Cooking Fish The Easy Way

Americans tend to eat twice as many fish dinners at restaurants as they do at home largely because they are unsure how to properly prepare fish. Here are some easy and common sense tips about cooking fish at home.

Fish should be purchased either frozen or very fresh at the market. Since fish is delicate, fresh fish should not be refrigerated for more than one or two days. Frozen fish should be well thawed before it is cooked and both frozen and fresh fish should be well dried before cooking.

One of the most popular methods of cooking fish is to pan fry it in a shallow amount of oil. White fish should be coated before it is pan fried in order to protect the delicate flesh from the heat. A coating of seasoned white or wholemeal flour or a mixture of flour, beaten egg and fine bread crumbs is sufficient.

Olive oil or a combination of oil and butter will give the fish a tasty crispness. The oil should be shallow, about 1/8 inch, and should be preheated in a cast iron or heavy skillet over medium heat to about 365 degrees F. This is hot enough to make a small cube of bread sizzle loudly and brown up in about 45 seconds. Place a few pieces of coated fish into the skillet without crowding and cook them for about 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Thicker pieces should cook for 5 to 6 minutes on the first side and for about 4 minutes on the other side.

Avoid overcooking the fish because overcooking will cause it to taste dry and tough. White fish will change from a translucent color to an opaque color when cooked and will begin to flake when it is done. Fish that flakes too easily is an indication that it may be dry and overcooked.

Grilling is a great way to cook sturdier fish such as grouper, salmon, tuna, and swordfish. Just be sure that the grill is preheated and is cleaned and lightly oiled so that the fish will not stick to it. The sturdier fish may be cooked with a light coating or without any coating. More delicate fillets should be coated and grilled in a grill basket or grilled on a heavy duty sheet of foil.

One of the easiest ways to cook fish is to bake it. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F and place the seasoned, coated fish onto a lightly oiled baking sheet or shallow baking pan. Bake the fish for about 10 minutes per inch of thickness. As with pan frying, the white fish is properly cooked when its color turns opaque and it begi00003295ns to flake when a fork is inserted into the center.

Oven broiling is another great way to produce delicious cooked fish. Season and coat the fish well ahead of time. Preheat the broiler and place the fish 5 to 6 inches beneath the broiler. Watch the fish carefully to avoid overcooking. Thicker fillets should be turned halfway through cooking.

The microwave oven can be used to cook a delicious fish dish. Use your favorite recipe for coating and seasoning and try to make the fillets even thickness for best results. Thinner sections of the fish can be folded under each other to help make the fillet an even thickness. Rotate the fish halfway through the cooking time if the microwave oven does not have a turntable. Let the fish stand for a few minutes to finish cooking. Use the color and flake tests to check if fully cooked.

Lastly, fish can be steamed or poached with excellent results. To steam the fish, place it in a metal or bamboo steamer. Place the steamer into a saucepan that has water or stock that has been seasoned with lemon, ginger, or any seasonings from your favorite recipe. It is important that the liquid reaches a simmering temperature but not a boiling temperature. Similarly, the fish can be poached by lowering it into a liquid that is simmering but not boiling. A boiling liquid will cook the fish too quickly and cause the outside of the fish to overcook. The poaching liquid can contain any aromatic herb or vegetable that you enjoy. Cooking times are only a few minutes and depend on the thickness of the fish. As always, test the fish if fully cooked with the color and flake tests.

These easy and common sense tips should give confidence to the preparation of fish dinners at home. Fish is a delicious source of protein and should be included regularly in a healthy diet.

Larry L. Taylor is a Nutrition and Healthy Living advocate
who has authored many articles on Health, Nutrition,
Fitness, etc. Get FREE Insider Access to his opt-in list,
where private blog and members only forum learn how to live
healthy, fulfilling lives.

For a new turn if not a 'u-turn' to good health visit:
http://www.HealthyNutritionSecrets.com

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Make an Emergency Kit

You should always keep an emergency kit at the ready. There are so many possible situations that would require you to be prepared to take care of your family's needs without access to outside supplies. Many of these situations, like earthquakes and floods, give you no notice. Even in situations like hurricanes where you do get some notice, the stores are packed with people trying to prepare. So get your earthquake kit ready now and you'll be prepared for anything.

Here are the items you should include in your first aid kit:

Water. You need at least one gallon of water per person per day for three days. Bottled water is ideal, since it can be stored at room temperature indefinitely. Make sure it's properly sealed and keep it out of direct sunlight.

Food. You need at least three days' worth of nonperishable food for each person and pet. Food should be ready to eat, like dry cereal, peanut butter and canned goods. You may be without a way to cook or keep foods cold. Don't forget the manual can opener!

