THERE ARE ONLY SO MANY WAYS TO COOK FOOD—THANK GOODNESS FOR SMALL MIRACLES! But there are four main areas of cooking to be aware of before heading into the kitchen: 1—Technique, 2—Equipment, 3—Ingredients, and 4—Food Storage. Master these and hopefully you won’t ruin nearly as many pots and pans as I have.
TECHNIQUES
Boiling: Water boils at 212 °F in the USA and 100 °C in the rest of the world. You fill a pot with water and turn the heat on high until you start seeing large bubbles, and that’s it. This method can be used to cook just about anything.
Simmering: Many recipes call for you to boil a mixture and then “reduce it to a simmer,” which means to bring the temperature below boiling point, anywhere from 140–190°F/60–87°C. The general surface activity will be reduced—just think smaller bubbles. This method can also be used to cook just about everything.
Steaming: You can steam food either in a pressure cooker or a rice cooker (with an attachment for steamed vegetables), or by bringing a small amount of water to boil. Place a colander above the pot so the steam can reach the food, cover, and reduce the heat to medium until cooked. This method is used to cook a wide variety of foods, such as vegetables and pot stickers.
Toasting: This word can mean a lot of things, from toasting chestnuts by the fire to making a crispy bagel. In this cookbook, I refer mainly to bread products. You can toast something by using a toaster, toaster oven, or the broiler (that bottom drawer in gas ovens). To toast using the broiler, turn the oven on to broil, then place your food in the drawer and close. If you’re lucky and own a fancy electric oven, press the broil button. Keep an eye on it because it will brown very quickly.
Frying/Sautéing: This is the most important method to master, since it is one of the quickest and easiest ways to cook. Heat a small amount of butter, fat, or oil in a pan, to prevent sticking and to add flavor, and cook whatever you want over the heat. If you would like to brown meat, be sure to add just enough oil to lightly coat the bottom, and heat the pan on high (make sure it’s smoking), before you add the meat. For sautéing, you typically cook over medium or low heat, adding foods as you go and tossing or stirring them to keep the freshness (you may also need to add a few splashes of water so the food doesn’t burn). And frying is anywhere in between those heat levels.
Blanching: This method is used to partially cook foods, either to prepare for freezing, to gently cook vegetables while keeping their vibrant colors and flavors, or to help loosen the skins on fruits or vegetables for peeling. Bring a pot of water to a boil, dip or add the food for only a few minutes (or less), then remove quickly and place in a large pot of ice water to stop the cooking process.
Poaching: A method similar to blanching, poaching means you cook in simmering water (just under the boiling temperature), and you don’t remove the food so quickly. Bring a pot of water to a low simmer (only a few small bubbles) and fully submerge the food. This method is best for eggs, fish, and some vegetables.
Roasting: This technique cooks food using the dry-heat from an oven, and is very easy because you can cook large meals without making too much of a mess. Just butter or oil up whatever meat or vegetables you are cooking, and place the food in the oven until cooked. Temperature-wise, there are a variety of different techniques, from low heat (200 °F/93 °C or higher) to high heat (500 °F/260 °C or lower), or a combination of both ranges. This method is great for large, tender cuts of meat or root vegetables.
Braising: This method is used to cook tougher, more affordable cuts of meat, using both dry and moist heat (think slow cooker, or those beautiful Dutch ovens). To begin, you sear the meat over very high heat, then transfer to a pot with vegetables (optional) and some liquid (to prevent burning) and cook covered over low heat for a long period of time.
Baking: This is basically the same as roasting, only it’s used more generally to include sweets, breads, etc.
Broiling: This technique cooks food with very high heat for a short period of time. There are two methods: one uses the broil setting on an electric oven or the drawer under a gas oven, and the other uses the stove top over very high, dry heat. This creates grill-like results or is used to brown or cook meat very quickly.
Grilling: Requires a gas, charcoal, or electric grill. It typically cooks food over high heat or a flame over a grill—hence the name.
Deep-Frying: This method of cooking submerges food in hot fat. If you don’t have a deep fryer, you can take a large pot or deep pan and fill it with oil (canola, peanut, soybean, sunflower) or lard, and heat the oil to 375 °F/190 °C, which is very hot, so be extremely careful. Then you submerge your food for a very brief amount of time, remove it, and let it dry on paper towels to absorb the excess fat. Never add water to hot oil—it will instantly turn to steam and explode!
EQUIPMENT
Pots & Pans: Yep, you’re going to need these. Hopefully you have inherited some from your parents, or found some left behind from roommates, because they can get expensive and it’s good to have a range of sizes. I recommend having at least the following:
• 2-inch saucepan with lid
• 4-inch saucepan with lid
• 8- to 9-inch skillet with lid
• 12-inch deep-sided skillet with lid
• 4- to 6-quart Dutch oven or heavy-duty pot with lid
• 12-quart (or larger) stockpot with lid
If you’ve decided to make an investment and buy or upgrade your cookware, there are many aspects to consider when choosing, such as heat conductivity (material), price, maintenance, and health benefits. Unfortunately, each of these qualities have pros and cons, so there is no clear winner. The best heat conductor is copper, but it is expensive, reacts with acidic foods, and requires polishing and regular maintenance. Aluminum is the next best heat conductor and is very common, making it cheap, but it also reacts with acidic foods and scratches and dents easily. Cast iron is a good conductor, cheap and traditional, but is high-maintenance. And there is stainless steel, which is relatively cheap, doesn’t react with foods, doesn’t require maintenance, and is durable, but doesn’t retain heat as well as the others.
