WITH THESE BAD KITCHEN HABITS YOU REALLY HAVE TO STOP
Say wine, snacks or haute cuisine and the gourmands at online food magazine FavorFlav know where to drink, how to eat it and what to cook. This time our cheffies serve you: with these bad kitchen habits you really have to stop.
The end of the year is a moment to reflect, to look back on the past year and see what can be improved next year. Do you flip through cookbooks all day and get the best ingredients, yet your fish always burns and your mushrooms don't turn a nice brown? Then it's time to stop these habits in the kitchen next year.
You don't read the recipe
It seems so simple, but it's a step that many people forget. You're too impatient, you're in a hurry, you've made cake/meatballs/turkey so many times. Still, read the recipe at least once thoroughly beforehand, and keep checking throughout to see if everything is going well. This way, you prevent realizing halfway through the recipe that the meat actually needed to marinate for 24 hours or that you forgot the cumin while the meat is already in the oven.
You don't let the pan get hot enough
Are you going to bake something? Always let the pan get really hot. Yes, it takes a while, especially if you have a thick-bottomed pan, but don't skip this step. Meat, potatoes, rice, if you put it in a cold pan, the end result will be soggy. Your ingredients will absorb the fat instead of becoming crispy. So turn the heat up high and let the pan sit for a full minute before you actually start cooking.
You don't let your meat rest
You've cooked a beautiful piece of meat, you're hungry, I get it. You want to cut that meat as quickly as possible. If you do that, you'll end up with a pool of meat juices on your plate, and you want that juice inside the meat. So always let meat rest for the most tender, juicy meat. A steak or chicken breast should rest for about 5-10 minutes, a large roast or whole chicken can take 10-20 minutes. Cover the meat with aluminum foil while it rests.
You don't dry your ingredients
How do you really get your meat, fish, or vegetables crispy? Make sure they are as dry as possible when they go into the pan. Moisture will steam, causing your ingredients to become soggy instead of crispy. What a waste.
You don't taste
Does your dish need a bit more salt? Acid? A scoop of sugar? Only one way to find out. Taste, taste, taste. Does your dish have multiple components? Also taste if they all taste good together in one bite, or if something is missing. Do this a few times while cooking, so you can still correct it before the food ends up on the plate.
You are impatient
Fish falls apart when you turn it, meat is burnt on the outside but not cooked on the inside, cookies are too pale. All signs that you are a bit impatient. Time is flavor, and making food sometimes takes a while. Stick to the recipe and try not to take shortcuts, then your food will always taste better. Also, don't stir the pan all the time when something needs to brown or become crispy; pan contact is needed for that, and that also takes some time.
You put too many ingredients in the pan
Just a little more about browning, it totally fails if you put too many ingredients in the pan. Whether you're browning stew meat for your rendang or mushrooms for toast, make sure everything fits in a single layer in the pan with some space in between. Do you have too much? Work in different batches until everything is nicely browned.
