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.

15 Tips On Buying The Right Kind Of Meat

1. If possible, look for the inspected and passed stamped marks, especially in big cuts of meat. It is dangerous to buy meat from ambulant meat peddlers (maglalako). It pays to go early in the market to your favorite "suki" while the butcher is still cutting the beef carcass into retail cuts. This will more or less help in the identification of a carcass, whether it's really cow's meat or carabao's or a horse's.
2. Know the different meat cuts.
3. Select meat for specific use. For example, shank and brisket for stew and tender portion like the loin muscles for steak, braising and broiling. In general the tender cuts lie along the back. The less tender cuts are those involved in the excessive movement of the animal such as the leg, shoulder and neck.

Remember that bones of young animals are porous and red while white in older animals.
The use of pressure cooker, if available, shortens cooking time thereby saving fuel and improves the tenderness of the meat.

4. Beef must be firm, bright red in color with yellow fat, free from slime and off-odor. Avoid brightly off-colored meat as this is an indication of the use of artificial coloring matter like "achuete" and other food-coloring.
5. When buying ground meat of good quality select from a big cut and have it ground by the butcher in your presence.
6. Buy refrigerated meat in places where refrigeration facilities are available.
7. Thawed meat must be cooked immediately. Avoid refreezing thawed meat. When storing meat to be frozen, package in convenient family size units and identify properly as to the kind of meat cuts and date of purchase.
8. Freeze quickly at zero or lower temperature. Beef should not be kept frozen for more than 12 months, while pork not over 6 months. Frozen meat is just as good as fresh meat provided it is properly handled.
9. Never wash soiled meat. Soiled meat should only be wiped with damp cloth.
10. Meat should not be wrapped in newspaper; use plastic bags or other vapor resistant wrapping materials.
11. The meat stall's cutting table must be smooth, free from crevices and kept clean at all times.
12. Keep dust and vermin away from the meat stalls.
13. Store packages correctly in the refrigerators. Refrain from overloading the freezer and provide space for the air to circulate inside the freezer.
14. Buy meat where proper hygiene and sanitation is observed by the handler.
15. Find time to attend seminars, read newspapers and magazines, meetings and demonstrations where proper handling of meat and meat products are discussed.

6 Tips On Buying Cemetery Lots

1. Visit several cemeteries. Ask your minister for suggestions. Don't buy sight unseen.
2. Don't buy too big a plot. When children leave home, they may prefer to make their own arrangements.
3. Some cemeteries offer undeveloped sites at lower prices. If you should need a grave before development is complete, you can turn in your lot on a developed one and receive credit for what you paid.
4. Have in writing the percentage of the price that will go into the fund for endowed care. Make sure that this fund is under the management of a bank or trust company, not just on deposit. If the cemetery's board of trustees manages the fund, be sure they are reputable citizens.
5. Don't buy in a proposed cemetery unless you are positive the organizers are reputable local citizens. Out-of-town promoters sometimes skip with the money.
6. Buying a cemetery lot intelligently boils down to this: make the purchase before the actual need, and check all legal and financial angles as carefully as you would in buying a house.