How to Poach the Perfect Egg

Many people shy away from making poached eggs, because it is "messy", but in reality, it is a quick way to cook an egg. I found the trick to be, keeping the water as still as possible. You don't need to stir it around, or make a "whirlpool" like my dad used to! This just creates a lot of messy whites floating around in the water, which is not too appetizing!

Poached eggs, can be made ahead of time, they are versatile and can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, or a light dinner, and are high in protein. Here are a few basic steps to create great poached eggs:

1. Heat at least two inches of water in a twelve inch fry pan (with sides) using the medium setting until you can see bubbles on the bottom of the pan.

2. Crack a large egg into a separate bowl, and when the water starts to boil (tiny bubbles) pour your egg from the small bowl into the water, being careful not to break the yolk.

3. Don't touch them, let them cook until the white is just set but the yolk is still runny, which usually takes about 3 to 4 minutes. (Don't have the heat up so high you have a rolling boil, just a gentle tiny boil, where the bubbles are just breaking the surface) You may need to use a spatula, if the egg sticks to the bottom of the pan.

4. Using a large slotted spoon, take the egg from the water, and if you are going to eat it right away, take the egg and the spoon and sit it gently on a paper towel to absorb excess water. (You don't need your eggs swimming around on the plate!)

5. Did you know that you can store poached eggs in the fridge for up to three hours. If you do this, and then want the egg heated again, just heat some water in a skillet, and gently add the poached eggs back to the water and they will heat back up in approximately 30 seconds.

You can use them in salads for lunch, or on toast for breakfast. Eggs are one of nature's most perfect foods, and by poaching them, you are controlling the fat you add to your meal.

A great way to serve them (my favorite) is to light spread cream cheese on whole grain toast, and then add a couple of poached eggs.. This tastes great! You could also add a slice of tomato, or any vegetable you have left in the fridge.

Poached eggs are a great dinner, when you just don't know what to eat.. Always keep eggs handy, and you will always have a meal.

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Cooking Chicken For Two

While the kids were growing up, I often found myself cooking for five or more on any given day. Today, the kids are often not home at dinner time and I find myself cooking for two quite often. I'd like to share a few recipes that are just enough for two people.

Living in California, avocados are a part of our daily life. I remember reading a comment someone wrote about California after they had visited our great state. They said "I don't think I ever saw a menu that didn't have avocado on it." So, I'd like to share an avocado chicken recipe, just right for two people:

1 whole chicken breast or 2 half chicken breasts
1 small avocado - ripe
1 egg, lightly beaten
2/3 cup white wine
¼ cup flour
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon ground pepper
1 teaspoon tarragon
¼ teaspoon salt

In a bowl, mix the salt, pepper and flour. Roll the chicken in this mixture to coat. Coat a skillet in vegetable oil. Heat the chicken in the skilled about ten minutes, turning to brown both sides. Mix the remaining herbs together and sprinkle on the chicken. Add in the butter and wine and bring to a boil and then simmer about five minutes. Place avocado slices on top of the chicken. Baste with juices from the skillet. Cover and heat until chicken is cooked through.

I will sometimes omit the herbs and instead add in orange juice and orange zest to give the chicken a citrus flavor instead of an herb flavor. When you do this, add a few orange slices on top of the chicken. I also love paremesan chicken. I finally got the measurements to make enough coating for one large or two small chicken breasts:

1 egg
3 tablespoons fresh grated parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons bread crumbs
1 tablespoon oil

I like to use Ritz crackers instead of bread crumbs. It's a different taste, almost buttery. I suggest fresh parmesan as the taste is stronger. If I have packaged cheese at home, I will use it, but then I'll sprinkle some on top at the end to add more cheese flavor to the chicken.

To make this dish, beat the egg and then dip the chicken in the egg. Mix together the parmesan cheese and bread/cracker crumbs. Roll the chicken in the crumbs. Heat the oil in a skillet and cook the chicken, flipping to brown both sides. Make the sure the chicken is cooked through.

You can also bake this chicken. I bake it about forty-five minutes at 350 degrees. You can adapt most chicken recipes to serve two. Often it just requires cutting a recipe in half. The above two recipes work perfectly for the one large or two small chicken breasts.

