Latest Cooking Answers

Can I use nut meal or nut butter as a curry base?

Does anyone have experience trying to form a curry with nut starch? Can I make it work at all? Will I need less oil because the nut carries some of it's own?

What causes water to boil over?

What are the mechanics of water boiling over? How can you stop it from happening? Is it more likely to happen with certain ingredients? Which? How does the amou

What is a substitute for maple extract?

I am making cinnamon rolls with a maple flavoured frosting, however, I am having trouble finding maple extract for the frosting. What can I substitute it with?

What's an acceptable substitute for Pandan Leaves?

When preparing Sri Lankan cuisine (especially curries) one of the key components is the Pandan Leaf (also known as a Pandanus Leaf). These aren't readily avail

how to use CSA vegetables most efficiently

I belong to a CSA (Community Sponsored Agriculture) and get a basket of assorted vegetables every week. I have very little cooking experience, and if I search

Advice for gingerbread houses?

I'm considering entering a gingerbread house contest with my mom this year. I might've done a few as a kid, but I've only done one before in my adult life, mor

Am I making this noodle correctly?

I decided to make pad thai noodles from scratch. The recipe I found for rice noodles said to let the rice soak overnight then grind the resulting mixture in a

When to spray or when to use olive oil?

So what's the basic rule of when to spray with PAM etc or when to use olive oil? For ex, for making an omelet, I usually use the spray.

Baking chicken - temperature vs time

I'd like to bake a chicken. Let's say it's already washed, marinated, sitting on tray and ready to bake. I usually do it at 180 degrees C, for 1 hour. My main p

Effects of making smoothies in advance

Generally for breakfast I eat a smoothie containing 8oz soy milk, 1/2 cup berries, 1/2 banana, and 1 scoop protein powder. Unfortunately, however, my blender is

Why did my "Turkish Delight" turn into a horrible goopy mess?

I don't normally make a lot of confections but decided recently to try a few new things. Yesterday I used this recipe for Turkish delight which I originally fo

What happened to my duck?

This happened a couple of years ago, but I still don't have an answer. Christmas eve. I had a duck in the oven. I tried to cook it at a slightly lower temperatu

How to clean a big butcher block?

I've seen huge butchers blocks that essentially is a table with a butcher block top. How do you clean such a thing if you can't wash it in the sink? Should thos

How do you smoke water?

Roux mention in this answer smoking water. How do you do this? What does it taste like? How do you use it? Sounds fascinating!

What are the requirements for a dish to be kosher? [closed]

I see a lot of restaurants and grocery stores advertising kosher food. What qualifies a kosher dish?

Why does my fondue call to wipe the pot with garlic?

I got a Le Creuset fondue pot a year or two ago. Since then, we've found a bunch of great cheese fondue recipes, but there's a common thread that makes no sense

Is using treated wood safe for smoking meat?

I have some broken hickory drum sticks that I was going to throw out; but could these be useful for smoking meat? I would assume the wood is treated.

How to keep a meatball round?

After seeing this question I started to think more about my meatballs and wonder how can I keep them round? I have always been under the impression that you s

Are sushi rice and arborio rice valid substitutes of each other?

Sometimes I have only one sushi rice and want to prepare risotto, sometimes is the other way around. Both varieties have a lot of starch, but I don't know if i

How can I make a quick bread mix less sweet?

I have one of those quick bread mixes to which you only need to add water, oil, and eggs. The problem is that it is too sweet for my taste. Are there any trick

What are the advantages of using agave sweetener instead of sugar?

From what I can tell, it seems that the only advantage is that it has a lower glycemic index. Here's my logic... On my organic blue agave sweetener bottle, it

Sauteed fresh pasta?

I'm making fresh pasta and I'd like to put garlic in it. The problem is that garlic needs to be sauteed to taste good right? Since it doesn't take long to cook

What are the basic ratios for making a chutney

I'm looking to make a apple chutney from 6.5 kg of apples. I can't really find a recipe that I'm happy with, so I'm going to just wing it. What are the basic

How can I avoid chocolate truffle mix curdling?

We are trying to make chocolate truffles by heating cream and adding to chopped up chocolate but it keeps curdling. Are there any tips to avoid this happening?

Pancetta Mold. How to tell whether it's safe to eat?

I've been hanging my own Pancetta based on the recipe in Ruhlman's 'Charcuterie' book. Some small white dots of mold have started to appear. I want to identify

Why do you marinade steak with onions?

Most recipes call for onions when marinading steak, but...why?

How to brown the sugar for pumpkin flan?

I've made pumpkin flan from the following recipe http://www.rachaelraymag.com/Recipes/rachael-ray-magazine-recipes/mucho-gusto-latin-recipes/Pumpkin-Flan I fol

Does using a larger slow cooker than called for by the recipe make a difference?

I have a recipe that specifically calls for a 4-quart slow cooker, however the slow cooker that I own is a 6-quart. Will using a 6-quart slow cooker make a diff

Other Wagyu cuts beyond steaks

I recently had the pleasure of a Wagyu sirloin steak and was blown away by the flavour and texture. At the cost it's not exactly the type of food you could have

Are any retail vacuum-sealing systems worth the expense?

Living alone means that my leftovers tend to go a pretty long way, and I don't end up using raw ingredients as quickly as the supermarkets expect me to. For a