First-aid Kit. Your first aid kit should include bandages, antiseptic wipes, hand sanitizer, antibiotic ointment, burn ointment, calamine lotion, hydrocortisone cream, cold packs, eye wash solution, gauze, gloves, scissors, tape, tweezers and a first aid manual.

Medicines. Include any prescription and over the counter medications that your family might need. Don't forget antihistamines, like Benadryl, pain reliever, Pepto Bismol and antacids.

Every year you should check on your emergency kit. Foods and medicines expire and will need to be rotated out. Set a date that you'll remember each year. A lot of people change the batteries in the smoke alarms and review their emergency kits twice a year when daylight savings changes.

Coleen Bennett is a pet owner in Southern California. She has a000008A7 dog and two tortoises. She also maintains a website for pet insurance comparison and VIP Pet Insurance

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Stainless Steel Pressure Cookers For the 21st Century Cook

Erase that memory of those awkward looking pressure cookers of the past. Modern stainless steel design and pressure cooker advantages  have merged to create a functional and safe cookware alternative.

Stainless steel has always been beloved by cooks everywhere.  It's hard not to like stainless steel.  It is both durable and versatile.  It's easy on the eyes and does wonders for your food.  It's hard to find a kitchen that doesn't have at least one stainless steel fry pan, sauté pan, or sauce pot. It's also relatively easy to clean.  It's resistant to stain and corrosion.  You can expect it to maintain its luster for a very long time.  It's a cookware that almost never ages.  It will function and look as if you've just taken it out of the box years down the road.

Then there is the pressure cooker.  We all need one.  Can you imagine cooking a less expensive cut of meat without a pressure cooker?  Sure you can, if you have half a day of free time.  Coming in at second place after the microwave, cookers probably utilizes one of the fastest cooking methods around.  But when was the last time you cooked something in your microwave?  That's my sentiments exactly.

Having a 0000094Dpressure cooker use to be a love/hate situation.  You love it for its benefits.  However, it was usually heavy and clunky so you didn't usually take it out except for dishes that would normally take an hour or more.  When was the last time that you used your pressure cooker for vegetables?  Now you can. It could also be dangerous if not used properly.  Although they usually comes equipped with regulator valves, you can't help but imagine what that violent steam inside the pot can do for you.

But Fissler proved to us that there is a Culinary God.  It took stainless steel and combined it with 21st century technology and produced a user friendly, fast cooking, and attractive pressure cooker. The dangers of older models have been replaced with safety features that start protecting you the moment you lock the lid in place. Its artificial intelligence lids include an automatic pressure valve, Euromatic seal that automatically seals the cooker, and a large blue indicator knob with pressure markings. Plus, it can be used for regular stove top cooking when the valve is open thus making this a truly versatile addition to your kitchen.

A pressure cooker utilizes the not so obvious fact that pressure increases the boiling point of water.  This means that your food is cooked fast and tasty.  Pressure cooking is also considered to be healthy cooking.  Because of the high pressure of the steam created inside the pot, germs and bacteria are instantly killed.  Less water is also used when cooking with the pressure cooker, therefore making sure that vitamins and minerals are preserved as opposed to boiling the vitamins and minerals out of your vegetables.

Now you can check out Fissler's Stainless Steel Cookware with its pressure cooker feature and say, "Wow - New Design, Easy to Use, Health Benefits Galore!"

Browse Fissler's Cookware and Stainless Steel Pressure Cookers at Your Smart Kitchen
The online location for quality cookware, bakeware, cutlery, appliances and relat000027CFed kitchenware. Quality products at reasonable prices with customer satisfaction guaranteed.
Specializing in Fissler, Paderno, Mauviel, Chasseur, Swiss Diamond, Romertopf, Kaiser, DeLonghi and other quality brands.

Terry Retter

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Low-Carb Cookbook Review - Low Carb Christmas Cookin' With an "Old-Fashioned" Cook by Jan McCracken

I love low carbing, but I'm getting so tired of the same old foods.

I wish I had time to figure out how to convert my family recipes to low
carb!

I love finding old recipes done low carb!

Do any of these comments sound familiar? They sure do to me; I've said
them all at one time or another. And they are so true-two years later and
I am still trying to find the time to try and convert some of my favorite old recipes, especially with the holidays arriving!

I am determined this holiday season to stick with my low-carb eating
plan, and I decided s00002099ince I couldn't find the time to convert my own
recipes, I needed to find some good alternatives. I hit the jackpot with
Low Carb Christmas Cookin' With an Old-Fashioned Cook by Jan
McCracken (Poppyseed Press, 2003).

