We all cook at home at least once in a while, but not everyone knows about the simple ways to make food tastier. These tricks will spice things up and make your meals taste brighter.
Refill your meal with sugar
Sugar isn’t just good for sweet dishes. Sugar can help to enrich the taste of other ingredients. Add a teaspoon of granulated sugar to stir-fries, salad dressings or borscht. The dish will shine in new colours.
Cook the spices in oil to intensify their flavour
Unleash the flavour of dried herbs and spices by preheating them in a pan. It should be done in butter or olive oil and very quickly – for a minute. Otherwise there is a risk that the spices will start to burn.
Add a little soy sauce or anchovies.
The monosodium glutamate that so many people fear is actually a natural substance. This salt of glutamic acid was isolated by Japanese professor Ikeda Kikunae from seaweed.
Monosodium glutamate imparts a fifth, “meaty” taste (Asians call it umami). It can also be found in certain foods such as soy sauce and anchovies. So feel free to dress stews, salads and vegetable stews with it. Be aware that both products contain salt, so the salt in the dish should be less than usual.
Add fresh herbs at the right time
Different herbs should be added to the pot or pan at different times. If herbs have tough stems and leaves (e.g. cumin, rosemary, sage, oregano), add them at the beginning of cooking. This gives them time to soften and release their aroma.
For mild herbs (e.g. basil, parsley, coriander, onion), add them at the very end, so that they do not lose their colour and aroma.
Use different oils
Dress your salad with sesame oil or pumpkin seed oil, instead of the usual sunflower or olive oil, in order to give the taste of the salad a new colour. They have a rich flavour, so don’t overdo it. And coconut oil or peanut oil can add variety to your tired morning porridge.
Blanch the vegetables.
Behind this cryptic word lies a very simple technique. Green vegetables are dipped for a minute or two in boiling water and then in a bowl of ice-cold water. This “shock treatment” helps to retain their bright colour, vitamins and appetising crunchiness. Broccoli, green beans or asparagus cooked in this way are much healthier and tastier than boiled.
Also simmer vegetables to remove the bitterness (e.g. onions or radishes) and remove the skins easily (e.g. tomatoes).
Marinate the meat
Pre-marinated meat cooks faster and gets juicier and more tender. You can use kefir, soy sauce, lemon juice, mustard, mustard, fruit as a base. These products contain substances that soften the fibres of the meat.
Use breading
When frying meat or vegetables roll them in rolled breadcrumbs, oatmeal, sesame seeds or alternately in egg and flour. The resulting crust will prevent the juices from escaping and thus make the dish tastier.
Add a little wine
Alcohol has a way of enhancing the taste of meat dishes. Add it to a stew or make a sauce and drizzle it over the meat. Keep in mind that red wine goes well with red meat and white wine with white meat. The alcohol evaporates in the cooking so that even children can eat wine-laced dishes.
Marinated onions
Onions can spoil a salad with their pungent flavour. The solution is to marinate them in a mixture of:
1 cup water;
2 tbsp. 9% vinegar;
2 tbsp. sugar;
1 tsp. salt.
After only 30 minutes, the onions will be sour-sweet and not at all spicy.
