Cooking secrets you'd like revealed

[DarylDixonsHair]

How to make crispy vegetable fritters that you can grab one corner and pick up and eat. Mine are always a soggy, floppy mess that need to be eaten with a spoon.

How to poach a sodding egg properly. Just can’t do it.

Did poached eggs for lunch today. For medium eggs bring a pan of water to the boil, then turn down to low, add a small slosh of vinegar, tip in your eggs, put the lid on and cook on low for two minutes. Result perfect poached eggs.

Poached eggs - you need to use really fresh eggs - they stay together better.

My Rice advice is cook normal amount of time,, rince in hot water into a colander and put a lid straight onto it, this allows the steam to release from all the grains, always works for me! and I have an instant pot, my risotto takes 7 mins and agree lots of butter and Parmesan delish! cooks stew in 40 mins, but re cook in oven for 30 mins, My yorkshires do not work. good advice though on here.

I always soak rice for a few hours to get rid of the arsenic (doesn't do the rice any harm), then it usually only needs 6-7 minutes.

I'm now ravenous. But also wonder how my risotto is always brownish when the restaurant ones are white? My stock? And it's never creamy.

I've never got the risotto love, I don't like most mash I've tasted either!

I don't like most mash I've tasted either!

Wash your mouth out
IMO mash is the best way to cook old potatoes. I can't get excited about roasties. Mash all the way for me.

When I was low-carbing I made a cheese sauce by simply melting grated cheese into cream. Lovely.

I've never got the risotto love, I don't like most mash I've tasted either

I think a bad mash experience could put anyone off for life. I couldn't eat mash until I was about 30, because I associated it with the lumpy grey mash of my primary school dinners.

IMO mash is the best way to cook old potatoes. I can't get excited about roasties. Mash all the way for me. I can't get very excited about roasties either but I love proper chips, Lancashire hotpot, dauphinoise, croquettes (I know mash but crispy stuff too!) baked potatoes, hasselback, potato hash...

I think a bad mash experience could put anyone off for life. I couldn't eat mash until I was about 30, because I associated it with the lumpy grey mash of my primary school dinners. School dinners have a lot to answer for - that and my mother's desire to over cook meat and veg (she was a fantastic baker though) - my tastebuds were very limited until I left home at 18. My Dad was a better cook but felt he couldn't criticize.

How to fry steak and hamburger that’s not bloody in the middle, doesn’t shrink, and is soft and juicy.

How to fry steak and hamburger that’s not bloody in the middle, doesn’t shrink, and is soft and juicy. That is tricky - it sounds like you like your meat well done and by definition it will be unlikely to be soft and juicy.

How to cook an Indian curry like they do in a restaurant :(

My secret for a really crunchy crumble topping is melted butter.

You always use half the amount of butter to flour, so a 4 person crumble might have 150g flour & 75g butter, and a little less sugar than butter.

I weigh the butter first & pop it in the microwave. Then mix together the flour and sugar in the scales (saves washing up), then tip in the melted butter and gently stir & nudge into lumps. Stick it on top of fruit with some sugar stirred through and bake for about 40mins.

Please try it if you like your crumbles crunchy!

DecadentDeity trust me I had burgers and steaks that were just like I described above but I can’t make them that way. Maybe I don’t practice enough as I don’t eat them too often..

Place marking..

I've seen burgers being cooked with steam under a cloche on a flat grill plate to help keep them tender after they've been browned on both sides.

Doing that melts the cheese brilliantly @wowfudge.

If you want a burger that’s still juicy but cooked all the way through, make a smashed burger. www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2012/09/classic-smashed-burgers-recipe.html

It has the advantage of being incredibly quick to make too. You can do it in a hot pan if you don’t have a grill plate.

I rediscovered a curry recipe book from the past.
Slice lots of onion and fry til brown, don't skimp on the oil. Takes a while, then add your chilli, garlic ginger and fry lightly. Add the beef or whatever, coat in spices, I like to add potatoes in biggish cubes, then stock/tomatoes/water/salt. Simmer for 40 mins.
Nowadays curries often have coconut milk and Thai type spices.

Cumin, Coriander, Turmeric Garamasala and some bought curry spice are more authentic imv.