gangsta puffin
02-11-2007, 10:18 AM
I've compiled everything useful from the last clusterfuck of a thread. I think it has some good stuff and was worth preserving.
Let's say you make something- a sauce, stew, soup, whatever- and you used too much salt? Or the tomato sauce is too sweet? Too much pepper?
How can you counteract/balance out these types of things?
if you put too much salt into a cheese sauce a peeled, raw potato absorbs some of the excess salt. i don't know if this works for tomato sauces too, but i'm sure it probably would.
that's all i know. when i make things too sweet, i tend to add a dash of lemon to cut the sweetness.
-Grania
As far as soups/stews being too salty, adding a potato is a good way to go since it does in fact soak up the salt and fix that particular problem...
as far as tomato sauce goes, if it's too sweet, I personally would add olive oil to bring a savory flavor to the party and some mushrooms which have a tendency to soak up flavors in a good way
Too much pepper? well...that's really a problem that I don't know how to fix. I suppose my best advice is to taste as you go and add salt/pepper in small amounts until it tastes right, and remember, when you add salt and then cook food down, the evaporation of the water from the food will cause whatever flavors are in the food to become more concentrated, including salt and pepper. So if you're going to be reducing something for a long time, less is more. Taste taste taste! Taste your stew halfway through it's reduction time, if it's too salty/peppery, add more stock and reduce for a bit longer.
-peter
If a tomato based sauce is too acidic for your liking
(or if you are cooking for your mother who insists that tomato sauces are "too acidic")you can add a bit of baking soda. It fizzes away the acid. Just don't add too much. That's gross.
And if your mother then tells you that red wine is also too acidic for her delicate stomach, either get her some tums, or drink her share. (I recommend the latter.)
Oh yes and egg white can be used to clarify stock very nicely. You just swirl it in and strain it out and it grabs all kinds of particulate matter on its way.
-elisabeth
here's another cooking tip...
BUY A CAST IRON SKILLET.
for searing meat and fish, there's nothing better. They get super hot and retain heat incredibly well, and so they're perfect for cooking meats which like high temperatures.
For fish, get the pan screamin' hot (let it sit on high for 5 minutes). Make sure the fish is good and dry, you don't want any moisture between the fish and the pan because when that moisture evaporates it creates a barrier between the fish and the pan and you won't get a good sear. Coat the pan with olive oil (a tablespoon for a 10-inch pan is good) and get the fish into the pan and let it sit there (don't move it!) for about 90 seconds, then flip it over and put it into a 400 degree oven until it's cooked through. Pull it out, put some butter in the pan and baste the fish for about a minute and then serve.
Same for beef, but leave it in the oven until it's not quite done to the doneness you prefer...baste it with butter and then let it rest for 10 minutes (in the pan if you like) and during this resting time it will finish cooking to how you want it.
-peter
if you're making an alfredo sauce (cream-based with cheese) and during the making of it, it gets too hot and breaks, just add a few ice cubes to cool it off and whisk really well and it should come back together in not too long.
-peter
carry on...
Let's say you make something- a sauce, stew, soup, whatever- and you used too much salt? Or the tomato sauce is too sweet? Too much pepper?
How can you counteract/balance out these types of things?
if you put too much salt into a cheese sauce a peeled, raw potato absorbs some of the excess salt. i don't know if this works for tomato sauces too, but i'm sure it probably would.
that's all i know. when i make things too sweet, i tend to add a dash of lemon to cut the sweetness.
-Grania
As far as soups/stews being too salty, adding a potato is a good way to go since it does in fact soak up the salt and fix that particular problem...
as far as tomato sauce goes, if it's too sweet, I personally would add olive oil to bring a savory flavor to the party and some mushrooms which have a tendency to soak up flavors in a good way
Too much pepper? well...that's really a problem that I don't know how to fix. I suppose my best advice is to taste as you go and add salt/pepper in small amounts until it tastes right, and remember, when you add salt and then cook food down, the evaporation of the water from the food will cause whatever flavors are in the food to become more concentrated, including salt and pepper. So if you're going to be reducing something for a long time, less is more. Taste taste taste! Taste your stew halfway through it's reduction time, if it's too salty/peppery, add more stock and reduce for a bit longer.
-peter
If a tomato based sauce is too acidic for your liking
(or if you are cooking for your mother who insists that tomato sauces are "too acidic")you can add a bit of baking soda. It fizzes away the acid. Just don't add too much. That's gross.
And if your mother then tells you that red wine is also too acidic for her delicate stomach, either get her some tums, or drink her share. (I recommend the latter.)
Oh yes and egg white can be used to clarify stock very nicely. You just swirl it in and strain it out and it grabs all kinds of particulate matter on its way.
-elisabeth
here's another cooking tip...
BUY A CAST IRON SKILLET.
for searing meat and fish, there's nothing better. They get super hot and retain heat incredibly well, and so they're perfect for cooking meats which like high temperatures.
For fish, get the pan screamin' hot (let it sit on high for 5 minutes). Make sure the fish is good and dry, you don't want any moisture between the fish and the pan because when that moisture evaporates it creates a barrier between the fish and the pan and you won't get a good sear. Coat the pan with olive oil (a tablespoon for a 10-inch pan is good) and get the fish into the pan and let it sit there (don't move it!) for about 90 seconds, then flip it over and put it into a 400 degree oven until it's cooked through. Pull it out, put some butter in the pan and baste the fish for about a minute and then serve.
Same for beef, but leave it in the oven until it's not quite done to the doneness you prefer...baste it with butter and then let it rest for 10 minutes (in the pan if you like) and during this resting time it will finish cooking to how you want it.
-peter
if you're making an alfredo sauce (cream-based with cheese) and during the making of it, it gets too hot and breaks, just add a few ice cubes to cool it off and whisk really well and it should come back together in not too long.
-peter
carry on...