Tips

Olive Oil vs. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

To cook

Or not to cook?

Don't know if most people knows this or not, but EV olive oil doesn't work well with cooking, its less distilled than the regular Olive Oil, thus creates a peculiar taste when heated. Its amazing for salad dressings though, or anything that does not need to be cooked, stay tuned for anything EV olive oil related!!








Cooking Frozen Store Bought Dumplings (Available at Asian Supermarkets)

As every one knows, raw meat sometimes contains parasites, bacteria as well as a host of unmentionable organism. That's why we wash, clean, and cook all our food, to make sure its safe. But when you cook something like a frozen dumplings, you do what you normally do, dump in dumplings (I know, bad pun) and wait, then eat them. Do you ever notice that the meat fillings are still nice and pink? No, its not because its processed, and thus its pink. Its because its still not fully cooked, and all that unmentionables are still very much alive and kicking. But what do you do? do you cook them until the nice flour skins on the outside is mush? Would I do that? Of course not. All you need to do is dump the dumplings in the trash can water before you start boiling the water. By doing so, you effectively thaw the frozen dumpling as you heat up the water. The freezing temp of the meat filling prevents the skin from being cooked, while the skin leeches the coldness from the meat fillings and heats it up. By the time the water boils. the internal and external temps are the same, and the whole dumpling will cook evenly. Yay for no mush skins and raw fillings!!!

My Favorite Brand

Microwave and You

Microwave is useful for making a variety of things. You could use it to make fish (Refer to the Busy day fish dish), or you can use it to make cooking your stir frys easier. Solid fibrous root vegetables like potatoes or carrots takes a while before the insides are cooked to soft and fluffy texture. Thus, it is very useful to just stick the chopped, sliced, julienned, or diced carrots/potatoes in the microwave for 3-4 minutes, than put it in the pot to cook. You still get the nice crunch texture, but none of the raw, grassy taste.

Cooking and Efficiency

Ever feel like you just don't have the time to cook a proper dish? Sometimes, it is okay to make ramen. Since those cooks so quickly, it doesn't hurt to add a little bit extra while making it. Add some romaine hearts to the mix and enjoy some fresh veggies with your ramen. On the other hand, when you buy stuff like green top onions, go ahead and dice a bunch, and put it in a rubbermaid container, that way, when you make soups or stir frys, you can just sprinkle some in for extra texture and flavor.