The health factor applies in regards to nonstick or improved heat-conducting coatings. These coatings may use chemicals or processes that have been linked to health hazards. The safer materials are cast iron, stainless steel, and stoneware. It’s all a matter of preference, cost, and belief systems, so choose the material best suited for you.
Baking Dishes: You’re also going to need some bakeware if you want to make some of the recipes in this book. And again, there are a variety of materials to choose from, such as metal, glass, ceramic, stoneware, and silicone. Metal bakeware is cheap and common, but can rust. Glass takes a while to heat up, but it provides a longer, even temperature—however, it can crack if the temperature changes too quickly. Ceramic and stoneware materials are durable and evenly distribute heat but can be expensive. Silicone has become increasingly popular since it is non-stick, lightweight, and dishwasher-safe. For starters, you should buy one piece at a time as you need each one, and try a few different options before deciding on a set. Here is a list of the basics that you’ll need:
• A cookie sheet/baking sheet (12 x 17-inch or 14 x 17-inch)
• A deep baking dish/roasting pan/casserole dish (9 x 13-inch)
• A medium-size loaf pan (8 x 4-inch)
• A 9-inch springform pan
• A muffin tin
• A pie pan
Cooking/Baking Utensils:
• colander
• skimmer
• whisks
• spatulas (rubber or wooden)
• large stirring spoons
• ladle
• metal grater
• tongs
• vegetable peeler
• measuring cups and spoons
• meat thermometer
• rotary cheese grater
• large scissors
• 6- to 8-inch chef’s knife
• 8-inch bread knife
• honing steel/knife sharpener
• electric hand mixer/stand mixer
• blender
• servingware
• silverware
• Tupperware
INGREDIENTS
Choosing ingredients from the abundance at the grocery store can be a challenge. For me, it’s important to eat organic, free-range, non-additive foods, but labels can be deceiving and quality is expensive. The only way I’ve found to be budget-conscious and healthy is to create a list of what I need beforehand and buy as many items in bulk as I can. (Oh, and I eat before going to the grocery store, so I won’t buy needlessly.) This is how I organize my shopping list. I always maintain a stock of the following:
• In My Fridge: butter, cream cheese, sour cream/heavy cream, Greek yogurt, active dry yeast, miso paste, apple cider vinegar, rice vinegar, rice wine, capers, pickles, hoisin sauce, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, oyster sauce, fresh herbs, various other condiments, creamer, wine, and beer.
• On My Counter: onions, garlic, bananas, tomatoes, and bread.
• In My Pantry: extra-virgin olive oil, canola oil, sesame oil, balsamic vinegar, white vinegar, honey, sugar, brown sugar, wheat/white/bread flour, confectioners’ sugar, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pepper, dried herbs, toasted sesame seeds, quinoa, couscous, brown rice, pasta and grains of various styles, beans, crackers, various nuts, steel-cut oats, baking chocolate chips, emergency canned foods (such as soups, corn, beans), bread crumbs, chicken/beef/vegetable bouillon cubes, tomato paste, canned peeled tomatoes, coffee, various teas, marsala wine.
One of the biggest hurdles I’ve overcome as I’ve learned how to cook is learning how to properly store food. Since I try to buy as much as I can for the week in as few trips to the grocery store as possible, I’ve had to throw out a lot of rotten, fuzzy, gross foods and then felt terribly guilty about my wastefulness—so much so that I often avoided buying fresh fruits and vegetables out of fear of turning something over to find a grotesque mess. But living in fear of my own stupidity is no way to live, so here are a few pointers to help you avoid this situation.
• In the Fridge: all meat, fish, eggs, dairy, and most cheeses. Be sure to keep them in their original wrappings. If the packages leak, place them in a Tupperware or plastic bag. Also, it’s good to note that plastic or glass containers for milk are better since cardboard can grow mold. Store cheeses in wax paper or loose plastic wrap once opened.
All vegetables and fruits (except the ones mentioned below, which I keep on the counter), fresh herbs, ginger, and any vegetables or fruits that have been halved (for example: avocados, bananas, citrus). Be sure to keep vegetables and fruits with similar vegetables and fruits, since they give off different gases—apples to apples, root vegetables to root vegetables. And don’t wash them before placing them in the refrigerator unless they go into the fridge completely dry, since this can create dampness and mold. Mushrooms can be stored in a paper bag. Bread, cakes, and pies can also be stored in the fridge if you want them to last longer.
• On the Counter: Note that these items must be stored in a cool, dry place, out of direct sunlight. Alliums (garlic, onions, shallots), tomatoes, avocados (to ripen), bananas, melons, fresh bread, cakes, and pies.
• In the Pantry: Everything else.