CHG - 101 Tips To Cook Better and Eat Healthier

101 Tips to Cook Like a Pro California Home Goods

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The CHG Family

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Chapters:

I. General Cooking
II. Meat, Poultry & Seafood
III. Vegetables & Spices
IV. Baking
V. Pasta & Rice
VI. Cooking Healthy

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General Cooking

1. Prepare all your ingredients ahead of time before starting to cook. This is makes things
so much easier and is especially important when cooking fast moving dishes like risotto
and omelettes.

2. Avoid over-seasoning at the start of your cooking session. Some salt and other
seasonings are good at the beginning, but the flavors will change and concentrate
through cooking. Finish seasoning when the dish is nearly ready.
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3. To remedy an oversalted dish, try using a thick sauce or soup to an unsalted liquid like
water or cream OR add a peeled and quartered raw potato and cook it in the dish for
15-20 minutes. Throw away the potato and voila! Less salty.

4. Balance a wooden spoon across the top of a pan of boiling water to stop it from boiling
over.

5. To remove strong garlic odors from your hands, rub them against something made of
stainless steel like a spoon or the sink. The odor will go away and washing the stainless
steel will be a breeze.

6. Always make stock in a large quantity and freeze it in plastic bags. That way, when you
want to make a nice soup or boil veggies, you can simply pull the bag out of the freezer.

7. To make a great sandwich, spread the mayonnaise from corner to corner on the bread.
People rush this step and just do a swoosh down the middle. Every bite should be
flavorful. Now that's a sandwich!

8. For an easy weeknight meal, save and freeze leftover sauces from previous meals in ice
cube trays. The cubes can be reheated in a sauté pan when you need a quick sauce.

9. Fried food doesn’t typically keep, but if you must reheat fried food, try this: place a
baking tray in the oven and preheat it to 400 F. Once hot, lay the food down on a tray
with space in between and keep it in the oven for 10-20 minutes. Turn once halfway
through.

10. When serving ice cold drinks to guests, use pre-made frozen cubes of the beverage so
that the beverage does not dilute!

11. When prepping ingredients, there’s nothing more irritating than a cutting board that
slips all over the place. To remedy this, simply place a damp paper towel under the
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cutting board so it stays in place.

12. Use salt to clean your cast-iron pans, it’ll be much easier. Salt soaks up the oils that could
go rancid in the pan without using soap, which can break down your seasoning and make
your pan rusty. It will also help dry out any stuck-on bits for easier removal.

Meat, Poultry & Seafood

13. Always bring meat to room temperature before cooking by removing it from the fridge an
hour beforehand. The will prevent burning and the meat will also cook more evenly and
a little faster.

14. When pan frying, always get the pan hot before adding oil and get the oil hot before
adding the meat.

15. Always let the meat rest before serving. Giving it up to 10-30 minutes before serving will
allow the fibres of the meat to relax, redistribute its juices, thereby making the meat
more tender and succulent.

16. To cut pancetta or bacon into lardons, put in the freezer for 15 minutes. This will firm up
the meat and make it easier to cut.

17. Using a freezer bag is the best way to marinate meat and fresh for a few reasons:

- You can use less marinade by squeezing out the air and sealing so that the marinade
pushes up against the meat.
- It takes up less room in the fridge and there’s no cleanup
- You can easily massage the meat without fear of creating a mess

18. All red meat and poultry have a grain to it and will be much more tender when sliced
across the grain before or after cooking. When sliced with the grain, you’ll get longer,
chewier and less palatable strands of meat.

19. Instead of placing a chicken on a roasting rack, cut thick slices of onion, put them in an
oiled pan, then place the chicken on top. The onion will absorb the chicken juices. After
roasting, let the chicken rest while you make a sauce with the onions by adding a little
stock or water to the pan and cooking it for about 3 minutes on high heat.