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Egg cooker, maintenance, and egg recipe

Egg cookers are one of the greatest inventions of the kitchen. Gone are the days when you crack the shells of eggs coarsely with a fork or the back of knife. No more sweating while trying to get the right consistency every time. Now you can get rid of oils, fats, oils because egg cooker can cook without eggs.

Egg cookers are designed with variable settings, so you cook eggs like yours, might very well like you. You can adjust the heat andthe size of your egg.

There are actually signs with only three levels. The water level select the type of egg will be cooked if cooked medium, soft or hard. If there is no stove signed levels within the egg, there is provided a measuring cup, so that a person can fill with the proper amount of water.

Egg cookers are so easy to use that a user needs only water and share with its foundation, put theThe eggs in the bowl, cover the top of the stove, and then turn on the button. When the water boils, the egg is built the ship. This is the only possible method of cooking eggs, a person wants. With steam and the result that is baked in a covered pot, cook the guarantee that the nutrients from the egg, there are still i.

Preserving Steam Egg Cookers
Egg cookers are one of the most commonly used kitchen utensils. Eggsare served breakfast and are used in many recipes, after all. It 'so important to take care that will take longer. And 'to clean after each use.

Shooting, if not in use. The heat can be released after use before cleaning. Wash the important parts like the poaching tray, baking tray, egg pan, top, service pan and egg ring.

It 'simply use soap and hot water. Let it dry with a towel to dry on air instead. It 'can also scratchroller. Be sure to be the remains of small particles or washed clear.

Can be cleaned with mild soap and water daily. And then once a week, you can do a thorough cleaning. Wet a paper towel tablespoon white vinegar. Clean the plate free from dirt. Removes all the minerals left by the previous cooking. It also works as a means of better anti-bacterial. This can happen often, because the activity can bring clean water and soap ormineral formation, the color of the eggshell to run but the color is never influence on the eggs to enjoy and taste.

The most popular brands of poachers are Easter eggs, Krups, Chef's Choice, Cuisinart, Maverick, West Band and Nordic Ware. Here is a tasty and nutritious breakfast is provided each can be used with hard boiled eggs.

This recipe for cream of eggs with ham. The ingredients are: 1 cup ham. It must be cooked and cut into strips. ¼ c sliced greenOnion is also necessary. ¼ c chopped green bell pepper, sliced 2 tablespoons flour, ¼ c chopped red bell pepper, 2 c milk, chopped 4 hard boiled eggs, asparagus and cut into 1 ½ c 1in and boiled for PC or hot cooked rice or pasta dough baked clams.

To cook this recipe, the eggs lay on top of a medium-high heat through a large pan. Add some 'margarine or butter. Continue to cook some bacon until slightly brown. Third, put the peppers and stir the onions occasionally. Flourcan add and continue to stir once the vegetables grown in green.

The tank can then be removed from the oven once the flour is completely wet, but shows a soft dough. Fill with a little 'milk, but only in small amounts once in a while' with agitation. Put the eggs and asparagus, when it becomes smooth and thick. Put them on the tray. Then the heat. And now, this can be served with puff pastry shells or boiled rice.

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Cooking Fish The Easy Way

Americans tend to eat twice as many fish dinners in restaurants, as they do at home, mainly because they are unsure of how to prepare fish properly. Here are some simple, common-sense tips on cooking seafood at home.

Fish should be purchased fresh or frozen or on the market. Because the fish is delicate, fresh fish should not be longer than one or two days in the fridge are kept. frozen fish should be thawed thoroughly before it is cooked fresh and frozen fish and two must be welldried before cooking.

most popular methods of cooking fish to fry them in a low amount of oil. White fish before roasting pan should protect the delicate meat from the heat. A coating of seasoned flour or whole or a mixture of flour, eggs and bread crumbs will do.

Olive oil or a combination of oil and butter to give the fish a tasty sharpness. The oil should be flat, about 1 / 8 inch,and should be an iron or heavy skillet over medium heat to about 365 degrees F. This is a pre-heated hot enough to sizzle a bread cube strong and brown until about 45 seconds. Place some pieces of fish coated in the pan without crowding and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side. thicker pieces should cook for 5-6 minutes on the first page and about 4 minutes on the side.

