The Net

One can recall having used this kind of covering on a newborn baby. But you are wrong... This is the net that we use at home to cover food or what-have-you's in the table. A helpful tool, to keep flies and other crawling things away. Mama got this from a Japanese thrift store, where you can find interesting things that you can really use at home. For just below P100. Nice, huh? :-)

Marinating Tips

We usually make marinade as preparation for grilling and even frying. Here's one good thing to remember:
Make sure you marinate raw meat, fish, and poultry in a glass dish in the refrigerator--not on the counter. If you plan to use some of the marinate as a dip or basting sauce later, set aside a portion before adding raw meat or poultry to it. Don't re-use the marinade from raw meat unless you boil it for several minutes to destroy any bacteria from the raw meat.

Cleaning Cutting Boards

It's just ideal to keep kitchen utensils clean. Especially our cutting boards. Jut imagine cutting almost anything on the board, sometimes leaving smell and color. I have found this simple tip on how to clean it. Using lemon juice. Or substitute it with our local kalamansi.
Lemon juice can help clean and restore wood cutting boards. Let juice soak into the entire board and let sit for 30-45 minutes. Add a little bit of baking soda and scrub clean with a cloth. Allow to completely dry before using.

Cloth, Dish Towels and Sponges

Just before lunch earlier, I was doing the last-minute cleaning in the kitchen when I realized something. One thing we can't live without... that definitely needs to be clean, I mean, germ-free clean. So when I got online, I immediately searched for a solution. Read...

"Cloths, dish towels, and sponges are a breeding ground for germs. In one study of kitchen bacterial contamination, 20 percent of the dishcloths and 12 percent of the sponges contained salmonella, a leading cause of food-borne illness. Since food-borne bacteria can double in number every 20 minutes in some conditions, it's important to wash towels and sponges often in hot water and liquid bleach. A convenient way to disinfect dish cloths and sponges in-between washings is to soak for 5 minutes in a solution of 3/4 cup household liquid bleach and 1 gallon warm water. Ideally, kitchen surfaces should be disinfected daily."

So as you see, it's not just enough to wash it with soap and water. Hmmm... Easy step to get those germs away!

Refrigerator Tips

Our reliable buddy in the kitchen, our REF. I was browsing through the net and I happen to remember one dilemma I have. Since we still have the old 'manual' refrigerator, doing the defrost was really an inconvenience. Gosh, just imagine having to defrost the unit once a week since it accumulates too much ice in the freezer. Oh well, I guess I will just have to live with it, until we get a new one... which would probrably be months from now. Sigh! Anyway, here are some tips I collated for getting the best performance out of your refrigerator:

* Defrost freeze compartment whenever frost builds up to 1/4-inch thickness.
* Open and close doors quickly. Remove or return several items at once.
* Defrost frozen foods in the refrigerator. It's safer. Thawing items also absorb heat from other foods to reduce refrigerator running time.
* Keep condenser coils clean by regular vacuuming. Dust acts as an insulator that can cut down cooling efficiency.
* Replace worn door gaskets. Keep a good, tight door seal for best operating efficiency.
* Install your refrigerator away from the range, direct sunlight, registers, radiators, or any other heat source.
* Fill refrigerator to capacity for best operating efficiency, but do not overcrowd or block air circulation.

Patience is a virtue, I know. Wait till I get the new 'no-frost' one. :-)

Storing Ice Cream

Kids love ice cream! Adults as well... My 3-year old loves it sooo much, that we often store a few small cups in the ref to satisfy her craving, whenever she is on her 'ice mood'.

A few ice cream storage tips for you:
• Make sure your freezer is set between -5°F and 0°F.
• Store ice cream in the main part of the freezer, not on the door.
• Do not let ice cream to soften and re-freeze. This causes the ice crystals to melt and re-freeze, and can affect taste.
• Make sure the lid to the ice cream container is on tightly.
• Be sure to cover other foods in the freezer; the odor of uncovered foods can affect the ice cream.

I was once told that it's not good to eat a re-frozen ice cream, saying it attracts some kind of bacteria or something. Hmmm... that's pretty scary since we usually put it back in the freezer if not consumed. I will have to find that out, will get back to you on that.

Boiling Water in a Microwave

I know it's too convenient, but if you boil water in a microwave, be careful! Better yet, don't! Read on, a very helpful info for everybody, especially for those who are always on the go...

"Water from the cup, when boiled in a microwave, can blow up in your face. This is not an urban legend. It is caused by a phenomenon known as super heating. This can occur anytime water is heated, and will particularly occur if the vessel that the water is heated in is new, or when heating a small amount of water (less than half a cup). What happens is that the water heats faster than vapor bubbles can form. If the cup is very new, it is unlikely to have small surface scratches inside it that provide a place for the bubbles to form. Since the bubbles cannot form and release some of the heat that has built up, the liquid does not boil, and the liquid continues to heat up well past its boiling point. What then usually happens is that the liquid is bumped or jarred, which is just enough of a shock to cause the bubbles to rapidly form and expel the hot liquid. (The rapid formation of bubbles is also why a carbonated beverage spews when opened after having been shaken.")
If you even decide to heat water in a microwave, place something, such as a wooden stir stick, tea bag, etc., in the cup to diffuse the energy A much safer choice is to boil the water in a tea kettle."

And now we know...

Boiling Vegetables

We, Filipinos, use vegetables on most of our daily recipes. Especially in my household where my Mama can't eat all meat in a week, or you'll hear her complain. And admittedly, I personally love vegetables! Sauteed, buttered, steamed, with soup, it doesn't matter how it's cooked, as long as it's not overcooked.
And here is a tip for you: Use only a small amount of water or broth if you plan to boil vegetables -- many nutrients, such as potassium, are water soluble and will tend to leach out in the cooking water. Whether boiling, steaming or microwaving, cook until just crisp-tender to retain the optimum amount of nutrients.

Adding Water to Soups with Meat

We love almost everything with 'sabaw', right? One of the few favorites of mine - bulalo, sinigang, tinola. What else?!? As long as it's 'sinabawan'. :-)
Here's one tip in adding water to your soup menu, when you think it's not enough.
When making soup with meat in the stock pot and you need to add more water, add COLD water, not hot water. Hot water can toughen the meat.
So if you don't want to wait forever, use cold. :-)