How To: Are Your Herbs & Spices Too Old? Here's How to Check
Dried spices and herbs seem to be immortal; a peek in your parents or grandparents' cupboards will likely unveil cinnamon, basil, and oregano older than you.
Dried spices and herbs seem to be immortal; a peek in your parents or grandparents' cupboards will likely unveil cinnamon, basil, and oregano older than you.
As a kid, my mother would always bring the noodles onto the table in a colander, then bring the pot of sauce she cooked separately. So I grew up with the idea that pasta and sauce were two separate entities that you combined table-side, and continued to eat pasta that way well into my adulthood when cooking at home. It was only much later that I realized the error of my ways... that pasta could taste so much better than I had previously imagined.
Simmering or poaching food is a total pain sometimes. The problems are numerous: a layer exposed to air often dries out and creates a gross skin that can ruin the texture of the sauce, the poaching liquid evaporates too quickly and causes the poached protein to burn, and so on.
When you're young, utensils tend to be optional—and eating with your hands is optimal. One of the best examples of finger food for kids that has pervaded today's nostalgia-driven culture is tater tots.
Preparing and serving seafood can be a daunting task. Fish is so delicate that one extra minute of heat can turn a juicy, flaky filet into a dried-out disaster. But that same fragility also allows us to use unconventional methods to chemically transform the fish into its cooked consistency.
Do you ever walk into a nice boutique, a friend's house, or a fancy restaurant, and think, “I wish my house smelled like this”? Because I sure do.
The next time you're out camping, whether it's outdoors in the wilderness or right outside in your own backyard, try this hack out for an effortless campfire all night long. While there is definitely some prep work involved, it's well worth it if you don't need a huge bonfire, and more so if you plan on cooking meals over the flames.
I grew up in a rural town, and that meant that we dehydrated a lot of food. Even with a hungry family of five, there was no way that we could eat all of the season's tomatoes before they molded, or all of the orchard's apples before they grew soft, or all of the wild mushrooms that we picked. And so our dehydrator was always getting a good workout.
Meet the Wonderbag. The "first non-electric slow cooker" uses an insulated bag made of poly-cotton fabric, polyester, and repurposed foam chips. You bring your one-pot meal to the desired cooking temperature, usually via the stovetop. Then you turn off the heat, pop the pot into the Wonderbag, and it will continue to cook thanks to the retained heat in the bag.
This sounds a little crazy, and it is—in a good way. Cooking food in the dishwasher while it cleans your dishes multitasks your appliance and saves time and energy. And who doesn't want to spend less time over a hot stove? How Dishwasher Cooking Works
Scented candles tend to magically turn a house into a home. The light flicker of the flame gives a relaxed or romantic tone to the atmosphere, and keeps the space smelling fragrant for hours. The only problem? Wax melts, and the candle becomes worthless after the wax is all gone. So how do you keep the flame going for more than a few hours? Simple, just remove the problematic ingredient—don't use wax!
Salt is a miraculous substance. From the Ancient Egyptians to the Christian Bible, many cultures believe it to have mystical powers that can ward off evil, among other things.
Sometimes it's hard to remember that lasagna, pizza, cannoli, and other dishes are actually Italian in origin; they're so much a part of the American culinary landscape at this point. Wherever they come from, Americans of all kinds love to eat 'em. This guy was released from a North Korean prison, and after two years, the first thing he wanted to eat was fast-food pizza.
Hello everyone. The red ring of death of Xbox 360 has been a huge problem since the beginning of Xbox 360. Many gamers like me have faced this problem and the red ring of death (RROD) is one of the biggest reason behind all the rant on Xbox 360 gaming console.
Just when you begin to doubt the future of humanity, advances in ice cream scooping science continue to develop. Yumi showed you some super-cool ice cream hacks just in time for summer, and we've already discussed how to use a knife to slice ice cream when it's too hard to scoop.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 display can be replaced by most do-it-yourselfers with some basic mechanical skills and a few inexpensive tools. The good news is that once you replace your display assembly your screen will be good as new with no bubbles or dust on the inside. The replacement part is a bit pricey but that is a good percentage of the cost involved with manufacturing this device. Below is a video showing the entire process from start to finish. It's best to turn on your volume for the nar...