Do not overcook the fish, because it will overcook tastedry and hard. White fish will change from a translucent color to a dull color when cooked and beginning to flake when done. Fish, which too easily flakes is an indication that can be dry and overcooked.

Grilling is a great way for more robust fish such as grouper, cooking salmon, tuna and swordfish. Just be sure that the grill is warm and clean and delicate, so the fish do not keep it lubricated. The robust fish can be cooked with or without a thin layerCoating. More delicate fillets coated and should be grilled in a grill basket or grill on a sheet of heavy foil.

One of the easiest ways to cook fish is to cook. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F and place the seasoned fish served on a lightly oiled baking sheet or shallow baking dish. Cook the fish for about 10 minutes per inch of thickness. As in the pan, white fish is properly cooked when it turns opaque and begins to fall apart when fork is inserted into acenter.

Oven roasting is another good way to produce delicious cooked fish. Season and coat the fish well before time. Preheat the grill and the fish 5-6 cm below the meat. Watch the fish carefully to avoid overcooking. thick fillets should be turned halfway through cooking.

The microwave can be used to cook a delicious fish dish. Use your favorite recipe for coating and the spices and try to make the thickness of the fillets for best results.thinner pieces of fish can be folded under each other to make sure the threads of a uniform thickness. Turn the fish half the cooking time if the microwave has no turntable. Let marinate for a few minutes late to cook. Making check the color and staple in full evidence, if not cooked.

Finally, boiled or steamed fish with excellent results. Steamed fish, put it in a metal or bamboo steamer. Place the steam in a pot, whichWater or broth, flavored with lemon, ginger, spices, or was your favorite recipe. It 'important to the liquid temperature reaches a simmering but not boiling. Similarly, the reduction of fish in a liquid, but not boiling cooking to be recruited. A hot liquid will cook the fish too quickly and cook too outside of the fish. The poaching liquid may contain vegetable oil or herbs or that make you appreciate. Cookingminutes and depends on the thickness of the fish. As always, if the test is completely cooked fish with color and flake proof.

These simple tips will give you common sense and confidence of the preparation of fish dinner at home. Fish is a delicious source of protein and should be included regularly in a healthy diet.

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The Chicken & Egg

It seems fruitful big misunderstanding based on eggs, in general, and egg eating. Someone may say that without a dick, will be without eggs. Or maybe not eating animal lover, a friend of your eggs, because of the belief that all eggs are fertilized, eat, and could perhaps have been born in a chicken.

If you still have some more chicken for your garden or just the topic that interests usYou can pay only once even provided some questions and answers below. No doubt you have about the same questions already asked, but still does not know who to ask.

Fertilization is essential for egg production?

Chickens do not need roosters to lay an egg, and those women do not need men for ovulation. Fertilization is necessary only if you want to hatch eggs in chicks. This requires a "broody 'or'" clucky chicken (I just wantMother to be) long on their eggs for a period of about 21 sitting days.

They are all fertilized eggs that you eat?

When you buy eggs from a store, it is highly unlikely to be fertilized. commercial poultry houses do not keep roosters under their chickens. If you purchase your eggs from a local farmer, cocks with hens has, it is possible that the eggs are fertilized. They will not have the chick, however, unless he sat down on a chicken (or placed in an incubatorspecifically for this purpose). fertilized eggs can be eaten, because if it were chilled, not developing chicken embryo.

It is the discovery of a red spot in an egg of a sign that has been fertilized?

A red stain next to an egg yolk found, is no indication that the egg has been fertilized. This is a common misconception. And 'in fact a bloodstain that was included in the broken egg later, when trained asCapillaries of the reproductive system. When buying eggs from a grocery store, are unlikely to find a spot of blood in your eggs. This is the aspect of 'inspectors employed Candler stains on commercial egg producers who routinely light up lights on the eggs to see if they contain blood. Such defects found included those to be removed.

There is no danger of eating eggs like this - is more of a consumer preferencethat were not there! If you come and a stain of blood is small, can be removed and egg use. Spots tend to disappear when cooked, but can be hot off the front, with a spoon.

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Whole eggs and whites are best for you?

"Yolks were terrible for you ... that's where all the fat and bad cholesterol." We have all heard this statement. But is it right? This is a perfect example of how confused most people are dieting. In a world full of misinformation, somehow most people now believe erroneously that the yolk is the worst part of the eggs, when in fact, healthier yolk is the part of the!

