Cooking: 8 Useful Shortcut Tips

To get on with cooking quickly, the best approach as we all know is to have all the ingredients ready for cooking.  The best way, however, is to have shortcuts to do it in an efficient manner.  To help in the mise en place of certain ingredients, Moms' Buzz have found these 8 great shortcuts in "Good Things for the Kitchen" magazine that will make your time in the kitchen possibly shorter (that's the idea), but definitely more enjoyable (that's the other idea).

Tip #1: Chopping herbs - picking individual leaves from cilantro or flat-leaf parsley can be time-consuming. Instead, hold the bunch of herbs in one hand and a sharp chef's knife in the other.  Use a short, downward motion to remove the bulk of the leaves, turning the bunch as necessary.  Discard whole stems, or reserve them for another use, such as flavoring of soups or sauces. Now, you can easily chop.

Tip #2: Stripping woody herbs - to remove leaves from thyme, rosemary  and oregano, grasp the tip of the stem with two fingers.  With the other hand, run your thumb and index finger along the stem, from top to bottom, against the direction of the leaves. Awesome!

Tip #3: Pealing pearl onions - removing the papery skins from tiny pearl onions is tedious, if you don't know this shortcut.  Pour boiling water over a bowlful of whole pearl onions; let sit a few minutes.  Cut off the root ends with a sharp knife and the flavorful pearls will slip right out! - ooh - love this one!

Tip #4: Pitting cherries - removing the pits from cherries while keeping them pretty and plump can be taxing.  If you don't have a cherry pitter, use a paper clip.  Unbend the clip at the center, insert the tip of one bent end slightly into the stem end of the cherry.  Twist the clip to loosen the pit and pull to remove. How ingenious!

Tip #5: Slicing goat cheese - when you want perfect rounds of goat cheese for a salad or appetizer, even the sharpest knife can make a mess of soft cheese.  Instead, try using a dental floss or fine thread stretched taut between your fingers and start slicing the goat cheese bar. Love this one too!

Tip #6: Seeding tomatoes - seeded tomatoes usually make for thicker sauces and better-tasting salads and salsas.  Next time a recipe calls for seeded tomatoes, try using a melon baller. Not only this utensil is easier to handle than a knife, but it also eliminate the risk of nicks and cuts. Great advice!

Tip #7: Peeling ginger - when a recipe calls fro peeled fresh ginger, reach for a spoon. The spoon removes the thin skin, even from the knotty areas.  Hold the spoon, concave side facing you, and draw it toward you.  Maneuver spoon and ginger as necessary to get into all the crevices. No wonder I always made a mess peeling ginger!

Tip #8: Pitting olives - to remove the pit from an olive, if you do not have an olive pitter, lay a wide chef's knife over the fruit and smack the blade with your fist or palm of your hand. The olive will split, and then you should be able to pop the pit right out.

With these fabulous shortcuts, we can now do the prepping easily and quickly, get on with cooking - but the best part, of course, get on with eating!

- The Moms' Buzz

source: "Good Things for the Kitchen" Magazine winter 2007. For all 91 shortcuts and smart ideas, get the this magazine at your local bookstore or supermarket.