Jan's brand new cookbook is an entertaining delight. Every page
delivers a smile, laugh or grin-and terrific recipes. Low Carb Christmas
Cookin' is a colorful, easy-to-read, 224-page paperback book liberally
sprinkled with fun. From funny and sometimes outrageous photos of the
author mugging for the camera to anecdotes, homespun quotes, and
humorous ways to prepare recipes, all the way through I got a strong
sense of the fun and spirit of this feisty and entertaining lady.

Low Carb Christmas Cookin' isn't just fun. Though smiles lurk on every
page, the recipes are seriously good. The cookbook is broken into nine
chapters. Some of my favorites are, Dollops & Plops, Feliz Navidad
Low Carb Fiesta Christmas! and Holiday Affair with Chocolate. The
All Thru the House chapter has some great potpourri recipes, too.

I've tried several recipes from the book, and so far they are all keepers.
My mom adores Ole'It's Holy Guacamole! and I made the Staggerin'
Swiss Chicken for friends, and it was a huge hit. Other personal
favorites from Jan's book include, Pineapple Upside-Down French
Toast Casserole and Hot Cashew Chicken Salad. Since this is a
holiday recipe collection, you should expect that there are some recipes
that call for fruit, so for those on very low carbs you may need to watch
the portions, but Jan has done a good job of keeping her recipes low on
the low carb scale.

I just fell in love with the humor and joy so obvious throughout the entire
book, and I drooled over the recipes. Honestly, I'm not sure what I
enjoyed more, reading it or making the recipes. Either way, I will be
sending copies of this low-carb cookbook to low carbers on my
Christmas list and I know one old sugar grouch that will find one in his
stocking!

Low Carb Christmas Cookin' With an Old-Fashioned Cook by Jan
McCracken can be purchased through www.janmccracken.com.

Cherie' Davidson has been working as a Web copywriter, content editor, press release writer, Web reviewer and site marketing consultant for several years. You can contact Cherie and read more about her at her Website http://www.CherieDavidson.com and her humor blog cdwrites.blogspot.com.

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Low-Carb Cookbook Review - Low Carb Christmas Cookin' With an "Old-Fashioned" Cook by Jan McCracken

I love low carbing, but I'm getting so tired of the same old foods.

I wish I had time to figure out how to convert my family recipes to low
carb!

I love finding old recipes done low carb!

Do any of these comments sound familiar? They sure do to me; I've said
them all at one time or another. And they are so true-two years later and
I am still trying to find the time to try and convert some of my favorite old recipes, especially with the holidays arriving!

I am determined this holiday season to stick with my low-carb eating
plan, and I decided s00002099ince I couldn't find the time to convert my own
recipes, I needed to find some good alternatives. I hit the jackpot with
Low Carb Christmas Cookin' With an Old-Fashioned Cook by Jan
McCracken (Poppyseed Press, 2003).

Jan's brand new cookbook is an entertaining delight. Every page
delivers a smile, laugh or grin-and terrific recipes. Low Carb Christmas
Cookin' is a colorful, easy-to-read, 224-page paperback book liberally
sprinkled with fun. From funny and sometimes outrageous photos of the
author mugging for the camera to anecdotes, homespun quotes, and
humorous ways to prepare recipes, all the way through I got a strong
sense of the fun and spirit of this feisty and entertaining lady.

Low Carb Christmas Cookin' isn't just fun. Though smiles lurk on every
page, the recipes are seriously good. The cookbook is broken into nine
chapters. Some of my favorites are, Dollops & Plops, Feliz Navidad
Low Carb Fiesta Christmas! and Holiday Affair with Chocolate. The
All Thru the House chapter has some great potpourri recipes, too.

I've tried several recipes from the book, and so far they are all keepers.
My mom adores Ole'It's Holy Guacamole! and I made the Staggerin'
Swiss Chicken for friends, and it was a huge hit. Other personal
favorites from Jan's book include, Pineapple Upside-Down French
Toast Casserole and Hot Cashew Chicken Salad. Since this is a
holiday recipe collection, you should expect that there are some recipes
that call for fruit, so for those on very low carbs you may need to watch
the portions, but Jan has done a good job of keeping her recipes low on
the low carb scale.

I just fell in love with the humor and joy so obvious throughout the entire
book, and I drooled over the recipes. Honestly, I'm not sure what I
enjoyed more, reading it or making the recipes. Either way, I will be
sending copies of this low-carb cookbook to low carbers on my
Christmas list and I know one old sugar grouch that will find one in his
stocking!

Low Carb Christmas Cookin' With an Old-Fashioned Cook by Jan
McCracken can be purchased through www.janmccracken.com.

