Kitchen Tips & Tricks - June 2013

Here is the list of all the great kitchen tips that i shared in June 2013 on my FACEBOOK .

** To cook onion faster, add little salt to it...Salt extracts the extra moisture from the onions which makes the onions cook faster

** 10 Tips To A Great Healthy Plate (The "healthy plate" is a way to divide your plate into 3 sections — protein, grains, and vegetables. It's a simple way to eat smarter without weighing or measuring food)

**If you have that one or two overripe bananas sitting on your kitchen counter and you don't have time to make banana bread , then just peel them, cut them into thirds and throw them in a freezer bag for future smoothies! They'll take the place of your ice cubes and make your smoothie even more delicious.

** HOW TO CHOOSE PEPPERS ... Peppers with 3 BUMPS on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating raw. Peppers with 4 BUMPS on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking.

** To keep potatoes from budding, place an apple in the bag with the potatoes.

** To test to see if an egg is fresh, immerse it in a pan of cool, salted water. If it sinks, it's fresh. If it floats, throw it away!!

** To keep the dry fruits fresh for long time, keep it in airtight container then keep in refrigerator.

**Spray your cheese grater with nonstick spray before using it to make shredding & cleaning easier.

**Reheating oil too many times is harmful for health as it gets more saturated. So after deep frying anything don't use the same oil to deep fry again instead use that oil to make your curries or stir frys.

** Freeze any leftover wine in ice cube trays these can be used when you want to add wine to gravy, sauces, casseroles etc

** Serve the ice-cream in chilled bowls to delay the process of melting

** Sweep Or Vacuum your house daily, it's a great workout that not only helps you to be fit but also keeps your house clean..

** Add a little salt to the oil while deep frying to keep it from smoking.

** Freeze fresh ginger and grate as needed. It will stay fresh for months.

** Put a mini marshmallow in the bottom of a sugar/ice cream cone to prevent ice cream drips.

** To prevent darkening of cut apple , squeeze a little lime juice on them.

** To separate each grain of rice, add a few drops of lemon and a tsp of oil to rice before boiling the rice.Lemons also give the rice a nice white color.

** If you forget to soak the pulses (chole,rajma etc) overnight just soak them in hot water for an hour before cooking.

** If you want banana to ripen fast, place an apple near them.

** To make crispy pakodas ,add some hot oil and a pinch of baking soda in the batter.

** Odor from kitchen vessels can be removed by washing it with lemon juice mixed with water.

** Whenever you are making homemade paneer/indian cottage cheese, save the drained water also called whey, it can be used in the dough for making rotis, parathas, pooris or naan

** How To Steam Clean Your Microwave Without Cleaners

** How To Make Papad / Indian Cracker Without Deep Frying

** Kitchen Cleaning Tip :- How to Clean Hard Grease Off the Stove Top ( With Pictures )

** Don't throw away cauliflower , broccoli or cabbage stems , they can be used in soups, rasam , sambhar or to make vegetable broth.

Enjoy:)