Over the years I have discovered many little tricks of the trade to make life easier when making meals or cleaning. Some of them I may have seen on a show or just learned on my own. These tips are really quite simple, and make a world of difference in the kitchen and the pocket book.
Baking Soda
People don't realize that when baking soda gets old, it loses it's effectiveness. To test it before ruining a recipe, just simply take a little and add to water. If it fizzes, you're good to go. If it doesn't, put it under the sink and use it with some cream of tartar to become a gentle cleanser.
Sowing Seeds Indoors
Did you know that you can plant just about any citrus seed indoors and make it grow and bear fruit? Meyer lemons do especially well indoors, as well as tangerines, and limes. There are many web sites dedicated to indoor citrus.
When starting seeds indoors, I will take a clear, plastic bag and put my starter tray into it without sealing it. Use Popsicle sticks to make a tent. This allows sunlight, aeration, and a little humidity for the seedlings.
I recycle Taco Bell salad trays for high humidity, high heat plants like jalapeno peppers.
Just simply make a few holes in both top and bottom trays for aeration and drainage.
Indoor Plants
Use tank water as fertilizer for your indoor plants and seedlings. For larger plants, like your new citrus trees, use egg shells and coffee grounds as fertilizer.
To rid your plants of aphids and fungus, use a spray bottle containing 1 part dish soap and 3 parts water, then gently use a paper towel to pull aphids and fungus from your leaves. If you have a sun room, have the grand kids or neighbor kids catch a few lady bugs to naturally kill aphids. Lady bugs are good luck you know!
Outside Garden
Plant marigolds around cabbages and vegetables that entice young bunnies and birds. If that doesn't work, try staking cheesecloth and drape around them.
Stagger plants around the garden. Sometimes you will get a better yield by mixing up the garden.
To save space, try growing tomato plants upside down in simple pickle buckets. There are several websites dedicated to this with very precise and inexpensive directions.
Cooking
When a recipe calls for garlic, make sure you mince, crush, or leave whole like the recipe calls for. Your garlic tastes differently each and every way you cut it.
To keep butter from burning when using high heat to sear meat, add a touch of olive oil. It will prevent the butter from burning while searing in that great butter taste.
When making fried rice, use day old, cold rice. Otherwise rice will become a big gooey mess!
Never salt the water when re-hydrating beans. It will make the bean skins tough, and they will not absorb the water. You can use spices though while soaking. Just not salt.
When a recipe calls for cubed mozzarella to be added to a warm pasta dish, cube it and then freeze it for about an hour before you incorporate it. This will make the melting time slower, thus giving you a smooth creamy texture instead of a large wad of bubble gum!
Always, always, always save stock from chicken, vegetables, rice, pasta, or potatoes. You can reuse this flavorful water for other recipes. Pasta water is great to use when introducing sauces, it acts like a glue!
When breading something, dredge in flour mix first, then egg mix, then bread crumbs. Your food will turn out much better. Also, to add fluffiness, add 1/8 tsp. of baking soda to crumbs.
Always preheat your pans before adding butter or oil.
To keep fresh herbs from the store fresh, put them in water and refrigerate with a plastic bag and rubber band over the top. When they start to go bad, take out good stems and put on a cookie sheet, place in a 200 degree oven for 20 minutes, then take out, crush and throw them into old spice shaker bottles. They stay green for a very long time as well.
Never boil soups that contain meat. Only simmer them. Boiling makes the fats and oils break down into a whole different flavor and consistency. Only boil veggies or beans that have no added fats for quick cooking.
If you need to cut bacon, freeze it first, then use a very sharp knife. It makes life much easier.
