Grill – for a change

Thinking of serving something different for lunch or perhaps dinner? Grilled fish? Grilled meat? Is it your first time to grill or perhaps you are a culinary expert? Either of the two, here are tips that we need to consider every time we feel like serving grilled for a meal:

1. Use a clean Grill. Clean grill with wire brush before using, and to prevent food from sticking on the grill, we need to apply a non-stick cooking spray or simply brush with oil.

2. Dry and quality charcoal is needed for fast lighting and longer burn life. In storing charcoal, keep in a cool and dry place.

3. Use appropriate tools. Tong is used to turn the grilled food; this is to maintain the juiciness of the food.

4. Serve the grilled food on a different clean platter. Avoid putting them on the same platter that we used for the uncooked food.

Some people precook food for lesser grilling time. If this is our practice, it is best to put immediately the food on the preheated grill after precooking.

That’s just few tips we need to remember for a safer grilling. Start cleaning the grill, get some charcoal, heat the grill and serve something grilled for our next meal!!

Frying tips

Easiest way (I guess for me) to prepare fish or food is by frying. It may be unhealthy to eat fried foods because of the fat content, yet once in a while we are craving for fried foods. There are factors we need to consider in frying, and here are some:

Choose oil carefully, there are oils high in calories. We all know the prices of commodities are increasing; there are oils available in the supermarkets that low in calories, low in price, and best for frying. Know the taste and the smell of the food once fried with the oil we will be buying. It is also advisable to know the smoking point of the oil when heated.

Next to consider is the frying pan that we will be using. We prefer to use the deep, non-sticky pan. Make sure we are frying dry foods. Before frying fish, dry with kitchen paper, to protect the skin coat with flour or breadcrumbs.

Add enough oil to the frying pan making sure there are few spaces at the top of the pan for covering. Heat the oil over high heat but not to the point of smoking. Add the food and remember not to full pack the pan, for the food to be evenly cooked. Lower the heat if necessary, frying time varied depending on the type of food. Carefully watch the food we are frying, until browned according to our recipe.

When food is cooked, drain it and use kitchen towel or kitchen paper until served. When done, be sure to drain the oil and keep it cool before storing or reusing it.
Happy frying!

How to choose Fresh eggs and proper storage

I seldom encounter unfresh eggs, could be because I know how to choose fresh ones ;) Yet I know how irritating and disgusting to smell and break eggs that aren’t fresh. Here are the tips to help you know if the eggs in the market are fresh and the proper way to store them.

Carefully check the expiration date usually attached on the box. This is the date the eggs were laid, plus 28 days. Remember that egg can be sold up to 21 days. Next to check is the appearance. Shells of fresh eggs are rough with glossy whiteness. Fresh eggs when gently shake will not give any sound, while eggs with dry shells and shaky egg yolks are old eggs.

By breaking the egg onto even plate, we can easily see whether it is still fresh. Round and solid appearance are the identity of a fresh egg, with the thick white staying close to the yolk. A yolk that breaks easily and with thinner white are those are not really fresh.

We can as well check the eggs freshness with the use of water. Put the egg into bowl full of water, fresh egg will right away sink to the base and will lie flat on its side. Old eggs will float.

Eggs are best to store in a cool place, away from smelly vegetables and fish, the little pores of the eggs scale will let the smells to get into eggs. In storing, the rounder tip of the egg should be on top, to stop them from easily breaking and maintain its freshness.

Perfect Fried Chicken

Who doesn’t like fried chicken? Fried chicken is loved and enjoyed by people in many countries. It is always best to trust your own taste buds, so experiment and try different methods to get your perfect fried chicken.

Several cooks prepare their fried chicken by soaking in buttermilk or brine process for a juicy and tender fried chicken. This is done by placing cut chicken or pieces of chicken in brine solution and then placed in the refrigerator for half an hour or few hours; avoid brining chicken pieces for overnight. After removing the brine chicken, dip into the egg mixture and then coat with flour. Some used their own mixed batter ingredients before finally coating with flour. After coating all the chicken pieces, give few minutes to rest for the coat to stick on the chicken pieces.

For easier and faster processing, some are buying the instant breading mix or frying mix available in department stores. This ready mixed seasoning is coated into the chicken pieces, let rest for few minutes and then fry.

Deep frying – when deep frying, always use fresh oil to avoid contamination of flavors to the food. Fill half of the frying fan with oil and make sure the oil is hot enough before placing the chicken pieces. Fry chicken pieces by batches, when cooked remove and drain, then let cool. Serve with rice and gravy – perfect!

There are fast foods that offer perfect fried chickens – kfc is one :-)

Crabs and the best way to eat them

Love to eat crabs? What must we know about crabs and how really this seafood should be eaten? Let me share the result of what I have found out.

Crabs move so slowly, with 8 legs and two claws. They are related to our favorite lobsters. Some lives in the water while some in lands, with the body roofed with carapace shell. They are created with different kinds and colors.

I don’t really enjoy my meal when crabs are served on the table. Honestly I don’t enjoy eating them, so messy. Yet aside from me, my whole family is enjoying and are all satisfying themselves by using their hands when eating. True indeed, to really taste its flavor, our hands are to use instead of forks and spoons. We can recline on the table some used papers, to absorb the juice and for easier cleaning as well.

We break the crabs into half. With the meat exposed, we use our hands and enjoy biting the meat. Often, we eat the claws after we have eaten all the meats in the body parts. Best with sauce or gravy, my family loves to dip the meat on vinegar with little salt. But anyway, whatever we desire and practiced is always the best. We don’t want to miss the meats located in each corner of the shells, so carefully searched and enjoy.

But to watch out are the tiny spikes.