Latest Cooking Answers

What's the difference between pink tea and other types of tea?

I once went to an event where they offered pink tea. At that time I was around 8 years old and used to hate tea. However, I loved that pink tea but unfortunate

What would you use to wash pretzel hot dog buns?

I was inspired after seeing a hot dog with a pretzel bun. I have the recipe pretty close to where I want it, but I'm not sure what to use as a wash. I tried egg

Beans Cultured with Yogurt

Is the store-bought yogurt a good "starter" to culture cooked beans to reduce the gas-producing oligosaccharides? Does it contain the right kind of bacteria to

Why do we boil whole spices when making masala tea?

I've heard that people prepare chai masala by boiling whole spices instead of using a ground masala spice mix. After preparing it with whole spices, I doubt tha

Any tips for degassing blended soup?

I find creamy soups and many other thicker liquids too fluffy for my liking after blending. I could do it the old fashioned way by forcing through a mill/sieve;

How do I get the ground spices to mix into my curry?

Here is how I made my curry. In my frying pan I did this: Added olive oil (maybe one and a half teaspoon) Added garlic (minced from a jar) Added about one teas

Salad ingredients: how to pick them at the market?

I often make salads with lettuce and a few vegetables (perhaps some of carrot, celery, bell pepper, cucumber, tomato, green beans, snap peas). I can plan the in

Fastest Way To Cook Bottom Round Roast

I have a 2.7 pound block of Angus beef bottom round roast that I need to cook expediently (meaning not 7-8 hrs in the slow cooker). What's the fastest way to pr

Can agar-agar be used in fondant icing in place of gelatin?

Can china grass (agar-agar) be used as a substitute to gelatin in fondant cake icing?

How can I avoid cakes to turn into jelly?

I am making cakes, and mostly chocolate cakes. But under certain conditions, instead of taking a nice bread texture (soft and with air bubbles), it turns into a

How can I make my crinkles less dry?

I just made chocolate crinkles for the first time and I really like them, but they are a bit too dry, making them slightly crumbly. It's possible I over-baked t

Does coffee in a cafe press keep brewing after being 'squeezed'?

I've recently gotten a Cafe Press for making my coffee, and I'm pretty bad with proportions. If I make too much and leave it sitting in the press with the groun

Why should I add salt to my curries?

I've been advised by a friend of mine that I have to add salt to my curries if I want the spices to come out and not leave me with a bland curry. Now after bein

Will steaming fish cause salt to come out or cause fish to fry in its own fat?

If you brine some fish and then boil it in water (make a soup) ,the salt and other nutrients leach right out thus defeating the purpose of the brine. I will so

How can I efficiently make single-serve porridge?

I usually eat and cook porridge when I have other people around to eat it, but when I am alone, I feel like it is wasted time and just eat something simple like

Removing hair from pork belly

I bought some pork belly yesterday and I was just about to cook it when I saw thick hair on it. I tried to cut it with a sharp serrated knife but it didn't budg

Reheating in the oven: why and how?

I recently made some pan-fried chicken breast halves. When I wanted to reheat the leftovers I tried to do it in the conventional oven instead of the microwave o

How long should I cook boned shoulder of Lamb?

I have 794g of lamb shoulder. It is boned (can you buy it with a bone in??). How long should I cook it? I have Delia's Complete Cooking Course, which suggests

Fat content in homemade stock

First of all, I don't know the difference between stock, broth and bouillon in english (not my native language), but what I mean is when you cook for example a

Mixing liquid margarine and water

I am trying to mix 1 part water and 1 part liquid margarine on a stovetop. I notice it will not mix too well. I would also like to make this sauce thick. What w

Why does my buttercream become runny overnight?

I made this very simple 'meringue' butter cream. 40 grams of egg white, mixed with 80 grams of icing sugar over an heated bowl until the nice peaks are there,

Adapting waffle recipe into mix

Assume I have a decent waffle recipe that I like. Assume it has nothing particularly unusual for waffles -- this means it has liquid ingredients such as milk or

By what reactions do moisture and light steal away my coffee's freshness?

Typically, the standard advice for prolonging your coffee is to store it in an air-tight, light-tight, dry container. At a chemical level, what happens when cof

Should I separate grape skins when making jam?

Recipes for grape jam (e.g. from Gourmet) commonly say to separate the skins, puree the skins for inclusion in the jam, cook them, cook the pulp, and remove the

Can regular sugar be substituted for maple sugar?

I found a cake recipe that wants maple sugar in it, but I don't have maple sugar. Can regular sugar be substituted?

Is there a way to safely can pesto sauce?

I grow basil and I have enough that I would like to can some pesto sauce. I have tried to find a way to can it but I keep hitting a wall. I would like to g

What to use for chocolate flavouring?

I've been making chocolate sponge using some Swiss hot chocolate - because I happened to have that in the cupboard. But now I've run out. So I need to go out an

How to use stock from tablet

So, sometimes I am a lazy cook. And this is a question for the very lazy days. Sometimes I use stock from a tablet. I was wondering: If a recipe calls for 'ad

Do I need to wipe/clean my knife after sharpening/honing?

I'm sharpening honing my cutting knives with a (honing) steel. I'm sure I read/saw somewhere that you should wipe your knives after sharpening honing to remove

Hand operated can sealer

Do hand operated can sealing machines work as well as commercial automatic machines in terms of seal quality and storage life? Keen to give it a go, but can'