Cherie' Davidson has been working as a Web copywriter, content editor, press release writer, Web reviewer and site marketing consultant for several years. You can contact Cherie and read more about her at her Website http://www.CherieDavidson.com and her humor blog cdwrites.blogspot.com.

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Shepherd's Pie Recipe

Traditional nursery food has made a come back in our family recently. I havent bothered making shepherds pie (or cottage pie, as it is also known) for ages, as the children just used to eat the potato from the top and leave the mince. Mince in general has been rejected too. If I use the same minced beef to make meatballs or burgers the kids devour it, but they hate picking out all the little bits of vegetables that I hopefully put into it, when I make the shepherds pie, in the hope of smuggling a few vegetables into their diet. Anyway my son actually requested shepherds pie the other day, so yesterday I made it and they gobbled it up, vegetables and all, several servings each, so Ive gained one more dish for the regular list.

Recipe for Shepherds Pie

To feed four

500g/1lb good quality minced beef or lamb (hamburger beef)

1 onion

2 carrots

1 stick of celery

1 clove garlic

2 large fresh tomatoes or half a tin of tomatoes

2 tablespoons olive oil

a dash of wine

a few drops Worcestershire sauce

2 bay leaves

salt and pepper

water or stock

potatoes

small piece of butter - about 20g/1oz and milk to mash with

Finely chop the onion and saute over a low heat in the olive oil until soft and translucent. Add the carrot, celery and garlic also finely chopped. Saute all together for five minutes. Turn up the heat and add the meat, breaking up the lumps and cooking until it has just lost the raw redness. Dont overdo it at this point. Add the splosh of wine, (white or red, whatever you have open. If you dont have any its not essential) and stir till it has evaporated the alcohol. Add the tomatoes skinned and chopped. Now put in the rest of the seasonings and pour in enough water or stock to only j00000431ust cover the meat. Bring to a simmer, put on a lid and leave to cook at a simmer for 1-2 hours.

The quantity of potatoes depends on how many you have to feed. You can have a thin layer of potato topping or if you need to stretch the meat to feed lots of people, a really thick layer of potato, which is what the children prefer anyway. Peel the potatoes and boil them till soft. Then drain all the water away and let the steam evaporate, so they dry a little then mash them with the butter, milk and salt and pepper until they are soft, but not too runny, mashed potatoes. In a roasting dish or any ovenproof but not too shallow dish, put the cooked meat in a thick layer, then top with the mashed potatoes. Smooth them out with a fork, so there are lines and swirls and peaks of potato that will brown nicely and put the dish into a preheated oven 200C/400F for twenty minutes or until the top has browned to golden. If the meat and potatoes have only just finished cooking and still hot you can just brown the top under000019A0 the grill. This can all be assembled and kept in the fridge until needed too, then it would need at least thirty minutes to cook through again.

Traditionally shepherds pie was made with minced lamb and cottage pie with minced beef but my family has always called both shepherds pie. It also used to be a dish to use up leftover cooked meat from a roast, rather than starting fresh with raw mince, but we like it like this - comfort food for winter.

Copyright 2006 Kit Heathcock

Kit Heathcock - worked and travelled in Italy for many years, is passionate about food and loves being a fulltime mother. Co-creator of A Flower Gallery home of original flower pictures and Food and Family recipes and kids' stuff.

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Cooking Healthy With Oil

There are several oils for healthy cooking. One of the best is olive oil. It has a high smoke point and does not break down quickly as some other types of oils do. When cooking with olive oil it will not lose its health benefits so it is a good oil to use in salad dressings and for cooking with. Extra virgin olive is the best in terms of nutritional value and health benefits. It is good for your heart too.

There are different types of olive oil extra virgin is the best and the least processed from the first pressing of olives. The next type is virgin olive oil which is from the second pressing of olives. Pure olive oil goes through processing and refining and extra light undergoes the most processing of all of the kinds.

When looking for a healthy oil to cook with look at the type of fats it has. Mono saturated fats reduce the level of what is known as bad cholesterol. The oils that have a high level of this fat are olive oil, canola oil and peanut oil. Poly unsaturated fats with omega 3 and 6 are considered healthy fats too. These oils are corn, soybean, safflower, and grape seed. Other good choices for cooking are walnut and flax seed oil. If you are going to do cooking that requires high heat choose peanut or sunflower oil for searing and frying. Oils that are good for baking, sauting and stir frying are grape seed, safflower or sunflower oil.

Olive oil is rich in vitamins like E which is a powerful anti oxidant. Store the oil in a bottle made of dark glass or a stainless steel container. The container should be air tight because the oil reacts with air and becomes rancid. Olive oil has many uses like drizzling it on salad and bread, using it to make homemade condiments, brushing it on meat and poultry, adding it to soup and stews, on potatoes and vegetables. The flavor is very good.

