SANJEEV KAPOOR COOKING TIPS

SANJEEV KAPOOR COOKING TIPS

·         Cheese that has not been used for a long time turns hard. Cut it up; grind it with a raw onion. Mix with a little mayonnaise and use as a bread spread.

·         Bread ground to a paste with some water in a mixer, acts as a good thickening agent for soups if cornstarch is not available.

·         Grind a little dried bread in your blender if you want the strong odour of spices to evaporate from the mixer and blades.

·         If your icedtea looks cloudy, it is still good for consumption. Simply put a little boiling water and it will clear up.

·         You can enhance the flavor of biryani with friend onions. Once the biryani is ready, add to it, onions that are separately fried till golden brown. Tightly cover the lid of the pan and keep it on the gas stove, over lowest flame, for about 5-10 minutes. Your biryani will taste awesome.

·         If you have forgotten to soak pulses like chana overnight, just put the chana in a flask full of boiling water for an hour. They are ready for cooking.

·         Coconut milk when kept overnight in the fridge forms a white layer on top. This layer can be used as fat instead of oil for frying mutton or chicken.

·         Add a little oil and turmeric powder to the dal before placing it in the cooker. It will get done in ten minutes flat.

·         Adding a cupful of grated carrot or beetroot to the coconut while making coconut burfi will give you natural colouring and nutritional benefits.

·         To refresh stale bread, sprinkle it with water, wrap it in a foil and heat it in the oven on 200 ºC for about five to ten minutes.

·         Adding a spoonful of curd to ladyfingers while cooking will ensure that they do not stick to the vessel or turn black.

·         Peel and cut potatoes and boil them in water to which a little vinegar is added. They will be done in no time and will retain the texture as well.

·         While grinding the batter for idlis replace 1/5 quantity of rice with pressed rice (poha). This will make the idlis fluffier.

·         Place rolled puris in the fridge for ten minutes before frying them, they will consume less oil and will be crisper.

·         To make dosas more crisp, add a little fenugreek seeds to the lentil and rice mixture while soaking.

·         Rather than using food colors, use a mixture of limewater and turmeric to get (almost) tandoori color.

·         Always add salt to the water while boiling vegetables. This enhances their natural flavour and diminishes the need to add salt at the table.

·         Add a pinch of salt to the oil while frying "pakodas" or "koftas" and you will use up less oil.

·         To preserve the white colour in cauliflower and cabbage, add a teaspoon of milk or milk powder while cooking.

·         When soups or stews get slightly burnt you can renew the taste by transferring it gently and carefully into a clean pan and flavouring with curry powder or mustard to camouflage the burnt taste.

·         The art of making good naan khatais lies in beating of the mixture till it becomes light and fluffy. Also only vanaspati should be used to make them.

·         When boiling potatoes for cutlets add the salt to the water itself as potatoes absorb salt better this way.

·         Onions will brown faster if half a teaspoon of salt is added to the onions while frying.

·         While cooking ladyfingers (okra) add a few drops of lemon juice or a spoonful of yogurt to avoid becoming sticky.

·         Use crushed vermicelli to coat your cutlets for a change. The cutlets will have a nest-like appearance.

·         Onions will boil faster if you make X-shaped cuts in the root ends.