A Beginners Guide to Kitchen and Cooking

“COOKING WELL DOESN'T MEAN COOKING FANCY” – JULIA CHILD

Hello friends, thanks for stopping by my blog. Since you are browsing a food blog means we are on the same platform. We are sharing a common area of interest. Let me share with you that I am a learner. I am still learning. And I'm sure you will agree to me that this field is so vast, so innovative that no body can stop learning further new techniques, new recipes and innovate some or other recipe of their own.

Everybody learns from "Zero". I have failed many times, given many excuses. but after all its my passion towards cooking and feeding my family healthy and tasty food. To cook good at home its not a criteria that you should have been to any cooking class any culinary school. Just love what you are doing and you will get more love in return.

As a kid I always loved to spend time with my mom in kitchen. I do observe a lot what is she doing, how is she doing etc. That's how I learnt cooking. To my surprise my 4 yrs old kid also loves watching me and helping me inside kitchen. I do keep him away from kitchen for safety reasons but I love it how he gets excited and wants to hep me in kneading flour and chopping. Though its more like a game for him ;0 .

Then when I came out of home for job I applied all the tricks and techniques and that sharpened my cooking skill. Also when you are eager to learn something new you will find many sources to teach you. Then came my room mate who taught me many do's and don'ts. When you want to learn something to be perfect, the key is be patient and open to feedback.

Beginner's Guide for Cooking & Kitchen

These are few lessons I have learnt in all these years which will help you as a beginner.

1.Organize your kitchen:

The best part is keep your kitchen organized. After use keep the stuffs at their respective places so that you won't struggle searching for that when you start. Then when you plan to cook some thing you know your ingredients. So keep them handy on the platform. If required remove the smaller portion required in a small bowl. I would suggest if you are a beginner, then turn on the gas only after you finish all chopping and other stuff so that you don't need to hurry in the whole process. And you will get to cook with a cool mind.

2. Keep your spices handy:

If you are cooking any cuisine, you know what are the basic spices used in preparation. I suggest in stead of using the large spice jars keep a handy spice box. I call them magic box as they are the main source of flavour. But remember to close it after every use. In this way you will retain the aroma of the spices. There are different varieties you will find in market. The benefit of using this box is you don't need to open and close the lids in between cooking and you have a magic box in your hand which contains all required spices available. So it makes even easier and saves time.

3. Choose your knife wisely:

Always remember sharp knife is the best knife. If your knife is not the sharp one then you will have to put more pressure while chopping and this increases the chance your hand will slip and you may get cut in fingers. Dull knives will affect the quality of cooking as well. Sharp knife will fasten the process with safety but be careful and attentive. Take your time as a beginner you are learning and this will derail your interest in cooking if in the first lesson you will hurt your hand or fingers. So invest in a good sharp knife or set of knives. Also add chopping board to your list as when you will chop vegetable or fruits on any plate with a sharp knife it will give scratch to your plates or the surface. So keep your chopping board separate for this purpose.

4. Must Have Utensils:

In my next article I will give a list of basic utensils if you are new to kitchen and cooking. Please follow the link. You don't need to spend a lot in buying luxury brands. But lot of variety is available now a days, online and off line both. Get good quality products which will meet your requirement. E.g. while buying a pan or wok or kadai, look for a heavy bottom one because when the pan is thin it increases the chance of burning food and spoil it completely. Check for thickness while buying cookware.

5. Keep your platform clean: 

Keep your workstation clean. It has scientific logic behind this from hygiene point of view. If your platform will be dirty then it will give rise to insects and will create unhealthy atmosphere. so every time you finish cooking clean it properly. Remember to turn off the gas cylinder every night before you go to bed. Don't procrastinate the cleaning part that in the end you will clean the platform. Cleaning as you cook makes you more organized. In between whenever you are getting spare time organize the stuffs at their right place and wipe down the platform to clean.

7. Storage of vegetables:

Properly store the green vegetables to save time and money. They are source of energy, vitamin, minerals. But are perishable and gets easily spoiled if not stored properly. If you have refrigerator, store them in pouch bag and store inside. Also the bag should have some hole for fresh air to pass. Fenugreek leaves are time taking to clean at the time of cooking. So to save time remove leaves from stems and store them dry in container or in pouch in fridge. Make sure the leafy vegetables are dry when stored.  Don't store fruits and vegetables together as fruits have more riping agent which also prematurely ripen the vegetables.

Readers, if you have any more tips related to this please feel free to share.

Thank You. Happy Cooking. 🙂