With the egg yolk and only eatWhite, you are essentially throwing in the most nutrient dense, high in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals loaded the egg. The egg yolk contains many B vitamins, trace elements, vitamin A, folic acid, choline, lutein, nutrients, and powerful others. .. Is not even worth trying to list them all. In fact, proteins are almost without food, compared to yolk.

Even the protein in egg white is not as powerful without the yolks to balance the amino acidsAcid profile and make the protein more bio-available. Not to mention that the egg yolks from free range chickens are loaded with fat and omega-3.

egg yolk contains more than 90% of calcium, iron, phosphorus, zinc, thiamine, B6, B12 and folic acid, pantothenic acid and the egg. In addition, the yolks contain all the fat soluble vitamins A, D, E and K in the egg, and all essential fatty acids. And now the common objection to say thategg yolk are the nutritious egg ... "But I heard that whole eggs rocket cholesterol. This is wrong!

Especially if you are a food that contains high cholesterol levels, eat, your body down regulates its internal production of cholesterol to balance that.

Secondly, if you do not eat enough cholesterol, your body produces more easily, since cholesterol has tons of important body functions. And here, where it is alsomore interesting ... There are indications that eating whole eggs actually good HDL cholesterol increased to a higher level of LDL cholesterol in order to improve your ratio of total cholesterol and blood chemistry.

Thirdly, high cholesterol is not a disease! Heart disease is a disease ... But high cholesterol it is not. Cholesterol is actually a very important substance for the body and play a vital role ... It 'absolutely wrong to try to "lower the cholesterol," because thePharmaceutical company propaganda. Furthermore, the yolk contains lutein and other antioxidants antioxidants that help protect against inflammation in the body (the real culprit in heart disease, no cholesterol!) What is another reason why the yolk actually good for you and profitable.

In a recent study by the University of Connecticut, where a group of men ate three eggs a day for 12 weeks at a reduced carbohydrate, higher fat diet increased their HDLgood cholesterol by 20%, while their bad LDL cholesterol remained the same during the study. However, one group ate egg substitutes (egg whites), and I saw no change, or not see and improving the good cholesterol that has the egg eater.

So I hope we've established that whole eggs is not something bad, the food that your body will wreck ... whole eggs instead of egg whites are far superior.

And we can all use this sillyness please STOPeating an omelet with egg whites and 1 egg yolk 4-5 ... If you want real taste and real health benefits, we'd all be better off eating all our eggs with the yolk.

So the next time a health or fitness professional tells you that egg whites are superior, you can safely ignore, knowing their advice, you understand the real business of egg yolks.

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Cooking Tips and Recipes For the Beginner Cook

For some reason cooking scares most us. I'm not sure if it's the process of cooking or the fear of disappointing the ones we are cooking for. Cooking for me has always been an outlet of my caring for others. I guess my mother taught me this as she was always cooking for family and strangers. Here are some of my tips and thoughts on cooking.

1. Hard Boiled Eggs
Even if you can't boil water you can make a great boiled egg. The secret to a good hard boiled egg is starting with cold water. Place your eggs in the pot, then fill it just above the top of the eggs with cold water. Put pot on the stove eye with temperature setting no higher than medium high. When the water starts to boil, let it boil two minutes, turn off heat, place lid on the pot and let it sit for 5 minutes. At the end of the five minutes drain off the water, then give the pot a couple of good shakes, cracking the eggs. Next pour cold water over the hot eggs. The reaction to the change in temperature will pull the eggs away from the shells and when you pull off the shells, you will have beautiful boiled eggs.

2. Omelets
The thing I love about an omelet is, you can use it for any meal, by just changing the ingredients you fold into the eggs. Use two large eggs per person. Cracking your eggs into a bowl, then using a fork, break the yolks and mix together until you see no, or very little, white showing. Add your salt and pepper at this time also. Have your nonstick pan hot [you might want to use a little PAM or butter] and ready before pouring your eggs into the pan. Let the eggs cook completely on the first side before trying to turn them. Now is the time to add some cheese, diced meats and or pre-cooked vegetables. The choice is yours. When you see the edges of the egg begin to firm up, place your spatula under the eggs and fold in half. Cook your eggs until they are firm but not hard and the ingredients are hot.