To flip, or not to flip, that is the real question. When you're nervously standing over the stove or grill, what do you do with that steak before you?
Wondering how to get long hair naturally? How do you grow your hair? In this video Rachelle and Sam give you 10 tips to get those long locks naturally!
If you're anything like me, you probably rinse your mouth out after you brush your teeth. I know technically you're supposed to not rinse your mouth out after brushing, but I just can't stand the feel of the excess toothpaste in my mouth. It's a surefire way to dry it out.
You know your going to have to sleep outside and you don’t know how to stave off the chill of the night. With the right equipment, some layering techniques and a full belly you be sure to get a good nights sleep even if it’s cold out.
Unless you're a high-schooler building a nuclear fusion reactor, the hardest part of a science investigatory project often is coming up with a good idea. You want it to be cool yet feasible, novel but still useful.
Have a delicious stew recipe you'd like to make, but want to cut the cooking time in half? Then, pressure cookers are perfect for you. Actually, pressure cookers can heat up a nice soup or goulash three times faster than regular cooking times! If this sounds good to you, then you need one of these suckers. And if you're lucky enough to own a IMUSA brand pressure cooker, this video with Chef George Duran will give you the tips and tricks to mastering your IMUSA pressure cooker.
In this tutorial, we learn how to make a hearty spaghetti sauce. First, pour some chopped onions and diced green pepper into a skillet with olive oil. After this, add in a chopped red bell pepper in with the mix. Let this saute for 5-10 minutes covered over medium low heat. You can tell when it's done because the onions will be clear. From here, add in your meat to the pan and then break it up with a spatula. Cook this down and then add in tomato paste after draining the oils from the pan. Le...
In this tutorial, we learn how to fireproof a balloon. Usually, if you bring fire to a balloon it will pop, but there's a way to avoid this! First, get your balloon and place it around the nozzle of your sink. Then, fill it up with water until you have a decent amount of water. Now, blow some air into the balloon and tie at the end. From here, put your balloon to the test! Place a lighter underneath the balloon to see how it reacts. It should not pop like it did before. The water will absorb ...
In this tutorial, we learn how to make caramel sauce at home. First, pour some sugar and water into a large saucepan. Turn on the heat and then wait for the reaction between them to begin. The sugar and water should start to boil, then put the lid on for two minutes and then take it off. After this, boil for 5-10 more minutes until it gets darker. After this, you will need to stir in the butter and the cream. Once both of these are completely combined, you will pour into a dish and let the ca...
In this tutorial, we learn how to make bacon pan fried fish. First, you will need to grab some strips of bacon and two fish. Cut the fish in half and stick the bacon inside of them, around two pieces for each fish. After this, you will roll each fish around in a mixture of flour with salt and pepper. After this, heat up some oil with garlic cloves in a large skillet. When ready, place the fish into the oil and let them brown on one side. After this has browned, turn the fish over and let them...
In this video we learn how to make tomato rasam. You will need: 2 tsp ghee, 1/4 tsp mustard seeds, 1/8 tsp asafetida, curry leaves, green chilies, 1/4 tsp crushed black peppercorns, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1 tomato soup can, 1 tsp tamarind paste, salt, 1 tsp rasam powder, and cilantro. First, heat up the ghee in a pan. Then, add in the mustard seeds and let them pop. From here, add in the asafetida, curry leaves, green chilies, garlic, and black peppercorns and mix together. Then, add in the...
In this tutorial, we learn how to easily make bread and butter pudding. First, you will take 1 c packed brown sugar and add in some water to it. Put this into a pot and then put it over heat until it boils. After this has boiled, add in butter to the pan and let it melt completely. Once this is melted, add in some evaporated milk and use a whisk to combine everything together. Now, crack three eggs in a large bowl and whisk them together, then pour the milk mixture into this, mixing slowly sm...
