Coming Soon: The Keys to Good Cooking

I’ve just started cooking in the last couple of years, and I have to say that I really enjoy it.  As a kid, my mom cooked everything and with four kids and a tiny kitchen, we never really got to be a part of that process.  So when I went away to college, I hadn’t a clue how to cook for myself.  I survived on toast, sandwiches, eggs, cereal, etc.  Easy stuff.  But over the past 2-3 years, I’ve just decided to dive in, experiment with cooking, and hope that the results are edible at the very least.  And I’ve been very successful, if I do say so myself.

So it goes without saying that I’m always looking for new recipes, new tips on how to become a better cook, new ways to get my husband to eat veggies (lol – he’s like a five-year-old in that way), etc.  Along came The Keys to Good Cooking by Harold McGee, which I’ll be reviewing in October for a TLC Book Tour, and which I am SO excited to get my hands on!

Today I have a few “teaser” tips for you from The Keys to Good Cooking.  This is just a tiny sample of what the book contain.  These tips are about cooking vegetables, because that’s what I personally need the most help with.

When boiling vegetables, bring the water to a hard boil and bring it back to the boil as fast as possible after adding the vegetables, to inactivate damaging enzymes quickly.  Cover the pot to reduce cooling caused by evaporation.

To keep green vegetables vibrant, boil them for less than 10 minutes. If necessary, cut them into small pieces that cook quickly.

To boil potatoes and other starchy vegetables, start them in cold water slightly acidified with lemon juice or cream of tartar, and heat them gradually up to 180-190°F/80-85°C. This method helps the vegetable surfaces stay intact while the pieces cook through.

See why I’m so excited to read this book?  It looks like the perfect tool for a beginner cook like myself.

Make sure you come back on Wednesday, October 20th to read my full review!