Latest Cooking Answers

Can I use a Lid for a glass vessel for cooking in microwave?

Can you use a lid for a glass vessel when cooking in microwave?

Does adding oil and fats affect bread crust development?

I had recently started baking bread and I have read up a lot on developing a great crust. Generally it involves steam in the oven at the beginning of the baking

Do slow cookers require liquid to operate?

I have a Butterball turkey breast roast that I'd like to cook tomorrow, and I'm planning to do it in my slow cooker. The recipe as provided online is the same

Fresh or smoked sausage in Jambalaya?

Jambalaya calls for either Andouille or Chorizo sausage. Is this sausage meant to be fresh or smoked?

What's the point of using sugar in savory dishes?

I never get why people add a sweet substance to a savory dish. Especially in something like a a curry or noodles. People say it balances out the flavors. But wh

How do I prevent smoked brisket from being chewy?

Last night I smoked my first brisket. I used a charcoal smoker which was given to me. I followed the advice given to me by the previous owner coupled with some

What to do with under ripe figs?

It has been a cool summer and our tree has a large amount of under ripe figs. The frosts will be here in a couple of weeks so they need to be picked. So what c

How does lemon juice "cook" meat?

Various meats can be "cooked" using lemon juice. But how does lemon juice actually "cook" the meat?

Name of a Chinese sweet

In the past I have bought this Chinese sweet which name I cannot recall. It is shaped in little cubes of some sort of trasparent dark jelly (not sure if it is

How to get falafel to hold together when pan-frying?

I like to pan-fry my falafel (as some of the answers to this question suggest), but have had the cakes fall apart or degenerate into mush when trying to turn th

What are some alternative uses for bread heels?

I often buy bread loaves at the store and use them for sandwiches, french toast, etc. I don't particularly like using the heels for those purposes though, becau

What does buttermilk do to fried shrimp batter?

I have been using ice water in my shrimp batter and it seems to make the batter too hard after frying them. Would replacing the ice water with buttermilk make

How can I tell when ground beef is fully cooked?

So, how do you know that the ground beef is fully cooked when you are stir frying it on a sauce pan ?

Coconut milk ice cream — getting volume?

I've made ice cream with full-fat coconut milk twice in my KitchenAid ice cream maker with OK results. I've followed the instructions and have run the machin

How do I make a flaky croissant?

I found this nice vegan croissant recipe: http://www.sabjimatablog.com/2011/05/17/recipe-vegan-croissants/ I am quite happy with the end result, but I wish I ca

Watery liquid on top of homemade yogurt

I made homemade yogurt tonight, except it didn't turn out as I expected. I followed this recipe with a few exceptions. I made it with three quarts of milk inst

Benefits of vinaigrette vs. pouring oil and vinegar separately on salad?

I was reading Essentials of classic Italian cooking by Marcella Hazan where I noticed she first pours a lot of olive oil to "protect the salad" from the vinegar

What determines whether a sherbet will set or not?

A couple nights ago I was watching the Food Network show Chopped and one of the contestants made sherbet. Because the contestants are limited to 30 minutes to p

Exploding or alcoholic soda

Well, I tried to follow a very simple recipe from "Cooking for Geeks" for Ginger Lemon Soda. I made a simple ginger syrup by cooking ~200g of chopped ginger t

How do I control the smoke from a chimney starter?

I'm seasoning my new Weber Smoky Mountain smoker according to the excellent instructions, given for free, on Amazon, by a 20x BBQ grand champion. (What an amazi

How do they get caffeine out in decaffeinated coffee?

Coffee beans naturally contain caffeine. At the store or in a restaurant, you can choose "decaffeinated coffee". Is really all the caffeine gone or is there ju

What are the pros and cons of coarse and fine coffee ground?

Coffee can be bought either as whole beans or as coarsely or finely grounded coffee. What are the pros and cons of the coarse and fine coffee ground? Are there

How does the addition of Chicory affect coffee?

Chicory is a common additive in Indian Coffee. A quick search in wikipedia reveals that it is usually 20-30% in coffee powder. Can coffee be made solely out of

Why are my cheese curds not well-knitted after pressing?

I've made several cheeses at home following a cheddar recipe. After I've aged the cheeses and cut them open, I'm usually finding that the cheese has a somewhat

Bisquick breakfast casserole with cooked eggs

I have a breakfast mixture leftover from making breakfast burritos the other day. It has cooked scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, onion & peppers. I cooked it

Removing ramekins from a bain marie

So you've just cooked your creme caramels in a water bath/bain marie/double boiler with only about a quarter of the ramekin appearing above water level. I've t

How to make lactose free mashed potatoes

To begin with, I use soy cream instead of dairy-based cream. It tastes alright, but not superb, and it seems to require more salt. What is missing that I shoul

Island cheese — Azorean (or Portuguese)

I have a recipe that uses island cheese and I am not sure what type of cheese that is. I've found a place online that sells "Island Cheese" in the Azores but i

Bacon substitution

I do a great simple dish that involves bacon so I'm interested whether there is a vegetarian substitute for bacon. It would be quite useful having one since I u

Can I let my bread dough rise in the mixer bowl?

When I bake bread, I often let the dough rise in the metal mixer bowl. I was wondering if this is a good idea, as the metal is probably colder than a regular bo