20. When you roast a whole chicken, the breast always overcooks and dries out because the
legs have to cook longer. This is a really simple way to keep a chicken breast moist:
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Separate the breast and the leg. Season as you normally would and roast as you normally
would, but remove the breast sooner than the leg.

21. Make your chicken breasts and even thickness so that it cooks evenly and stays juicy.
Pound the chicken breast with a jar, pan or even an empty bottle of wine.

22. Brine your chicken breasts with salt and water pre-cooking so that the moisture stays in
the meat. When cooking, cover the pan so that it cooks through faster without burning
either side.

23. Always season meat and fish evenly; sprinkle salt and pepper as though it's "snowing."
This will avoid clumping or ending up with too much seasoning in some areas and none
in others.

24. To test if you meat is done without a thermometer, try a few of these tests:

- Touch your earlobe -- rare meat should have the same consistency
- Touch your earlobe -- medium rare meat should have the same consistency
- Touch the side of your nose -- medium meat should have the same consistency
- Touch the end of your nose -- well done meat should have the same consistency

25. Avoid cooking any cracked or open mussels that won’t close when tapped on the counter
as they are sick or dead. Once cooked, do not serve closed mussels as they were dead and
not fresh before cooking.

26. When grilling, frying or poaching fish, cook it for 10 minutes per inch at its thickest
point. This guideline will help you to avoid overcooking or undercooking.

27. For crispy fish skin, rest the fish on paper towels skin-side down for a few minutes before
cooking (the towels absorb moisture). Then sauté skin-side down over medium heat in
oil and butter. Flip over for the last few minutes of cooking.

28. Not sure if your eggs are fresh? Simply place them in about 10 cm of cold water. If they
stay at the bottom, they are fresh. If they float completely, they are no longer fresh at all.

29. Use only fresh eggs for poaching as their whites are firm and will hold its shape better.
Adding a small splash of white vinegar to the water will further help the egg whites
coagulate when cooking.

30. To cook the perfect scrambled eggs, remove them from stove heat just before you think
they’ll be ready as it will continue to cook for a while after even without the heat.

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31. When freezing your meat, keep it air-tightly sealed in a plastic bag in order to avoid
spoilage and freezer burn.

32. To keep all those juices in your roast, sear each side until with a hot skillet with vegetable
oil before setting it on a roasting pan in your oven. This will prevent the natural juices
from searing through the top or bottom.

33. When grilling, ALWAYS brush the grill with oil prior to setting the meat on the grill. This
will prevent the meat from sticking.

34. Partially freeze meat before slicing. Cutting meat can be tricky, especially in smaller
portions for dishes like stir fries. To make it easier, toss the meat in the freezer for 20
minutes or so; once it begins to solidify, cutting it into pieces will be much easier.

35. The best time to salt your meats is as close to the actual cooking time as possible. Make
sure your pan or grill is hot, then reach for your salt and season the outside of the meat
right before cooking them. Salt will draw out moisture, so you want to reduce that as
much as possible pre-cooking.

36. You can only safely refreeze meat or poultry if it was thawed in the refrigerator. The
reason for this is that meat thawed in the fridge has been thawed at a safe, constant low
temperature that inhibits bacteria growth. Thawing through a microwave or cold water
draw can thaw food unevenly and should be cooked immediately.

Vegetables & Spices

37. To thoroughly wash your vegetables, use a large amount of water and then agitate them
so that the soil and dirt will sink to the bottom. Rinsing with cold water through a
colander will only stick the food straight onto the bottom of the vegetables. Once
agitated, place the vegetables on the colander so that any extra water will drain through.

38. Keep your vegetables bright, beautiful and presentable by cooking them and then
submerging them in cold, icy water, otherwise known as blanching. This prevents any
further cooking and colors from fading.

39. Anytime you are using raw onions in a salsa and you are not going to eat that salsa in the
next 20 minutes or so, be sure to rinse the diced onions under cold running water first,
then blot dry. This will rid them of sulfurous gas that can ruin fresh salsa. It's really
important in guacamole, too.