Instead of sauting your vegetables you might want to steam them then add olive oil or another cooking oil for flavor. Broiling, grilling, roasting, and baking meat brushed with oil is healthier than frying and sauting. You can buy a brush and put your favorite oil in a small dish then brush it on meats, fish and poultry quickly just before cooking. You can drizzle oil on vegetables, rice and pasta dishes.

Canola oil is another healthy oil for cooking. It is easy to find on00000ED2 most supermarket shelves. It is low in saturated fats produced from canola plants not rapeseed plants. Store canola oil in a cool dark place when not using it. It is good for frying as the flavor does not overpower the food fried. It goes well in salad dressings and mixes well with other ingredients. It does not separate so the salad dressing or sauce remains consistent. It is healthy oil to be used in baking. Instead of using butter on bread pour your favorite healthy oil on it. When you bake substitute oil for butter you reduce fat about 25 percent.

Candis Reade is an accomplished niche website developer and author. To learn more about cooking with healthy oil, please visit Cooking For Your Health for current articles and discussions.

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Cooking Utensils - Choosing Knives

When choosing a collection of cooking utensils for your kitchen it's important to have a wide selection of knives available for the variety of tasks that occur while preparing a meal. However, if you are not going to acquire a large selection of knives there are several types of knives that are highly recommended to have in your collection of cooking utensils.

Chef's Knife

The Chef's knife is one of the primary knives you should have in your cooking utensils collection. It's a knife that can be utilized for most tasks. A high quality Chef's knife will easily slice, mince, chop, dice and be efficient with most other tasks performed with a knife. Most of the Chef's knives range in size from six to twelve inches with the eight inch knife being the most popular.

Bread Knife

If you make your own bread or you buy loaves of bread that have not been sliced, a quality bread knife should be in your cooking utensils collection. It can provide an even slice and will provide a nice appearance for the remainder of the loaf. Most bread knives have a serrated blade and they usually are about six to ten inches in length. The serrated blade provides a nice slice and is far preferred than other types of knives for cutting bread.

Paring Knife

It's a good idea to add a paring knife to your cooking utensils collection since they are ideal for taking out seeds or making garnishes or taking the veins out of shrimp and can be used for other types of intricate tasks while preparing a meal. Paring knives are typically about two and half to four inches in length.

Utility Knife

A utility knife is also an important knife for a small collection. Utility knives are medium size knifes and are designed for various tasks in the kitchen. It's not a good idea to utilize them for heavy cutting procedures and it's not designed for peeling small types of fruits or vegetables. Some varieties come with a serrated edge.

Boning Knife

A boning knife is appropriate for a collection of cooking utensils in order to take out the bones from the meat items that you have selected for your meal. They typically have a thin blade and are typically five to six inches in length. A boning knife that has some flexibility is a good choice for removing bones from chick000008FDen while a stiff type of boning knife is a good choice for taking out bones from beef as well as pork. When putting together a collection of cooking utensils make sure you have some high quality knives and life in the kitchen will be much easier.

Echo Wang is a contributing Editor for cooking-tips Find out which cooking products, treatments & solutions will continue to be beautiful at any time. Our site is dedicated to providing information about cooking well options so you can continue to do it perfect, if want to more information, please visit Cooking Utensils

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Wild Game Cooking Tips

Fall and early winter are great times to change the menu and include some novel meats. In general, game includes deer, rabbit, wild boar, duck, antelope and to the more exotic ant-eater, flying fox, squirrels or even bats (eg. bat soup is a delicacy in Cambodia) which can be popular in some countries.

When I was little, my dad used to work in the jungle as logging contractor in East Malaysia. Each time when he went to work in the jungle for a period of few days to a week, he would usually come back with wild games like deer, wild boar or ant eater.

Mum used to prepare them and the wild games required slightly different preparation and cooking methods as they tend to have a unique and stronger smell or odour.

Some wild game cooking tips that you might use : It is good that you marinate game meat, it will not only develops more flavor, but tenderizes the meat. You can easily marinate game from 24 hours up to four days in the refrigerator.

You should not overcook game meats. It is important to keep a good eye on the meat as it cooks because game is very lean and can become dry if cooked too long. For most people, it is best to serve the meat when it is a pink inside and still juicy.

Common ingredients added to game meats are black pepper, ginger and wine which are very helpful to neutralise the natural smell of these wild animals. The type of wine that you use is dependent on what you are cooking and what you like. For many people, white wine is for white meat and red wine is best with dark meat. This is an old rule of thumb and many people today are happy to disobey it, preferring, instead to enjoy the wine they like with whatever cut of meat they like. It is a good change.

