There is usually more than one way to perform even the simplest of tasks. With that in mind (and after learning so much from the avocado video I discussed last week), I’ve been seeking out tips and techniques on some relatively basic things. You just never know when you might learn something that will save you time or just make the process easier and more enjoyable. And I’ve always been a firm believer that if you sound basic techniques, it’s that much easier to move on to the more challenging stuff.
I wasn’t sure what I could possibly learn from a video showing me how to de-stem spinach and I have to admit, I didn’t learn a whole lot, but I did take away one little thing that may improve my technique. I had always just snapped the step off and if it didn’t snap I pinched it off with my fingernails. Pulling the stem down the back of the leaf as they demonstrate in the video is a little more efficient I think. I’m going to give this a thorough test tonight when I make an Alfredo pasta dish with spinach.
I've been learning a few things on Rouxbe.com but sometimes it's the littlest things that make the biggest impression. While perusing their tips area, I came across a video on how to dice an avocado. It seemed a silly tip, how many different ways could their be to dice an avocado? I have never been more wrong.
After watching this video I have used this tip three times already and it is a huge timesaver. If you love diced avocado on your salad, watch this and save yourself some time making your lunch.
Learning to cook on your own can sometimes be a frustrating task.
It can be so much easier to have someone show you how to do something
than try to interpret instructions out of a book. Demonstration
classes are a great way to accomplish this, if you don't happen to know
a talented cook nearby, but they can often be cost prohibitive.
A place that offers demonstration classes near me, for example,
charges $40 a class. If I only had one thing I wanted to learn I might
be okay with spending $40. But there's a lot I want to learn and at $40
a pop I could easily spend $1000 a year. With this economy, that's a
heck of a lot more that I am comfortable spending.
Fortunately,
there is another option out there. Rouxbe.com is an online cooking
school that offers a variety of instructional videos, many of which are
free. There are two levels of membership, basic which is free, and
premium, which has several payment options: monthly ($15), annual ($99) and
lifetime ($199 now, $299 as of 01/31/10).
I've had a basic membership to Rouxbe.com for about a
month now and I love it. The basic membership is completely free and
gives you access to the Video Recipes, the Tips (which are also on
video) and the cooking school lessons that are marked free. It also
gives you access to quizzes and the recipe forums, but I have not
explored these as of yet as I really joined for the access to the
videos.
Through my membership with FoodieBlogroll.com, I have had
the pleasure of a free 7 day trial of the premium membership as well.
This gives me access to all of the cooking school lessons, gets rid of
ads and you can get personalized responses from chefs on submitted
questions (I haven't tried this but that sounds pretty darn cool).
No
matter what type of membership you have all of the videos I have viewed
so far have been outstanding. Though I will warn you that the video
quality in full screen was not that great and the video seemed to lag
when in full screen mode as well. Though in the normal view, I've
never had a problem with the video.
Overall, the site is very well thought out. They have the text version of recipes attached to the videos and you can control the volume of the music and the narration in the video separately. The instruction is clear and detailed, even in the pan frying lesson I learned something and I didn't think that there would be anything to learn!
Also, be sure to explore the tips thoroughly. I discovered a method for dicing avocados that is so simple I can't imagine why I've been doing it the way I have for so long. These types of tips can be a lifesaver for the busy home chef.
The video recipes are also a great way to pick up on little things and see just how things are done by the professionals. If they gloss over a recipe for a sauce or something that is only a component of the main dish there is generally a separate link to that recipe within the navigation bar to the left of the video.
I obviously love this site, but I have included a preview of the video recipe on fish tacos below so you can decide for yourself!
I'm becoming quite secure with incorporating new ingredients into my cooking, but I'm still reticent to use new techniques. I suppose that's because I always have help with the new ingredients in the form of recipes but when it comes to techniques I'm sort of on my own.
Last Friday I was finally getting around to making the chicken and spinach I should have made two days before based on the state of the spinach. I was dreading it because I knew it would be on the bland side and I hadn't yet thought of a way to liven the dish up.
As I was washing and spinning the spinach dry in my salad spinner I considered using the deglazing technique I had read about to make a sauce for the chicken. Even with the obvious solution to my problem staring me in the face, I hesitated. Deglazing didn't seem hard but I was positive I would find a way to screw it up.
Finally I found my backbone and decided to give it a shot. After all there was no rule that I had to use the sauce if it didn't turn out and then I would just be left with my original bland meal. Nothing lost.
I seared the chicken breasts in the pan, finished them off in the oven and then threw them in the toaster oven on low to keep them warm while I worked my magic. My boyfriend had broken open the bottle of Riesling for me (we had already started 'sampling' the vino) and I poured some in.
As I worked the stuff off the bottom of the pan (more technically called a fond), I realized that I was scared over nothing. What I ended up with was a fairly thin sauce, but I imagined it would be unless I added a thickening agent of some sort. Though thin, it was definitely tasty and gave the chicken the flavor I was looking for. Best of all, it only took a few minutes.
Here are a couple of sites that discuss deglazing a pan:
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