You will want to have all your ingredients and tools, at hand before starting. You may also want to use more than one pan, as the omelets loose some of their appeal when they cool down, if you are cooking for more than yourself.

For creamier eggs add one tablespoon of milk or half and half to the mixture
For lighter eggs add one tablespoon of water to the mixture.
Breakfast suggestions- Crumble bacon, sausage and or cheese into the eggs before folding.
Lunch or dinner suggestions- Use any precooked meats and or vegetables. Dice or slice the ingredients so they will heat in the time your eggs finish cooking. Add a tossed green salad with some hardy whole wheat bread and you have a full meal anytime of the day.

3. Roast Chicken
Don't turn and run on me now. Roasting any kind of meat is the easiest kind of cooking. It will make guest think you have been cooking all day, when in fact the oven has been doing all the work.

You will need one 3 to 5 pound roasting chicken.
1 stick of butter [real butter tastes best]
1 t of salt
1/2 t of pepper
2 stalks of celery with leaves
1 small to medium onion, cut in quarters
1 roasting bag

If your fowl is frozen it will need to be thawed completely. You will want to wash your chicken in cool water and pat dry before placing it in the roasting bag. Make sure to center it in the bag as you do not want it touching any of the bag [except where it sits] as it is cooking. Reaching into the bag cover the legs, wings and breast with the butter. Get a good coverage as this is what will help it turn that golden brown. If you have some butter left over, insert it into the chicken's cavity. Mix the salt and pepper together, then sprinkle over the chicken. The butter should help the mixture to stick to the chicken. Use some to insert into the cavity and neck opening of the chicken. Wash the celery, slicing it into one inch pieces, save the leaves to use as a garnish later. Place one half of the celery and half of the onion into the cavity of the chicken, put the rest in the bag around the chicken.
Tie up the bag, making sure you leave some air in it so it does not stick to the chicken, while cooking. Roast, using the direction that were listed on the package of your chicken. Remember not to peek to much as it is roasting, it will only prolong the cooking time when you open the oven door.

Place your roasted chicken on a platter, using the celery leaves as a garnish. Serve with some corn, a mixed green salad and warm store bought rolls. You will be the hero of the night. Bravo!!

Faylee

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Making Fabulous BBQ Side Meals

The principal event of any BBQ is absolutely meat. This doesn't mean even so that you could have to limit yourself to grilling meat when summer rolls around. Plus, some of your guests may perhaps be vegetarian or don't eat red meat.

For these individuals and to add some variety to your BBQ menu it is possible to prepare delicious side dishes that will only take a small prep time beforehand and could be cooked on your grill. Just ensure that you have some aluminum foil on hand to do your cooking and you'll be fine.

Wild Rice Pilaf

You are able to make some thing as elegant sounding as a pilaf at your up coming BBQ. The first step is to cook a cup of fresh mushrooms over medium-high heat with a small butter or olive oil for about five minutes. This step ought to be done in a saucepan and is usually done the night before.

Bring out a foil pan, something that measures about 8x12 inches. Place your mushrooms in this pan; include two cups of boiling water. Subsequent put in a quarter cup of dry white wine, it is important you use a white wine. Following add a half-cup of brown rice, and a half-cup of wild rice. If you don't have wild rice you possibly can use all brown rice or 50 % brown and 50 percent white rice.

Now chop up fifty percent of an onion, 50% of a yellow pepper and two ripe tomatoes. Add this to your foil pan. Now add a teaspoon of salt, a quarter teaspoon of pepper and about a fifty percent teaspoon of cumin. Stir everything together and then cover it using a piece of aluminum foil and seal it tightly.

The following part involves your BBQ grill. Spot your covered foil pan within the middle of the grill, after 50 % and hour open the pan and give it a good stir. Reseal again and leave for an additional 1 / 2 hour. Your pilaf might be done earlier if your fire is very hot so keep checking on it. You want the rice to be tender not crisp.

A basic dessert that you are able to make at a BBQ is grilled pineapple chunks. This is a healthy dessert but it tastes wonderful and takes so little effort. Merely cut a pineapple into chunks or rings, though chunks are far better for grilling on your BBQ grill, and spot until you see light char marks. Take it off your grill and sprinkle with brown sugar. It's delicious and fuss totally free.

