Basic tips for home (indoor) cooking, add any you might have!

[mrteddyprincess]

One cook can be linked to another cook. In other words the pork shoulder bones from two weeks ago can be roasted and extracted to make incredible broth one can't buy at the store weeks after the original cook.

Lard and tallow are easily rendered from scraps. They are not the healthiest fats to use on a regular basis, but for special occasions there's nothing like biscuits made with lard.

Rib scraps and brisket scraps from prior cooks enhance other dishes like baked beans or green beans.

[Smoker_Boy]

SheilaAnn Excellent idea!
(and way easier than canning)

[mrteddyprincess]

Smoker_Boy I tend to just freeze the bones. Then when I'm ready to make broth I'm likely to sear them in the oven for about an hour at 475 F until they blacken. Then I begin building an all day broth by putting the bones in cold water and adding blackened carrots and celery to the mix, along with fresh herbs. Sometimes my Saturday broth isn't finished until Sunday.

[Richard Chrz]

Smoker_Boy I put them in plastic 1 quart deli containers and freeze them. In the winter though I will make a big pot of stock almost every week. I generally keep one quart of frozen stock to add back in to the next batch of stocks.

I also season and drink bone broth during the week (fall, winter spring). It’s a great way to learn to make soup broth, if it tastes great for drinking plain, it will also make great soup.

[Troutman]

Don't be afraid to use salt.....and real butter.

[jfmorris]

Amen brother! Life's too short to deal with fake butter! I buy 4 pounds of salted butter at a time at Sam's. I know there is better butter to be had, but I can't afford 4 pounds of Kerry Gold every month... not at today's grocery prices!

[Bogy]

jfmorris we still buy a lot of salted butter, but since I've been making sourdough everything my recipes call for unsalted. So when butter is on sale we buy at least 4 lbs of each.

[Alan Brice]

I never was big on salt, but I am really liking this new Tajin.

[KimO]

Gold. All Gold. I have tagged this thread for future. I WILL reread. What a wealth of information from a wealth of knowledge. I feel very fortunate. thank you for all who have written and any who write after this. Kim.

[JoeSousa]

There are some exceptions to this but if you are buying a piece of equipment you will be using regularly buy the best one you can afford. Don't cheap out on a skillet or sauce pan you will be using multiple times a week. If you have a $200 budget for some new pans get one or two good pans that you love instead of a 20 piece set from Walmart.

[Mosca]

I agree with this. The most expensive way to buy something is to get the cheap one first, then replace it with the one you should have bought instead.

[N227GB]

35 years ago, I bought a set of knives in a wood block from The Wholesale Club (what Sam's Club was called before they were acquired by Walmart). The big chef's knife was replaced with a Dexter because I like the handle, the bread knife is a Henckels I picked up from somewhere and a few Farberware are in there. But get this; the steak knives are all orginal! Even the one with a melted handle from when it was knocked out of the dishwasher basket.that now serves as a box cutter.

A couple of years ago I noticed that the wood was being sawed away over the years from putting the knives blade side down. Why was I dulling the blades by doing this? The blade side goes up from now on.

So this is my knife sharpener. It works on Cutco knives, smooth and serrated, and on Shun, Victoria, and Dexter knives as well (don't judge ). It was initially recommended by Cooks Illustrated about 20 years ago. I've used one ever since, replacing the blade or the whole sharpener every 3-4 years.

https://www.amazon.com/Accusharp-066C-Knife-Sharpener-Piece/dp/B072HVMYZC/r

+1 for Accusharp. However, I now use a Worksharp diamond /ceramic set that someone posted as a deal here in The Pit. I can put on a good show that I know what I'm doing in the kitchen by using a steel with great flourish.

[fzxdoc]

I want a Worksharp just for the fun of using it. But I'm not willing to stop in the middle of a dinner prep to use the Worksharp to make a knife that is perfect for the task at hand just a little sharper. That's really where the Accusharp shines, IMO.

Kathryn

[Richard Chrz]

Taste your food

seems to be one of the most commonly preached important steps, by chefs, at-least on tv.

[Mosca]

Alan Brice Yeah, except every once in a while you gotta make an executive decision….

[Bogy]

Mosca whether to just eat all of it yourself?

[Mosca]

Bogy Sometimes making it and eating it is worse than making it and dumping it!

[acorgihouse]

For those new recipe trials, it never hurts to have a dog or two lying around.

[Smoker_Boy]

If the dogs won't eat it, you got problems.

[mrteddyprincess]

Roy loves this observation! (Roy is my Vice-President in charge of BBQ Security.)

Brian

[Bogy]

Dogs also help with cleanup. If you drop something, it won't be there long!

[smokenoob]

Don’t blacken fish in the house!
that’s all I got

[jfmorris]

Or steak. Done it too many times, as the smoke alarm can attest…

[texastweeter]

Learn to balance acid, salt, fat, and sweet properly. A lot of dishes can be saved that others think are goners. Taste as you go; some things change flavor over time and heat. Casseroles should be rested 20 minutes before serving. Roasts carryover cook once removed from heat. Keep texture in mind always. Learn to make a pan and or boards sauce. If you are a hunter cool your harvested game as quickly as possible in a dry manor, and learn how to process it properly. NEVER EVER EVER CONTAMINATE YOUR CHILI WTH BEANS.

[Old Glory]

The first time you make a new recipe follow it closely as you can. After that tweak it to your liking.

[Bob K]

Get some MSG and use it in pretty much everything, but whatever you do don’t tell anyone

[Bogy]

This is a BBQ site. When it gets to cold for my wife to let me go outside to cook I switch to my infrared cooker for the meat. I now have one at each house. Is it as good as something cooked on charcoal? Of course not, but it's as good as something cooked outside on a gas grill. And will produce enough smoke to set off the smoke alarm in the hall.