25 Cooking Japanese Food Tips

1. NO SPATTERING---- To prevent oil from spattering while frying prawns, snip tips of tails and gently press water out.

2. PRAWN TEMPURA---- Prawns curl when fried. To prevent this from happening, make a few incisions along the belly of the prawn then fry.

3. NO-NO FOR SASHIMI---- Not all fish can be used for sashimi. Freshwater fish is one because it is prone to parasites.

4. CRISP TEMPURA---- Thinly coat all tempura ingredients with batter before frying. This makes tempura real crisp.

5. FRESH FISH---- When preparing sashimi, don't freeze the fish. Thawing removes the fresh flavor out of the fish.

6. SEAWEED---- Seaweed (or wakame) becomes jelly-like when prepared long before the cooking period. This makes seaweed lose its flavor. It is best to prepare seaweed at least 5 minutes before cooking time to retain flavor and color.

7. TOFU WATER---- Tofu retains water. To remove water from tofu, spread dry cloth on flat surface then place tofu over it and cover. Hold tofu together and let the water drain from the cloth.

8. HANDLING FISH---- Make sure to touch the fish as little as possible when preparing sashimi. The warmth of hands causes the fish to spoil and lose its freshness.

9. SPINACH SUB---- In Japanese cooking, spinach is a favorite ingredient. But if it is not available, you may substitute it with fresh string beans.

10. MOIST RICE---- Soak rice in water for at least 30 minutes before cooking. This makes for a moist rice.

11. JUICY ALTERNATIVE---- If you do not like to use wine as marinade because it's expensive, you may use apple juice instead. It tastes as good.

12. EGGS-XACTLY------ When cooking eggs as ingredient, it is best to use them at room temperature. When boiled, the eggs will crack if used directly from the fridge.

13. NICE FOODS---- In Asian cookery, onion and carrot are considered "yang" foods. Aside from their nutrients, they give a warming effect as well.

14. SWEET GINGER---- Next time you make a meal that calls for fresh garlic and ginger, try chopping the garlic first. The ginger, when chopped after the garlic, will remove the strong garlic smell.

15. BETTER BATTER---- Cake flour makes a light, low gluten content tempura batter. Plain flour makes a little thick batter.

16. STICKY RICE----- Ordinary rice can be transformed into Japanese rice by adding a little bit of honey while cooking. Rice will be sticky and a little sweet.

17. SWEET SUBSTITUTE---- If a recipe calls for sherry wine and it is not available, substitute it with Japanese rice wine. You won't notice the difference.

18. FLAVORFUL STIR-FRY------ Stir-fry seafoods. It enhances the flavor and gives the noodles a smooth, slippery texture.

19. SHIITAKE MUSHROOM----- Wash shiitake mushroom quickly, remove stems and dirt. Soak in cold water 30 minutes. Do not soak in boiling water because this loses flavor. Leftover water can be used for other Japanese recipes so, don't throw it away.

20. CRISP TONKATSU----- For crisp tonkatsu, chill in refrigerator first for a few minutes before frying. You'll have a crispy crust.

21. ALTERNATIVE COOKING----- To adapt your recipes to microwave cooking, find a similar dish in the cookbook that came with your microwave oven to determine cooking time, dish size and proportions of ingredients to use.

22. RIGHT TEMP----- For yummy puffed tempura, use cold ice water in tempura batter. This expands the temperature between the batter and hot oil.

23. FRY RIGHT----- For dieters who love tempura but not the oil, you can prevent the tempura from absorbing too much oil by dropping the pieces when the oil is smoking hot.

24. GO ORIENTAL------ For some oriental touch, add a little soy sauce and sesame seed paste to mayonnaise for your dip. Perfect for fried foods and chips.

25. JUICY TWIST----- Add a tangy twist to regular juice by mixing it with half ounce of liquor (white spirits).

36 Different Cooking Tips

1. LEMON SQUEEZE--- When you need only a few drops of lemon juice for your recipe, prick a hole in the lemon with a toothpick and squeeze out the juice. To keep the lemon fresh, simply put the toothpick back in the hole.

2. BUTTERED CORN--- To butter a hot ear of corn, spread butter on a slice of bread, lay the corn ear on bread and roll. That way, you will have buttered corn and bread.

3. EGG YOLKS----  Store egg yolks covered with aluminum foil or add water to cover the surface to keep them from drying up.

4. FRUIT STORAGE--- Store unripe fruits at room temperature, and ripe fruits in a cool place or better yet in the refrigerator.

5. FRUITY IDEA---- In fruits are to be eaten at once, ripe ones should be bought. If not, then buy unripe ones and let them ripen in the proper storage area.

6. RECIPE HOLDER--- A great way to keep your recipe on hand when you are cooking is to put the recipe card between the tines of a fork and place the fork in a glass.

7. EASY SLIDE---- Use clothespins to hold a pan when you're taking a cake out of the pan. This way, you avoid slip-ups.

8. SWEET SQUASH---- Squash that's hard-shelled will have a sweeter flavor if refrigerated rather than left out until used.

9. EGG WHITE ALERT---- Avoid using hard cooked egg white in frozen dishes because it changes in texture and develops an off flavor.

10. CRISPIER CHIPS---- Sprinkle salted water over banana chips or potatoes while frying. This makes them a lot crispier and fun to eat.

11. DRIED BEANS---- To clean and soften dried beans, soaked them in water. It not only reduces cooking time but dissolves some of the gas producing compounds that make beans easier to digest.

12. BUTTER AND MARGARINE---- Store butter and margarine in tightly sealed containers in the refrigerator so they won't absorb other odors.

