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22
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1 answer
(Why) do onions taste sweeter when cooked at lower temperature?
I use onions to add a sweeter taste to some dishes, for example in tomato sauce for pasta. I cook them in oil, with some salt, before adding the other ingredients. It seems to me that when I turn the temperature too hot, the onions don't become…
Hanno Fietz
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9 answers
What can I substitute for Kaffir Lime Leaves?
Kaffir Lime Leaves seem to be a common ingredient in Thai food, particularly coconut based dishes. I have never seen them in Atlanta, and I've looked (farmers market, whole foods, normal grocery, but not an Asian grocery store). What is the flavor…
yossarian
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22
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3 answers
Should I remove the foam when cooking chickpeas?
Whenever I boil chickpeas aka garbanzo beans, I usually scoop up and discard the foam that rises to the top of the pot. Is there any reason other than for aesthetics to remove the foam?
As a secondary question, has anyone tried using this foam as…
kevins
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7 answers
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 while I've been considering investing in a vacuum-sealing system to avoid having to throw…
Aaronut
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22
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1 answer
Double cooked pasta
On my pasta package it says something like ready for double cooking and more curiously it gives cooking times of 11 min for regular (single cooking) and 5.5 / 2 min for first/second cooking when double cooking.
I had never heard of this double…
user1583209
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9 answers
Why doesn't chocolate go bad?
After all, chocolate has oil and sugar in it. Why don't bacteria love it? Thanks!
Adam C
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22
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5 answers
Any reason to put cornmeal/semolina on hot pizza stone or steel?
When I first started baking pizza years ago, I read somewhere that one should toss some cornmeal on a hot pizza stone after preheating, just before putting the pizza on. Since I tend to bake pizza at the highest setting on the oven, the cornmeal…
Athanasius
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22
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3 answers
Pizza baking order
First few times I thought it was coincidence but now I'm puzzled. I'm baking two pizzas, one after another, made from the same dough and with the same ingredients. Every time, the second pizza base is much better: thinner crust, more elastic, you…
Miroslav Zadravec
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6 answers
Why is putting an egg in the microwave not recommended?
I would like to know why it is not recommended to put an egg in the microwave.
Where does this "legend" comes from ?
Tofuw
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4 answers
Making Fudge or Candy While it is Raining or Snowing
I've heard and old wives tales that when you try to make fudge or candy when it's raining or snowing outside that the fudge or candy will not set.
What is the truth behind this tale? If it is true, how do you make fudge or candy on days that it is…
L84
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22
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2 answers
Why is carrot juice so sweet?
Certain brands of carrot juice taste sweeter than any raw carrot I've ever eaten, yet are made only with carrots, with no added sweeteners. Are carrots sold in supermarkets just not ripe enough?
papin
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3 answers
Does water that's been left to sit and then reboiled taste different from fresh water boiled once?
This may sound like a silly question, but I've always wondered:
If I boil some water and use some of it and leave the remainder in the kettle, and then a few days later boil that same water again, will it taste the same as if I'd emptied the old…
Chris W. Rea
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5 answers
Should one always use the whole garlic clove?
When using garlic cloves for pretty much anything, is it ever necessary to cut the slightly brown end off (that which connects to the head), or the middle out? Often times when I peel a garlic clove and cut into it I'll notice that the middle…
Nick
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What is the chemical process behind the way you cook a risotto?
Cooking risotto seems to differ from regular rice in two important ways:
you stir the risotto regularly
you only introduce liquid a little bit at a time
What is the effect of these two steps chemically on the rice that yields such a different…
yossarian
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22
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3 answers
Pots and Pans in the dishwasher
Settle a longstanding feud in our household for me: is it safe to put pots and pans in the dishwasher?
Assume we have both stainless steel and various non-stick pans. Assume we have frypans, sauce-pots, and larger pots that would conceivably fit,…
Yamikuronue
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