Another way to prepare game is to cook in herbal soup. Some games are suitable for such preparation method as their have medicinal properties and can help improve certain chronic ailments if combined with chinese herbs. Check with your Local Chinese Medical Hall on the herbs required or recipe if you are near one.

Visit a restaurant that serve game meats to try out some the dishes. Find out which way of cooking suit your taste buds. You can talk to the chef and find out what his or her favorite wild game cooking tips and re00003FACcipes are.

Another good source to learn wild game cooking tips is by doing an online search. It is best to narrow your search down to the particular type of game that you are interested in. You will find that there are many sites now available that discuss the various ways of preparing game meats. Many of these sites offer expert advice from long time hunters and chefs, all of whom are happy to share their expertise with you.

To learn more about cooking, recipes, different cuisine, cooking tips and news, please visit http://whats-cooking.info

http://whats-cooking.info

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Preparing & Cooking Safely

There are many facets to the cooking experience, preparing, cutting and handling tools and appliances require concentration...do not get distracted in the kitchen.

Keep the work surfaces clean and free of debris.

Get the ingredients for the meal ready ahead of time, put away ingredients not applicable.

All utensils and cutting boards should be clean and sanitized before using.

Dry your hands before plugging, or unplugging kitchen appliances.
Do not keep electric appliances next to a water source.
Discard frayed cords.

Never yank cords from plug.

Keep a fire extinguisher, designed for kitchen use, in an easily accessible place.

Make sure you know how to use it.

Do not use long cords, or plug too many appliances into one outlet

Keep children and pets out of the kitchen when cooking.

Turn all pot and/or pan handles in toward a wall.

Do not use same dish to carry raw and cooked food.

Never thaw food on kitchen counters, always in refrigerator.

Never leave cooked foods out of refrigeration for more than 2 hours, to be safe, use the one hour rule, this provides sufficient time for foods to cool before putting in refrigerator

Cutting Tips:

Buy quality knives and keep them sharp.

Do not put quality knives in dishwasher, wash by hand.

Keep knives in a block, or in their sheaths, do not throw randomly in a drawer.

NEVER leave knives in a sink, or basin, full of sudsy water.

Do not walk around with a knife in your hand.

Cut meat on a cutting board and away from your body.

Select the correct knife for the job.

Focus on job at hand when cutting meat.

Use even cutting strokes, let the knife do the job.

Always be in control of the pressure you use when cutting, you should be able to stop in mid stroke in case of emergency.

Keep kitchen floor free of water or pieces of food...no matter how small.

Tony Grimes, http://www.meatnplace.net is a veteran of retail meat operations. Offers free meat buying and safe handling tips and recipes and resources for retail meat operators

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After School Cooking Classes For Children

Tired of paying so much money for after school programs that do not teach your children anything more than Sponge Bob? How about considering an after school program that teaches children how to prepare healthy meals as well as exploring different food cultures from all over the world. Dinner time with family has become a thing of the past with all of the busyness of life. Children are so involved with after school activities and parents are rushed everyday trying to squeeze everything in their busy lives, that we as a nation have forgotten this very important aspect of "family time".

Teaching children how to cook can be a great way to get your children involved in the meal preparing process. It can also help bring families closer together. After school cooking classes can be taught in individual classrooms, camps, with the boy scouts, girl scouts or any other group setting for children kindergarten age and up. Children will be able to explore not only their favorite foods, but foods from other cultures. They may even be able to experience some famous top chef's recipes from all over the country. This is a wonderful way to integrate cooking into a child's life, giving them knowledge of the kitchen, how to prepare wonderful foods and learning the different food cultures of the world.

Taking home two or three of their "finished" products is a thrilling way for a child to show off his or her new cooking talents. Children are always proud when they are able to complete a project, especially something edible for the whole family to enjoy.

After school cooking classes last for about an hour and there is only a small fee per child. This is a great way to bring excitement to children after their busy days at school. Learning how to cook is a great way for a child to explore fun, new adventures. It will definitely keep them busy learning basic food prep, kitchen equipment and shopping for food as well as taking home a cooked meal to share with the rest of the family.<0000239D/p>

Consider having an after school cooking class for your children. It will definitely be a learning experience that they will never forget, one that they will cherish and maybe one day pass down to their children.

I am just a southern girl who has a passion for writing. This is slowly becoming a reality for me in my "empty nest syndrome" years to be able to actually pursue my dreams.

