other leafy greens
fresh longer, wrap in newspaper and place in
a perforated container in the fridge.
Insert a hairpin into grapes to deseed
them without cutting.
If the milk begins to boilover, quickly
sprinkle a little cold water over it and the
overflow will subside.