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40. Contrary to popular belief, chilies are spicy not because of the seeds, but because of the
white membrane within the chilli. Do what you will with that knowledge!

41. Toasted nuts work better in baking and make the finished product tastier, crunchier and
easy to work with. To toast, toss the nuts in a dry frying pan over medium heat until
slightly darker.

42. Store cupboard dried herbs and spices WILL get old, fade and lose its flavor. Generally
speaking, most store bought spices will last up to 2 years.

43. Nothing can beat the freshness of grinding whole spices as needed such as black
peppercorns, nutmeg and sea salt. Try buying such spices in bulk and using a grinder set
to round out your spice rack.

44. Strong and flavorful herbs such as rosemary and bay should be used at the start of
cooking; soft herbs like basil and chervil are best used at the end.

45. Surprisingly, food is more prone to sticking when pan fried in salted butter than
unsalted. Try opting for the latter whenever possible!

46. Extra virgin olive oil is best used for salad dressings and drizzling purposes. Leave the
cooking for oils with higher boiling points like canola and vegetable oil..

47. When using fresh herbs such as cilantro or parsley, add whole stems to salads and
sandwiches, and chop and stir leaves into salsas and guacamole.

48. Prolong the lifespan of greens by wrapping them loosely in a damp paper towel and
placing in a resealable plastic bag. That local arugula will last about four days longer.

49. Caramelize onions very quickly by cooking them in a dry nonstick sauté pan over
medium-high heat. They will caramelize beautifully in a lot less time than with
traditional methods.

50. Always buy the freshest garlic you can find; the fresher it is, the sweeter it will be. The
best garlic has firm tissue-like skin and should not be bruised, sprouted, soft or
shriveled. If you find cloves that have green shoots, discard the shoots — they will only
add bitterness.

51. If you want the taste of garlic without its pungency, you can get a milder flavor by simply
sauteing them in butter or olive oil.

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52. Kick your olive oil and vinegar up a notch by adding garlic to them. Garlic-flavored oil
and vinegar make great additions to salad dressings, stir fries and meats.

53. Need to peel your peaches or tomatoes in a jiffy? Do it quickly by dunking them in
boiling water for 30 seconds. Pull them out and then use a paring knife to quickly
remove the peel. Voila!

54. To make avocadoes more manageable in salads, cut them in half, remove the pit and cut
the flesh into cubes with the skin on. Once you’ve diced them in the skin, use a spoon to
scoop them out.

55. Microwave lemons and limes to get more juice out. Zapping citrus for 15 or 20 seconds
helps to break down the carbohydrates in the fruit and encourages maximum liquidity.

56. There’s no need to peel potatoes before boiling them, the skin will slide off easily once
they cook. To do this, simply transfer the potatoes to an ice bath when they’re done
cooking. Then, twist the peel off with your hands.

57. When grilling, slice your vegetables in a way that will expose more surface area to the
grill. For example, cut eggplant, onions and zucchini into strips or rounds rather than
chunks - they won’t fall through the cracks!

58. Spruce up your steamed vegetables by tossing one of the following into the steamer with
it: fresh herbs (we love parsley, thyme or dill), garlic, ginger, lemon, olive oil, sesame oil,
fish sauce or soy sauce & vinegar.

59. Got an old bag of greens sitting in your fridge and don’t want to taste them? Simple, give
them a bath. Dip your greens in water and run them through a spinner or towel / air dry
and your greens will replenish their natural moisture and look brand new.

60. Greens like spinach freeze very well if you rinse them, dry them and chop them. You can
then toss them into a soup or stew and they come back good as new! This works great for
soups and other side dishes.

61. Want to preserve your greens for longer? Remove the tops, as it will pull moisture from
the roots and you will have shriveled and dry roots before your know it. Roots such as
beets, carrots and turnips may have leafy, green tops attached which should be removed
immediately.