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Cooking For One

Modern life presents us more and more with the situation of a person living alone. It may be someone who has never married, or possibly it is someone who is divorced, or widowed without children, or maybe the children are already grown and out of the nest. People today, especially in the big cities, tend to live in such situations by themselves and not with their extended families or friends.

Some of the singles will eat out most of their meals. But not everyone is happy eating out. Sometimes you prefer the quiet hood of your own home, sitting alone and listening to your favorite music, reading an all-absorbing book or the morning newspaper.

These situations bring out the need to plan for a one-person meal. When you have been by yourself for all of your adult life, this situation seems more natural, and you will be more comfortable in dividing the quantities of a "regular" recipe. When you were used to live with a bigger family - whether it was your spouse or your now grown children, you will probably have a harder time, as you are too used to be cooking in bigger quantities.

In any case, the best would be if you could see this situation as a challenge. With no one else to complain about the meals, you experiment. Try new cuisines. Be creative, try to invent or change your regular recipes.

One thing you should keep in mind though is that it would be more convenient to cook things which you can freeze. In this way you prepare a regular sized meal, and then when some day comes and you are not in the mood for cooking you can open your freezer and heat up some great meal from last week. This way you will not be left with half tomatoes or onions etc. floating around your fridge.

Today you can find more and more recipes and cookbooks that are designed around the "cook for one" concept. Look for them to get ideas. Possibly you can borrow some from a nearby library.

If you are living alone, don't relegate yourself to boring meals or eating out. Your attitude to your meals will spread out to life in general: You don't have to see your living alone as a compromise, or an "in-between" period that has to be suffered or passed-by with minimum hardships. See it as a growing period, a time to invest in yourself - in your cooking, and in your life in general.

Visit Debbie B.'s meat cooking blog to read more of her writing and cooking advice. You can also get her free collection of lamb ribs recipes.

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Have Fun Cooking Easy Recipes

Is it me or are only certain types of people able to have fun cooking? Are some people just naturally able to follow recipes and get them right every time? I personally think the way to really enjoy cooking is by making easy recipes that taste great.

We have always struggled cooking dinner on a daily basis for our family but when you begin to see the fun in cooking, doing it daily becomes a breeze. Focusing on easy to cook recipes will assist in the fun element of cooking but in order to make the process run smoother we need to break cooking down into it's basic elements, prep, execution and clearing up.

Personally I would say that by preparing well will be the difference between how much you enjoy the execution and the overall cooking experience. Have you got all your ingredients? Do you have the necessary utensils? What needs slicing and dicing? What order do you need to do things and how long are individual elements going to take to cook?

Taking the preparation stage one step further, we always found it to be a good idea to plan our meals in advance. Make a checklist each week before you go for groceries, decide on the meals you are going to cook and make sure you have a list of necessary ingredients for each one.

You don't need to make the ingredients too complex either, start off small, make a nice pasta dinner with your own bolognaise made from fresh products, Grill some chicken and prepare your own marinate.

Once you have learned to enjoy the process try some advances methods, but remember to add you own preferences to what you cook, make it your own and this will add to the fun.

The benefits that you will receive through cooking your own meals will be more than you would have expected. Not only are you saving yourself and your family from the toxins of processed food or take out junk but you are also developing new skills. Encourage the family to become involved in the cooking process, let them give suggestions and let young children help prepare the meals. Getting everybody inv000011E7olved will only enhance the cooking experience and make it easier to do it on a consistent basis.

The important aspect of cooking to remember is the more fluently you can go through the process the more you will enjoy it and the more you enjoy it, the easier it will become.

If you would like to learn more Easy Cooking Recipes please visit Daily Fill - Cooking Recipes

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Free Cooking Games For Kids

On the Internet there are many many free cooking games for kids, but are they as fun as the real thing? It doesn't matter if you have children that are fussy eaters or if your children will eat just about anything that is in front of them, cooking is something most children like. That is why there are so many free cooking games for kids online. You can put your child in front of the computer and let them play a free cooking games for kids, or you can take some time and truly start cooking for and with your kids. It is the perfect way to combine your love for food and your love for your children.

In the free cooking games for kids, there are games where they are shown how to cook breakfast, they need to stir the eggs and so on. Cooking with kids in real life can be done whether it is for the morning meal, the evening meal, or for those many snacks in between. You can use the free cooking games for kids as an excellent way to get the kids involved in real cooking as well so this can be used as a valuable teaching time for you and your little ones.

When children get themselves involved in the free cooking games for kids, they are more likely to help you cook and they will eat what was made more quickly. This can be very beneficial for those who have children who are difficult eaters. Starting with free games to take on cooking for kids is also an excellent way to get in ingredients that you would normally wont get them to eat, you can dress up the ingredient as something fun and exciting. Many parents find cooking for kids an excellent way to get nutrients into their children, and the free cooking games for kids can help them with that.