This video tutorial is in the Electronics category which will show you how to make a Beetlebot from your parts bin. The Beetlebot project can be found in Make Volume 12. You will need a couple of small motors, 2 momentary switches, 2 AA battery holders, a piece of metal, a small bead, 2 paper clips, heat ring tubing and a couple of connectors. Cut off two pieces of the tubing and using a soldering iron melt them over the ends of the motors. Hot glue the 2 momentary switches at an angle with t...
In this tutorial, we learn how to make a zipper belt. First, you will need to take three long zippers and then heat up a glue gun. Apply some glue to the middle zipper, then put the other zipper's side on the side where the glue is. Do this for the other side and wait for them to completely dry and cool off. After this, grab a square piece of fabric and glue the top of the zipper onto this. Press it down and wait for it to dry, then apply Velcro to the bottom and it will stick when you wear it!
In this video, we learn how to use steering wheel controls in the 2010 Prius. The Prius has steering wheel mounted controls that come with touch tracer display. When you press these, the display produces the duplicate on the panel to see what you are doing. This is located in the driver's line of sight. You will find radio, volume, and radio channel controls on the left hand side. You will also find voice activation and phone on the left hand side. The switches on the right hand side will hel...
This video tutorial is in the Food category which will show you how to make scrambled eggs using a flashlight. Break an egg and pour it in to a small metal container. Clamp a Wicked Lasers torch in an upright position so that the bulb end is facing upwards. Now switch on the torch and place the container over it. After sometime as the container gets heated, the egg will start to cook. Mix the egg with a spoon while holding the container with the other hand to prevent it from falling over. Don...
Lemongrass chicken combines the sweet yet tarty flavor of lemongrass with the scrumptious heat of chili pepper sauce (Sambal). This makes for a dish that'll warm you up nicely during a cold fall night.
Making jam or preserves for friends and family is one of the sweetest (literally) things you can do for special occasions and the holidays. But sterilizing jam jars can be a pain, often involving cleaning them out with scalding hot water.
Staying at a hotel for business? You probably think that traveling means you can't cook, right? Wrong. There are lots of ways to make delicious dishes if you're inventive (and we're not just talking about heating things up in the microwave, guys and gals).
East meets, well, east in this cross cultural stir fry dish by Guy Fieri. Fieri takes classic Chinese stir fry up a notch on the heat meter by adding spicy Korean kimchi.
Brisket makes a tasty addition to your next neighborhood barbecue. Start with an apple vinegar brine, then add a spicy dry rub and mango juice. Now your brisket is ready to be taken outside and smoked (use a charcoal grill for even heating). And then you will have a delicious brisket!
In this video, we learn how to make Indian vegetarian shammi kebab. You will first need to mash a green plantain that has been boiled first. Next, add oil to a pan and then add black cumin, chopped onions, salt, chopped green chilies, turmeric powder, chopped mint leaf, chick peas, coriander powder, red chili powder, and mix together. Then, add in your plantains and salt, then chopped coriander. Continue to mix this all together while on low heat, then mash the mixture until well combined. No...
In this video, we learn how to get rid of bed bugs using a steam cleaner. First, you will need to purchase a simple steam cleaner, which will produce steam that is hot enough to kill bed bugs. Now, take your steam cleaner and let it heat up for twenty minutes. Remove all your bedding items, including sheets and mattress covers. Grab your steam cleaner and steam all around the side of the bed until you have reached all of the spots. Go around the entire mattress as well as the box spring and t...
Rainbow cupcakes sound, er, complex, to say the least, given that for those of us who consider heating up a tv dinner in the microwave cooking, even successfully baking a boxed cake mix without something catching on fire is something we can only dream about. If you have two left hands when it comes to baking, really all you need to improve your kitchen skills is practice.