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Protein Powder - Egg White Protein Powder

If you've followed any diet, or tried to lose weight and build muscle at the same time, then you are familiar with egg whites and egg white protein powder. But you probably do not know why egg whites are so special and used so often by bodybuilders. Egg White is composed of 40 different types of proteins and is almost pure protein. Hence its popularity as egg white protein powder.

The egg white is known as the albumen, which comes from albus, the Latin word for white. The egg white is low in carbs, calories, and fat and contains almost all of the protein available in the egg. Now you understand how egg white protein powder came to be. The egg white is often called the albumen because that is the main protein in egg white. Since all of the cholesterol of an egg is in the yolk, the egg white is an excellent source of protein, free of cholesterol. The egg white is made of protein only and it has only 15 calories. Each egg white is presumed to be 1 ounce of protein.

When using fresh egg whites, if the egg white is watery instead of gel-like, don't consume the egg. A cloudy egg white is a sign of freshness, not age, because of the high carbon dioxide content when the egg is laid. One egg white is one liquid ounce and may be kept in the refrigerator for several days or may be frozen. Newer eggs are harder to peel because the egg white is higher in acid when first laid, making the white adhere to the shell. A clear egg white is an indication the egg is aging. That thick, white ropy substance in the egg white is not an indication of an embryo or a malformation of the egg. Egg white is also a good source of riboflavin. Dried egg white protein powder is not as messy as what comes out of the egg.

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Induction Cooking Explained Part 1 - What is Induction Cooking

Induction cooking is a form of electric cooking that uses an electromagnetic field to heat the cooking vessel. Whereas a traditional electric cooking element uses electric resistance to heat an element, which then transfers its heat to the cooking vessel via conduction, an inductive cooking element does not heat up but rather heats the cooking vessel directly.

An induction cooking element uses an electromagnetic coil or coils to generate an alternating magnetic field. When a pot or pan is placed on the element, the magnetic field generates heat within the pot or pan via magnetic hysteresis loss. Hysteresis loss occurs only in ferrous materials such as steel and iron, therefore, induction cooking works only with ferrous pots and pans, e.g.:

cast iron cookware
enamel-covered iron cookware
carbon steel cookware
some stainless steel cookware

A general rule of thumb is that if a magnet will stick to the bottom of a pan, then that pan can be used for induction cooking. In addition, the pot or pan needs to have a fairly flat bottom. Because of the growing popularity of induction cooking, many cookware manufactures state whether their pots and pans can be used for induction cooking.

A growing number of manufactures make induction cooktops for the home or commercial kitchen. Drop-in induction cooktops are meant to be installed into a kitchen counter and are available with multiple elements. In addition, several manufactures make portable induction cookers that can be placed of the counter, table, etc. Portable cookers typically have a single element.

Induction cooking is very popular in Europe and Asia, and is rapidly gaining popularity in the Americas because of its advantages over gas and conventional electric cooking. Read the next article in this series to understand these advantages.

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Cooking Healthy With Waterless Cookware

My wife Silvia and I try to cook in a healthy style always. Most of what we eat is Latin style cooking. The trick is to use lean meats and trim the fat. She lets the natural liquid from the vegetables and meat be the liquid for cooking on the stove. The multi-element steam control cookware lends itself naturally to this.

We use many of the recipes of South Beach diet and several years ago we were strictly on that diet until we reached our target weights. Now we blend the Latin cooking with at times using recipes from the South Beach books. The use of the Waterless steam control cookware is perfect for these recipes as well. Of course this would be true of any of the great successful diet regimens out there. Whether Weight watchers, South Beach or whatever, as long as there are lots of healthy vegetables, reasonably amounts of fruits, lean reasonable portions of meat of your liking, and moderate starches.

They all work and the premium Waterless Steam control stainless steel cookware makes it all that easier. With any recipe with meat, and vegetables including potatoes, just braise the meat (no oil or water necessary) 30-60 seconds on each side, top with the vegetables cover and when starting to steam a little close the steam control valve. This allows the heat to distribute quickly and evenly to the point that you can even stack the pans and cook other goodies on top of the first pan and have the same heat distribution. If you do go this way, you'll find cooking fast, easy and in a style that preserves virtually all of the vitamins and nutrients.