62. Greens like arugula, broccoli and kale are great for you, but sometimes they’re just too
bitter. Remove the bite and make the greens more palatable by blanching or adding a
simple acid like vinegar and citrus juice. Blanching leeches out some of the bitterness,
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and acids will provide a contrasting texture.

63. Garlic in salad vinaigrette can often become too pungent and overpowering. Instead of
using actual garlic ingredients in the salad, try rubbing the salad bowl with a clove of
garlic. The result is a pleasant note of garlic infused throughout the salad!

64. You shouldn’t go to work with a soggy salad. Instead, try this: put your salad dressing at
the bottom, place your sturdier veggies (cucumber, carrots, etc) on top of it and your
least sturdy at the top (lettuce). When you’re ready to eat it, simply mix and you’re good
to go!

Baking

65. Cooking is an art, and baking is a science. Don’t mess with the ratios of the main
ingredients like flour, sugar, fat and eggs as it will interfere with the finished product.
Additional topping like nuts, fruits and chocolate chips are fine, but the main ingredients
need to stay the same or in proportion to the original recipe.

66. Any recipe that requires both butter and sugar needs an excellent mixture of the two.
Take your time to ensure that the end result is fluffy and light in color and texture, which
will result in a better end cake.

67. To test if a cake is ready, you can try two things:

- Gently push the cake with your fingers. If it’s done, the cake will spring back.
- Insert a cocktail stick into the middle of the cake and pull it out. If it’s dry or has cooked
crumbs on it, the cake has cooked through. If there’s additional batter, it still needs time.

68. Salt is a key ingredient for making bread. It reinforces the dough, makes the rise more
consistent and of course, is critical for maximizing its tastiness.

69. Try using dental floss to perfectly cut cake and breads every time. It may sound strange,
but for softer baked goods it works better than a knife! Try hardening your cake a bit
prior in the freezer to get the perfect slice.

70. You can tell when pancakes are done on when side with the side facing up is pitted with
burst bubbles. Turn it ONCE and cook the rest of the pancake just enough to brown it.
Never press the pancake.

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71. Pastry dough holds up best with cool hands, cold butter and ice cold water. Keep the
temperature cool always by wrapping the dough in cling film and keeping it in the fridge
prior to rolling.

72. Phyllo pastry dries out incredibly quickly so make sure you have all the ingredients ready
before starting your work. Keep the pastry covered with a dry cloth and maintain its
dryness throughout!

73. Fluffy egg whites make your baking better. More fluff means more air within the eggs
used, resulting in a better overall baked dish. To achieve maximum fluffiness, bring the
egg whites to room temperature as it will create more volume. Then, start whisking slow
and move into a quicker pace over time.

74. Use a cheese grater to grate frozen butter into pastry dough for fast, even distribution.
This is excellent for pie, biscuits, and anything else you want to incorporate butter
quickly while it’s cold.

75. Get creative with substitutions – when baking, try using plain fat-free or low-fat yogurt
or sour cream instead of other dairy products and gelatins.

Pasta & Rice

76. Cook pasta 1 minute less than the package instructions and cook it the rest of the way in
the pan with sauce.

77. After you drain pasta, while it's still hot, grate some fresh Parmesan on top before tossing
it with your sauce. This way, the sauce has something to stick to.

78. Often, pasta will stick together and tangle up when cooled for too long. To remediate
this, toss the pasta back into hot water and stir to disentangle.

79. Add a little oil to the water when boiling to prevent the pasta from sticking together in
the boiling pot.

80. Al dente in Italian means “to the tooth.” When pasta is al dente, it should be soft to touch
but still firm when bitten. To determine whether your pasta has reached the ideal level,
remove a piece from the pot and test it between your teeth. It should have some texture
when bitten, but not dry and hard in the middle.

81. To serve cold pasta for pasta salads and such, simply rinse the pasta under warm water
and then immediately under cold water. Your pasta will be ready in no time!