13. DARK AND LIGHT SOY---- Dark soy adds color while light soy is salty and full of flavor. Light soy is better as dipping sauce than dark soy.

14. GRATED CHEESE---- To clean a grater from cheese residue, grate a slice of bread. The leftover cheese will come off easily. Plus, you have cheesy grated bread.

15. FLAVORFUL JAM----- Use less sugar when making jam to achieve greater fruit flavor. Less calories, too.

16. NATA DE COCO---- To remove sour taste and smell of nata, boil or rinse with water several times.

17. SOFT SUGAR---- Soften sugar by placing it in warm oven for a few minutes.

18. LAST SCOOP---- Store those almost empty jam jars on their sides so that it will be easier to get the last scoop out.

19. SAPPY FRUIT---- Love eating jackfruit but the sticky sap gets into your knife and hands? Rub your knife and hands with the juice that comes from the jackfruit's seeds. This liquid prevents the sap from sticking to your knife and skin.

20. BUYING GLUTINOUS RICE----- When buying glutinous rice, look for intact kernels that aren't broken, scratched or damaged.

21. SMOOTHER RICE FLOUR---- To have a smoother texture of rice flour, mix it with the liquid ingredients in the recipe, bring to a boil and let cool before adding other ingredients.

22. POTATO DECAY---- Don't wash potatoes until you're ready to use them. Moisture encourages decay that can rot potatoes.

23. SWEET TIP---- Honey that has crystallized in its jar flows smoothly again if you leave the jar to stand in a bowl of boiling water for a few minutes.

24. DRIED OUT COCONUT?--- Sprinkle dried coconut with milk and let it stand until it regains its freshness.

25. GRAHAM CRACKER CRUST---- To remove pie made of Graham cracker crust, put pan in warm water 5 to 10 seconds. The pie will come right out without any damage.

26. STORING FLOUR----- Store all-purpose flour in an airtight container in a dry and cool place within 15 months to maintain freshness.

27. COCONUT MILK AND CREAM---- To avoid curdling and separating of oil in coconut cream and milk, stir constantly over low heat uncovered. Never let mixture boil. Use a wide spatula to a lift-and-turn motion.

28. STORING SQUASH---- Squash should be stored at 45 F and will keep 2 to 6 months depending on variety.

29. FROZEN BANANAS---- Bought too many bananas and they're starting to become overripe? Mash bananas and put them in a freezer-safe plastic container. Freeze then use later as an ingredient in banana bread.

30. BUYING DAIRY PRODUCTS----- When shopping for dairy products on a hot day, put some ice in the ice chest, set it on the back seat of the car and put those perishables in it.

31. OIL SUBSTITUTE----- If you run out of oil in the middle of your cake preparation, use an equal amount of mayonnaise as substitute.

32. FLOUR SUBSTITUTE---- If a recipe calls for self-rising flour and is not available, all-purpose flour can be used. Just add 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt for each cup of all-purpose flour.

33. NO ODOR BUTTER---- Because butter absorbs odors very easily and quickly, always keep it covered.

34. WARM BREAD---- Place aluminum foil under the napkin of your breadbasket to keep freshly-baked bread warm for a longer period of time.

35. STERILIZING JARS----- Fill jars with water 3/4 full and place in shallow pan partly filled with water. Simmer 15 minutes and keep hot until filled.

36. CHEESY TIP---- Rub a bit of butter or margarine to the cut edge of boxed cheese before you store it so the cheese won't dry out. 

15 Different Buying and Cooking Tips

1. Buy ground beef and store in refrigerator. Ground beef can be stretched not only into one dish but into several meals.

2. Don't buy beef that is already ground. It is best to buy whole beef cuts before grinding them. This way, you can be assured that you are getting the choice cut.

3. Be a smart consumer. When you buy beef, go for a choice cut such as chuck. It has a sliver of white cartilage blade bone meat near the top of the steak.

4. Meat prices have gone up lately. To save, try replacing meat with beans and peas in your dishes. They still provide the same nutrients with lower fat and they cost less.

5. When thawing meat inside the refrigerator, place raw meat on bottom shelf of the fridge to avoid the juices from dripping onto other foods.

6. Don't throw away the meat with freezer burn. Just trim the area with freezer burn and the meat will be safe to cook and eat.

7. For healthy cooking and eating, use herbs instead of salt in your recipes. They're not only healthy, they also add flavor and aroma to the dish.

8. When a meat dish recipe calls for sugar, use refined white sugar. Brown sugar, when cooked at low temperature, caramelizes that makes meat to become dark.

9. For a more tender meatball, use half ground pork. Then mix ground beef and pork with chopped onion, milk and season with salt and pepper. Fry until cooked.

10. Experiment with your adobo dish. Use green mango or tamarind juice instead of vinegar to give adobo a more "natural" sour taste.

11. Don't discard that sticky, crusty leftover in the bottom of the pan after browning the meat. You may use it to thicken the sauce when making meat stew.

12. To prevent the juices of meat from dripping  out while grilling, do not pierce it. Piercing while grilling makes meat dry and not juicy.

13. Grilling toughens pork because it uses direct heat and cooking time is short. It is best to buy the tender cuts of meat for grilling. To keep pork moist when grilling or roasting, coat it with oil or baste with marinade.

14. Don't discard that marinade. Boil the marinade for a few minutes and use it for basting meat when grilling. Less effort and saves your money, too.

15. If you prefer to make your own "longganisa" or other cured meat, use refined salt. Refined salt has less impurities than rock salt.