Have fun,

Jay Mawhinney

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Special Ingredients - Shark Fins & Bird's Nest

There are wide variety of ingredients in Chinese cooking. The ingredients that we normally see can be divided into two major kinds: vegetable and animal. Vegetable ingredients can be further divided into vegetables, beans, fresh fruits, dried fruits, seasonings, vegetable fat, etc. Animal ingredients can be further divided into meat, internal organs (not everyone likes them), poultry, aquatic product, egg product. There are also a selection of special ingredients that we don't often use in our daily cooking. They are either rare and expensive that we only see them in high class hotels or restaurants, or we use them for special occasions, or from time to time when we want something different for a change. Some of these inexpensive special ingredients are getting more popular nowadays due to their nutritional values and unique tastes.

In this chapter I'll introduce the two finest and most expensive ingredients in Chinese cooking.

Shark Fins

Shark fins are one of the finest delicacies in Chinese food. They are dried in one of two forms - whole or shredded and formed into a square. The best are from Africa.

Method for preparation:

Wash shark fins and boil for 30 minutes
Soak in cold water for 2 hours and remove rough skin.
Simmer for another 3 hours and soak 4 hours in cold water.
Remove soft bones, be careful not to break shark fin pieces. Change water and simmer for 3 hours.
Soak again in cold water until soft
Boil with fresh ginger for 1 ~ 2 times to remove smell from shark fins. Place in deep casserole, add chicken soup stock and steam for 1 hour. Do not use iron pot as shark fins will turn dark in color.

Bird's Nest

Bird's nest, one of the most delicate ingredients in Chinese cooking, is produced in Annam, Thailand and Singapore regions. The Annam bird's nest is considered to be the best in both quality and color.

Method for preparation:

Soak bird's nest for 3 ~ 4 hours in cold water, remove pinfeathers and foreign particles with a pinsetter, rinse well and soften in hot water.
Place softened bird's nest in soup stock seasoned with salt and cooking wine, steam for about 30 minutes and serve.

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The Influences of Italian Cooking

When people think of Italian cooking, most think about pasta and pizza pies. However, there are so many more dishes and influences that inspire those dishes. The history of the Italian people, as well as Italy's geographical location, both contribute to the types of food. Italian culture is shown through its cuisine.

There are about 20 regions in Italy and different types of food can be found in each one. Long ago it was difficult for Italians to travel to other regions within Italy. This resulted in distinct styles and ways to prepare food in each region as few people were exposed to other types of cooking. So even though Italy does not seem to be a very large nation geographically, it still has a wide range of flavor.

Northern and southern Italy are very different in climate. The south has very warm weather while in the north the weather is cold. Dry pasta, like spaghetti and rigatoni, is found more in the southern areas because it is easier to dry in warm weather. Since it was more difficult to prepare dry pasta in the north, pastas like tajarin, pappardelle, and tagliatelle were more popular. Other types of pasta popular in the north were stuffed pastas like ravioli.

The climate also affected the types of food and plants that could grow in Italy. Some plants, like olive oil, grew better in warm weather, so in southern Italy olive oil was used a lot. Olive trees did not grow well in the northern areas where it was cold. Butter and lard were used in place of olive oil.

Tomatoes are another kind of plant that grows better in warm climate. In southern Italy cooking tomatoes are used heavily along with red sauces. Broccoli raab and eggplants are two other types of plants that grow well in warmer weather. Vegetables that thrive in colder climates like in the northern areas are black leaf kale, radicchio, cardoons, and cabbage.

Along with climate, economy plays a role in Italian cooking. Another staple in Italy older than pasta and pizza is polenta. It is commonly used today, but long ago it was popular among the poor in Italy. Polenta was easy to make and prepare in Italy.

The countries that border Italy like France and Austria also has an influence over Italian cuisine. Other foreign influences include Spain, England, and Arabic countries. These countries occupied specific areas of Italy throughout history.

With all the different kinds of Italian food it is important in the Italian culture to savor and enjoy the different tastes. Meals are an important way for Italian families to bond by sitting down to a ten course meal that could last around three hours. Since getting the tastes is important and because there are so many courses, the size of each plate is much smaller.

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