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82. If you want perfect pasta, do not boil the noodles! Instead, boil the water and add pasta
after turning off the fire. Cover the pasta, removing cover only to stir the pasta every five
minutes for twenty minutes. This way, you will never have overcooked pasta, but perfect
pasta every time.

83. To add fluffiness to your rice, add one teaspoon of lemon juice to the water before
cooking the rice. It won’t change the flavor, but it will add more body to the rice.

84. Want more flavor in your rice? It’s simple, substitute plain water for chicken stock, beef
stock or even tomato juice when boiling flavored rice.

85. Let rice sit. once you’ve tasted the rice and it’s reached the desired texture, take the lid
off and allow it to sit for a few minutes. Moisture will evaporate, allowing the rice to firm
up so that it’s not too sticky or wet.

86. Refrigerated rice has a habit of hardening and losing moisture. To revive it, simply add
the cold rice to a pan with 1-2 tablespoons of water. Cook over low heat and cover for a
few minutes. The rice should come back to life in a delicious way!

Cooking Healthy

87. Settle on a few favorite staples and cycle through them to keep your diet consistent.

88. Don’t skip breakfast! If you’re not a morning person, make sure to choose breakfast
items that can be made quickly in the morning or the night before. Some of our favorites
are hard-boiled eggs, oatmeal, and fruit.

89. Eat smaller meals! Instead of the traditional 3 big meals a day, try eating 6 smaller meals
spread throughout the day.

90. Snack on low-density foods –If you snack in between meals, go for foods that fill up the
stomach quickly without adding a ton of calories. The best are foods with a lot of fiber
that way you feel physically full. We recommend carrots, apples, celery.

91. Have a designated cooking day – Establish one day per week to take care of all of your
cooking for the week. We’ve seen a lot of our customers take care of it on their day off,
and then freeze them into individual size portions.

92. Eat slower – the brain takes around 20 minutes to get the signal that your stomach is
full. If you eat too quickly, you’ll eat a lot more than your body actually requires.

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93. Eat more fish – Fish is a great source for protein, but on top of that, they contain healthy
minerals and vitamins. Oily seafood also contains omega-3 which can improve your
eyesight, is a natural fat burner, and is said to help improve your memory.

94. Cut down on saturated fats and sugars – Many people focus on cutting down fats from
their diet, but it’s equally important to note what types of fats we’re consuming.
Saturated fats could be harmful to your cholesterol and your heart, and are commonly
found in animal products and processed foods like meats, dairy products, chips and
pastries.

95. Cook with less salt – Many foods that we already consume have a lot of sodium in them
which can lead to higher blood pressure. Some common sources of sodium that we’re
unaware of are eggs and protein powder. Also, meats (without low sodium labels), cereal
products, soups, breads, and sauces contain a lot of sodium as well.

96. Trade in salt – some easy replacements are using herbs and spices instead of salt.
Another way is replacing salt with salt-free seasoning.

97. Avoid canned, processed, and preserved vegetables – along the lines of minimizing
sodium, these vegetables have a lot of sodium. If you still buy canned, you can always
rinse them under cold water to reduce the sodium levels.

98. Beans, beans, beans – Beans and legumes are both high in protein and fiber which helps
you feel full. They also contain glucose which can be used for energy versus fructose
(often contained in fruit, corn syrup, agave nectar) which can lead to gaining belly fat
and poor insulin sensitivity.

99. Make small, sustainable changes – Opt for a salad instead of soup, brown rice instead of
white rice, water instead of soda. Ensuring that your choices are sustainable and not a
180 degree change will make the transition easier to follow. The best diet is one that you
can stick to.

100. Nuts are great too! Nuts like almonds, peanuts, and cashews are a delicious way to
add more protein to your diet and unsaturated fats. They also lead to lower cholesterol,
better heart health, and weight control.

101. Cook vegetables the right way! When boiling or overcooking vegetables, you lose a lot
of the nutrients. We recommend steaming or stir-frying them until they are bright green.

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CHG - 101 Tips To Cook Better and Eat Healthier

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