Where do you find these free cooking games for kids?

First you find a recipe that you would like to make for your kids and then you go find the cooking game on the internet, 99% they are free, pick one out yourself, that is related to what you are going to cook in real life, there are so many that it should be easy to do.

About the recipes

There 0000259Eare probably millions of recipes to choose from because parents and daycare workers have posted their recipes and ideas on the Internet so you can start cooking for kids.

The free cooking games for kids, are often in some kind of Asian language (Japanese), but that is really no problem, most of the games are so intuitive and simple to understand that your children wont even notice that they are in Japanese. And when they are done playing you have already set up the same cooking tools or ingredients in the kitchen so they can play the same game in real life.

Teaching your children cooking with the help of free games can be fun. And in the end your children will learn that repeating the game in the kitchen together with you is double the fun. So start cooking with your kids today.

Kenny Vanderburen is the main blogger at http://www.kitchencookings.com. The kitchen might as well be his living room, that's how much time he spends there.

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BBQ Cooking Schools

When people go on a vacation, the most enjoyable experiences are the travel and tasting of the new cuisine. A visit to a cooking school allows people to learn local cuisine preparations from reputed chefs. In most cases, these classes are conducted in English or the authorities provide the services of translators. BBQ or barbecue cooking school tours, offer classes that teach participants the nuances and skills needed to barbecue and serve meat and vegetables decoratively.

Barbecues are an important part of many social outdoor gatherings. They are a bonding activity, since the preparation method is relatively simple and fun, when done collectively. Barbecues require regular inspection, to make sure the meats will be cooked well on them. Though it sounds simple, carelessness can cause the food to be charred or burned. BBQ cooking school lessons teach people how to clean the meat and most importantly how to marinate it. Reputed chefs impart detailed information regarding barbecue techniques, marinades and marinating time specifications.

These classes are offered by established restaurants, hotels and even by local professionals. These tours are available for locals and tourists. When vacationers decide to participate in such tours, they could contact travel operators or the hotel itself. It is important to make reservations and prompt payments, to avoid any untoward situation, on arrival. Locals can opt for BBQ cooking school lessons over the weekend afternoons or during their spare time. Since these lessons are pre-paid for, the organizers provide the raw materials, detailed information, catalogs and expert guidance. Such classes do not accept too many participants at a single session, in order to ensure that each participant gets adequate attention and guidance.

Cooking Schools provides detailed information on Cooking Schools, French Cooking Schools, Italian Cooking Schools, Vegan Cooking Schools and more. Cooking Schools is affiliated with Top Film Schools.

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Replacing Alcohol in Cooking

You'll have to use your own judgement on substituting for alcohol in recipes. Sweet recipes will require different substitutions than savory. Amounts will also make a difference. You wouldn't want to use a quarter cup of almond extract to replace the same amount of Amaretto liqueur. And remember, the final product will not be how the original cook intended, but it should still be tasty.

Look at the main ingredients of your recipe. Usually the main liquid ingredient can be extended to cover a small amount of required alcoholic ingredient.

If the amount is less than a tablespoon, it can probably be omitted although flavor will be lost.

Any variety of juices and/or tomato juice can often be substituted in marinades.

Non-alcoholic wine or wine vinegar can be substituted for wine. Add a bit of honey or sugar to emulate sweeter wines.

Extracts, flavorings, syrups, and juices can be substituted for flavor-based liquors and liqueurs. They will usually need to be diluted.

Use non-alcoholic wines over cooking wine or sherry. It should be drinkable. The cooking wines and sherries are loaded with sodium which detracts from flavor and adds a salty flavor to the food.

To help burn off more alcohol and reduce potential injuries when using it for flamed dishes, be sure to warm the liquor before adding to the hot (the food must also be hot!), and use a long match or lighter to ignite it. Always tilt the pan away from you when igniting. The liquor should be added very last possible moment and lit as quickly as possible to avoid the liquor soaking into the food. Let the alcohol burn off enough so the flavor does not overpower the dish.

Tomato sauce or juice combined with Worcestershire sauce or soy sauce can work as a substitute for many robust liquors.

Frozen desserts and high alcohol-content liquor do not mix well since the alcohol freezes at a much lower temperature. You may end up with runny ice cream or sorbet.

When using milk or cream in a sauce containing alcohol, be sure to burn off the alcohol before adding the cream or the sauce may curdle.

If the alcoholic ingredient in the recipe is intended to be the main flavor and you must avoid alcohol, find another recipe. It just won't taste the same.

All Free Recipes

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