Latest Cooking Answers

How to make apple chunks in apple pie stay intact?

I made an extremely delicious apple pie yesterday, with a puff pastry crust. The only problem was that by the time the pastry was cooked, the apple filling had

Good ways to store brownies?

A friend is planning her wedding and wants to do a lot of brownies, rather than cake, for dessert. She's planning on making it herself, with the help of friends

How do you cook corn kernels on BBQ?

I recently had some BBQ corn where the corn was in individual kernels. I'm wondering how this would be done on a BBQ... would you grill the corn on the cob, the

How to warm plates before serving?

I realize that serving on warmed dishes is preferable to serving on cold/room temp dishes, so as not to leach the heat out of your freshly-cooked food. How ca

What's the fastest way to seed grapes (e.g., Concordes)?

I've got a bunch of grapes, with seeds. I need to seed them for a recipe. Cutting them in half and prying out the seeds with a paring knife makes me yearn for s

What is a "nonreactive" pan?

I just realized the recipe I use for Chardonnay Beurre Blanc requires the use of a "small nonreactive saucepan." In the past, I have used my 1.5 quart All-Cla

How many pounds of fresh beef does it take to make a pound of beef jerky?

Beef obviously loses water when you dehydrate it to make beef jerky. What's the ratio here? Does it take two pounds of fresh beef to make a pound of beef jerk

Milk vs. Dark vs. Semi-sweet vs. Bitter-sweet chocolate?

What's the difference between the following chocolates? Milk Dark Semi-sweet Bitter-sweet If a chocolate only lists the % cocoa solids used, can I figure out w

How do I cook shrimp in butter?

I want to cook shrimp in butter. My problem in the past has been that the butter burns if it gets too hot but the shrimp remains fishy if the butter does not ge

"Cooking" with acid (ceviche)

At a tappas bar, I had shrimp ceviche. In this dish, the shrimp is "cooked" not by high temperature but by the citric acid of its marinade. This would be really

What is the fastest/easiest way to prepare potatoes for mashing?

I've always thought that mashed potatoes should be a really simple thing to make. But I find that with all the peeling, quartering, boiling, not to mention the

What happens when you bake Winesap apples?

In researching the answer to a question of why the apples in a pie became mushy, I noticed that two of my cookbooks contradicted each other on the Winesap apple

Does chopping steak negate the benefit of using better meat?

A sub shop I liked to go to in college offered two kinds of cheesesteak: the "'regular' cheese steak sub" and the "Filet Mignon steak sub." The only difference

Chinese pork jerky: what makes them so tender, how do you make it?

If you've ever had Chinese beef or pork jerky, you'll know why I'm asking this question. If you have a Chinatown in your city, I'm sure you'll be able to find a

Why does dough break when kneading, and how to prevent/ameliorate it?

I'm very new to bread-making in general; don't assume I'm necessarily doing anything right. During my last attempt at making quick (baking-powder-based) flatbr

How do you handle the fires caused by adding wood chips to coal?

I've been using wood chips in my BBQ (adding them to the coal) and I enjoy the flavor they add but I have a tough time cooking with them because: They cause fl

How to know how salty is my soup without tasting?

This is a sister to this question. I need a method or a trick to measure (or guess) how saline is my food using normal tools or substances available on the sup

How Does a Grocery Store "Self-Rising Crust" Work

As far as I understand, frozen pizzas sold at the grocery store are par-baked and then frozen, to be fully baked when they are put into your oven at home. I no

Will botulism growing in my home-canned vegetables pop the lid?

I remember that in my biology class in high school the teacher told showed us a puffed up can of pineapples which he claimed had botulism in it. Is that remo

UK alternative to corn syrup?

I've noticed that often when using recipes from the US that corn syrup is called for, and I was wondering what the best alternative to it would be to get in the

How do I modify sourdough recipes for use with my small starter?

I have a 125% hydration starter that I got from some chef friends of mine, but I've been instructed that if I care for it properly I should be using no more tha

cabbage - volume to weight conversion?

I am making sauerkraut, and don't have a handy kitchen scale. What is the approximate volume of 1 lb of cabbage? Also, any advice on saurkraut making would be

What is the difference between Devil's Food and Chocolate cake?

I always thought they were (perhaps regionally) different labels for the same cake. While at a local fair, I noticed that there were separate categories for Dev

Why do you need to peel peaches to can them?

I am going to be canning a bunch of peaches tonight, and I know that you have to peel them first (and I know how to do it easy), but I got to wondering, why do

What is the easiest way to shred chicken?

Usually I will just cook it and then tear it to pieces using two forks, but this is still pretty time consuming. Are there any secret ways to easily do this?

How long should I wait before I lift the lid of my sauerkraut crock?

I have 5 - 6 lbs of sauerkraut in a crock with a water vacuum seal. I read that the first 24 - 48 hours are crucial to the success of the kraut. I also read th

Can I add fresh elderberries or rosehips to homemade kombucha?

I have been making kombucha for several months now. I use green or white tea, flavored with hisbiscus, peach tea or other fruity teas to the mix. Since the eld

What are some things to consider when choosing a salt?

What attributes are important when selecting salt for a dish? Specifically where you would use sea salt, kosher salt or plain table salt? I can often find s

Is it safe to eat freshwater fish raw?

According to this question freshwater fish should not be used in Ceviche--why not?

How to stuff bread puffs (Gougeres)

The other day someone delighted me to a Stuffed Gougere. Mind you, I've made these delicacies at least 50 times, I've never figured out a way to stuff them with