![]() |
Cooking Tips Information |
|
|
Garlic: A Quick Guide
Garlic, there's nothing like the smell of garlic. It's great in soups and sauces, roasted with meats or on it's own, and it's wonderful mixed with butter and slathered on bread and then baked. The scientific name for garlic is Allium Sativum. It is related to the lily and the onion. Although related to the onion, and having a flavor that very slightly resembles that of an onion, garlic does not bring tears to the eyes when chopped. When buying fresh garlic, be sure that the head feels very firm when you squeeze it. Over time, garlic will soften and begin to sprout, which turns the garlic bitter. To store fresh garlic, keep it in a dark, cool place, such as the basement. Do not refrigerate or freeze the garlic, as it will begin to loose it's taste. To peel a clove of garlic, place it on a cutting board, and put the flat of the blade of the knife against it. Press down on the other side of the blade with the heel of your hand, flattening the garlic slightly. The skin will come right off. The strong flavor and odor of garlic come from sulfur compounds within the cells. The more cells that are broken, the stronger the flavor of the garlic will be. For the mildest flavor, just use a whole or slightly crushed clove of garlic. For a bit stronger flavor, slice or chop the garlic, and for the strongest flavor, mash the garlic into a paste. Cooking garlic tames the strong flavor, and changes it in different ways, depending on how it's cooked. If using in a sauce, it can be sweated or sauteed. In sweating the garlic, it is first chopped finely, and then added to a cold pan with some oil, it is then gently heated, causing the oil to become infused with the garlic flavor. To sautee garlic, heat the oil in the pan first, and then add the chopped garlic, stirring frequently, and being careful not to let the garlic burn and become bitter. Roasting the garlic softens the flavor, and makes it soft and perfect for mixing with cream cheese to spread onto toast, or just spread on the toast itself. To roast the garlic, take a whole head of garlic, and remove the papery outer skin. Place the garlic on a piece of aluminum foil, and drizzle with some olive oil. Loosely wrap the garlic in the foil, and place it into a 350 degree oven for 1 hour. Remove the garlic and let it cool. When cool enough to handle, separate the cloves of garlic, and squeeze each one. The flesh should pop right out. The roasted garlic is great mixed with cheese or potatoes, or on it's own. Don't be afraid to use garlic in your cooking. Garlic is flavorful, and healthful, and of course, it will keep those pesky vampires away. Tim Sousa is the webmaster for Classy Cooking, a library of free online recipes. Come and check out our selection of recipes, or share your own recipes with others.
MORE RESOURCES:
Cooking-Tips - Google News |
RELATED ARTICLES
The Right Grill for Your Barbecue Barbecue is a mix of talents. There is the choice of meat (or in some cases vegetables), the creation and choice of sauce, and of course the flame. Must Haves for Any At-Home Chef With the holidays on their way soon, many people will be beefing up kitchens to handle the increased demand for 'fit for a king' meals. Not being a professional Chef shouldn't stop you from being able to cook like one. 10 Critical Ways To A Perfectly Food-Safe Kitchen Food poisoning is related to unsafe food, a dirty kitchen,and dirty kitchen appliances. If you follow some safetyrules, food poisoning will never occur. Compact Refrigerators Are Great When Small Is Needed The small refrigerator can be used in many places that a regular size fridge would not be practical. Many places including offices, apartments, student dorms, hotels, motels, and military housing can benefit from using compact refrigerators. Buying, Storing, and Preparing Apples When buying apples, look for those that are firm and brightly colored. Shiny red for Macintosh, Rome and red Delicious. Clarifying Butter Clarified butter is a delightfully rich concentrated butter that can be used in cooking and making mouth watering sauces. Traditional methods for making this rich butter concentrate can be a little intimidating at first, but not anymore. Making Homemade Pasta for Dinner Tonight Homemade pasta cooked al dente (to the teeth), is a chewy and light treat. Here are the simple steps to making fresh pasta for dinner tonight. The Joys of Refrigerator Cookies Baking cookies seem to fill the house with a sense of well being and peace. Perhaps it is the smell of butter, vanilla, and spices emanating from the hot oven. Hot Apple Pie - The American Apple Pie Legacy While each country might have its own preferred style, "American Style" apple pie includes your basic pie with apples in it, spiced up with cinnamon and/or nutmeg. Some folks top it off with a scoop of ice cream (such as vanilla) and this is known as "Apple Pie a la mode. Low-Budget Meals In a Minute Ever go home and look in the fridge only to find it sadly, echoingly empty? Well, look again my friend.. Garlic: A Quick Guide Garlic, there's nothing like the smell of garlic. It's great in soups and sauces, roasted with meats or on it's own, and it's wonderful mixed with butter and slathered on bread and then baked. 10 Simple Ways To Safely Store Food Storing foods can present its own set of problems. Anddifferent types of foods have different storage requirementsto prevent bacteria from setting in. How to Bake: How Long Should My Bread Rise? It depends. The best way to tell if the dough has risen enough is not by time-though it helps to set the timer so you don't forget about your dough-but by look and feel. Using Bread Machine Mixes in Your Oven You don't have to own a bread machine to enjoy the variety of bread machine mixes. And you don't have to make blocky, square loaves with holes in the bottom. All About Baking: Quick Breads The Versatile Quick BreadIt's no wonder quick breads are so popular. They are easy, fast-as the name implies, nearly foolproof, versatile, and oh, so good. Christmas Cookie Decorating 101 Many bakers ask for tips and instructions on decorating cookies. Well that's a tall order because there are as many ways to decorate cookies as there are cookies! Here are a few guidelines for novices and experienced bakers alike to help you generate your own ideas for cooking decorating. How to Care for Your Cast Iron Skillet (includes recipes) Some of the best meals I've ever eaten were made by my grandmothers in their cast iron skillets. Tender, flaky catfish; finger-lickin' chicken; and mouth watering cornbread were the traditional scrumptious fare. Digital Kitchen Timers - Never Burn Another Dish Digital kitchen timers come in many shapes and sizes. Timers are an indispensable tool in the kitchen. How to Cook Rice Right The easiest way to make rice well every time is to use a rice cooker. If you don't have one, or don't want one, though, here's a no-fail recipefor rice that one of my grandmothers taught my mother, who taught me. Barbeque Grilling has Reached a Whole New Dimension Grilling on the barbecue has never been more exciting. Not only do barbecues come in a myriad of designs and options, but also with the advent of popular cooking shows, cooking books and magazines', grilling has reached a whole new dimension. |
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |