News: Amazing Things Happen When You Burn These 5 Everyday Foods
No crème brûlée is worth its custard without the crackled, caramelized crust it's famous for. For this reason alone, many cooks have a brûlée torch sitting somewhere in their cabinets.
Truck Burnt Search Results
How To: The Easiest Way to Make Homemade French Onion Soup—In Your Microwave
I was fortunate enough to be visiting one of my college classmates in Columbus, GA last spring and saw two large bags of onions in his kitchen... but not like the ones you get at the grocery store. Two standing 50 lb. bags!
Cook Like a Chef: Use Parchment Paper Lids Instead
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.
How To: 10 Reasons Why You'll Want to Use Screen Savers Again on Your Mac
Yes, screen savers are fun to look at for a few seconds, but those animations actually used to serve a purpose beyond simple entertainment.
How To: The Clever Trick That Makes Stuffed Pancakes a Cinch
Any other person can make plain pancakes... but only the most awesome of cooks can make stuffed pancakes. Luckily, this isn't a tough technique—in fact, it's so easy that you'll find yourself getting bored of the run-of-the-mill pancakes and dreaming of all the things you can stuff pancakes with, instead.
News: Islamic State (ISIS) Attacks U.S. Power Grid!
Those of you who have been a part of the Null Byte community for even a short while know that I sincerely and firmly believe that hacking is the most important skill set of the future.
How To: Morning Coffee Not Strong Enough? Do This Instead
Like a strong-tasting cup of joe, but want more caffeine out of it? Start double brewing your coffee. To paraphrase a big fan of the double brew process on Reddit, it'll make you feel like you can throw an orange at 60 percent the speed of light. It's that strong. Really.
How To: Perfect Your Eggs Benedict with These Foolproof Hollandaise Methods
In an age where restaurants can charge $20 for eggs Benedict at brunchtime (if you're lucky enough to even get a reservation on a Sunday), many people long for a way to create this classic dish at home. But once you've taken pains to perfectly poach an egg and gently crisp your sourdough, the problem of the hollandaise still lies before you. The key to any good hollandaise sauce is to apply enough heat to cook the egg yolks, but not enough to scramble them. The minute the eggs begin to solidi...
How To: What You Need to Know About Using the New File Explorer in Windows 10
Quite a few things have changed with Windows 10, but one of the more central features that has received a makeover is the old Windows Explorer program, which has been renamed to File Explorer in this version.
How To: Make a Full System Image Backup on Windows 10
Just recently, I was experimenting with a dual-boot Windows setup, and somehow managed to wipe my primary Windows installation in the process. "Why," I asked myself, "Why didn't I make a backup before I started this?" Still to this day, I'm going through the painstaking process of installing and configuring all of my favorite programs, and I may not ever get things back exactly the way they were.
How To: Make Grilled Lemonade, the Ultimate Summer Drink
When summer rolls around, I think of two things: grilling and ice-cold beverages. To me, nothing beats loading up the grill with charcoal, letting the smell of smoke get stuck to your clothing, and imbibing the most refreshing drink you can find.
How To: Make a Full Breakfast—Without a Skillet
Aren't the weekends extra special when they include a bacon, egg, and pancake breakfast? We call it "Lazy Sunday" for a reason. Actually, who needs it to be a weekend? Monday it is!
How To: 10 Cookout Tricks That'll Make You a Seasoned Grill Master
Barbecue season: it's the perfect time to play with fire, produce your best burger ever (until next year, that is), and find even more ways to make beer a part of your daily life. However, even a grilling badass occasionally gets stumped by minor BBQ problems. No worries: We've got solutions!
How To: How & Why You Should Make Your Own Bacon
There's something magical about homemade foods, especially when they're items that most people don't make. Even the simplest bread tastes divine when you've mixed it yourself, kneaded it yourself, and gotten the dough stuck underneath your nails.
How To: Heat Up Your Grilling with Wood Planks
At its core, grilling is the simplest form of cooking. You create extreme heat, you put a piece of food on top of the heat, and then you sit back and watch the magic happen. Yet despite the inherent simplicity in grilling, there are a million ways to make it more complex, more unique, and, yes, even more flavorful.
How To: Make Amazing Garlic Paste Without a Clunky Garlic Press
There may be no kitchen appliance as controversial as the garlic press. Professional kitchens and many avid cooks despise it, while others staunchly defend it.
How To: Beef Up Your Recipes with Beef Salt
Beef: it's what for dinner. And if you really like the taste of it, it can be what you season the rest of your dinner with, too.
How To: Make Delicious 3-Minute Meringues in Your Microwave
Meringues are a French and Swiss dessert made of whipped egg whites and sugar, and they are light, sweet, and crispy confections. To make traditional meringues, you beat egg whites into soft foamy peaks, and then keep whipping as you gradually add sugar until the peaks become stiff. Once you've reached the right consistency, you bake them at a low temperature in the oven for a long time. They take both technique and time.
How To: Make & Use Breadcrumbs at Home (Bread Optional)
Using breadcrumbs in the kitchen is the perfect way to add crisp and crunch to the usual salad, entrée, or dessert. As chef and media personality Mario Batali once said, "There's almost nothing I wouldn't put homemade breadcrumbs on."
How To: Set a Sleep Timer on Your iPhone So Music, Movies, Podcasts & Other Media Won't Wake You After Falling Asleep
We all fall sleep in different ways. Some may require absolute silence, others need white noise, and some enjoy listening to a song or two to help bring on the sleep. If you're in the latter group, like I am, there's a problem. Fall asleep before the music stops, and a loud song may jolt you awake in the middle of the night. With an iPhone, however, that issue can be avoided with a little setup.
How To: Skip Room Service with These 4 Ways to Cook in Your Hotel Room
Are you stranded in a hotel room with no kitchen, but craving the comfort of a home-cooked meal? Fear not, I have found some interesting ways to cook food without the luxury of an oven, stove, microwave, or even a toaster!—also known as "hotel room cooking."
Food Tool Friday: Keep Drinks Cool or Warm with Whisky Stones
Connoisseurs of hard liquor always face a dilemma: how do they chill their spirits without diluting the flavors? After all, if you've shelled out big bucks for a bottle of single malt, you really don't want to mess it up with an ice cube that has freezer burn. (As for refrigerating whisky, most people recommend against doing that: it can cause the whisky to "haze," or look clouded.)
How To: Theme Lollipop on Your Nexus 5 with a Darker Material Design Look
Android Lollipop's new Material Design interface does its best to strike a delicate balance between intuitiveness, usability, and aesthetics. For some folks, though, the use of a lighter color palette throughout the interface disrupts this balance.
How To: Keep Ground Meat from Sticking to Your Hands
If you have ever attempted to mix and shape your own meatballs or burger patties, you may have endured bits of meat continuously and stubbornly sticking to your hands. This can make shaping more challenging than it should be.
How To: Make a DIY Roasting Rack for Your Turkey
One of the golden rules to cooking a Thanksgiving turkey is to place it on a roasting rack before it goes into the oven. Missing this step and cooking it directly on the pan will burn the bottom of the bird, resulting in overcooked, dry meat.
How To: Harness Bluetooth Communication Using Arduino
Since its creation, Arduino has been growing exponentially more popular as DIY enthusiasts and Makers alike realize its potential. As new versions of the device are released, many easy-to-use peripherals are showing up on the market also.
How To: The Simple Trick to No-Mess Fry Dipping on the Go
You're in your car. You've got a bag of piping-hot French fries with you. You want those fries in your mouth ASAP, but you also want to dip them in ketchup. So what do you do?
How To: A Coffee-Only Breakfast Can Make You Fatter, but It Doesn't Have To
Hey, coffee drinkers—your morning cup of joe is killing your metabolism.
Wrong Isn't Always Bad: How to Trick Yourself into Pronouncing Difficult Words Correctly
Erudite. Barbiturate. Cacophony. Denouement. Okay, that last word is technically French, but words like these make the average person sweat, and it turns out that the key to learning how to pronounce them once and for all just might be getting them wrong.
How To: Sync Your Entire iTunes Library to Spotify's New "My Music" Section
Included in Spotify's new darker, slimmed down redesign is a much needed My Music section, which consolidates all of your starred music, local files, and playlists into a personal collection of songs, albums, and artists, similar to how iTunes organizes your music. This makes me wonder...
How To: One Thing You're Not Doing That You Should for Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies
I have a theory that chocolate chip cookies are the gateway drug to cooking. The recipe is easy, no special equipment is required, and at the end, you get warm, fresh-from-the-oven cookies that are simply irresistible. It's how I got hooked on baking and cooking, and anecdotal evidence (i.e. me asking my other kitchen-obsessed friends and a few culinary students) supports me.
How To: Make Your Own Waterproof Matches for Faster, Easier Fire-Starting
Camping in the rain sucks. It's not enough to deal with your clothes and tent being soaked—it makes starting a fire nearly impossible if you're not carrying waterproof matches. You can buy them pretty much anywhere that sells camping gear, but if you've got regular matches and a candle at home, they're just as easy to make yourself..
How To: The Secret to Perfectly Fluffy Microwave Popcorn Isn't the "Popcorn" Button
Microwave popcorn promises so much—a tasty, relatively healthy snack that's ready in minutes—yet it rarely delivers. Most of the time you'll end up with a scorched bagful or a bunch of stubborn un-popped kernels, but it doesn't have to be that way. With a few simple tricks, it's easy to get perfectly fluffy, tender-crisp popcorn every time.
How To: Deep Fry Your Whole Freakin’ Thanksgiving Dinner
The debate over whether to deep-fry or roast a Thanksgiving turkey can get pretty heated. Both have their merits, but it's hard to argue with that crispy, golden brown skin and moist texture that the fryer gives. But what's better than a deep-fried turkey?
Saving Thanksgiving Dinner: How to Fix Lumpy or Too-Thin Gravy
It's bad enough messing up in the kitchen when it's just for you or your family, but when you're cooking for a big event with a lot of guests, it can be mortifying. And on a holiday like Thanksgiving, that's all about the food, the last thing you want is to botch a key component of the meal.
How To: Determine the Value of a Used Car
Everyone hates to feel like they've been taken advantage of, especially when buying a used vehicle. The thought comes across every car buyer's mind... "Did I just get taken by that smooth-talking salesman?" When it comes to cars, how do you know if you're really getting a good deal, or if you're being offered a fair price for your car? After all, cars are most peoples second largest investment, so we need to make this decision wisely.
How To: Get Windows 8.1 Today for Free
Microsoft released a preview version of Windows 8.1 today, notably adding an updated Start screen, the ability to run several Windows 8 apps side by side in a number of configurations, fully integrated search, better HiDPI support for multiple monitors, and for those who miss it, options to bring back the Start button or boot straight to the desktop.
How To: Stop Running Over Plastic Bags! And More Small Tips for Keeping Your Car Running Smoothly
Approximately 380 billion plastic bags are used in the United States every year. That’s more than 1,200 bags per U.S. resident and more than 54 times the number of people who live on the planet. That's why here in Santa Monica, thanks to a city-wide plastic bag ban, you won't find a plastic bag at any of the major retail stores.
How To: Play Almost Any Retro Video Game on Your Nexus 7 Tablet
Arcades, Nintendo, Sega, and 16-bit graphics ushered in a new level of gaming that was leaps and bounds ahead of the early Pong days. I remember loading quarters into the machines and playing 2D fighting games until all my money ran out. When I wasn’t in school, you could usually find me at the arcade playing Street Fighter, The King of Fighters and Marvel vs. Capcom. At home, I had my Super Nintendo and Super Mario World keeping me glued to the television until the next boss stage.
How To: Hack Your Old Phone Line into an Emergency Power Supply for Your Cell Phone
"Ahoy-hoy." If telephone titan Alexander Graham Bell had his way, we'd all be answering phones like Mr. Burns. Thankfully, frienemy Thomas Edison had enough sense to realize we weren't always on the briny. He preferred "hello" as our standard telephone greeting, which he is credited with coining in 1877. Fellow American pioneer Davy Crockett actually used it as a greeting first in 1833 (as compared to an exclamation)—but in print, not over the phone.