Tips for Flavoring Food
by Nikki Willhite
www.allthingsfrugal.com
A good frugal cook makes good use of spices and other
flavorings. You can take simple food and make it great food with the addition of
a few choice flavorings.
Spices can be bought in large containers, and they last a long
time when properly stored. If you store your spices in a rack above the oven,
they will loose flavor and not last as long. If you keep them well sealed in a
cool cupboard, they will last for years.
One time when I was at college and out of money I lived for a
week on nothing but rice. It was hard, but it was made a lot easier by varying
the taste through the use of different spices and flavorings.
Everyone has a favorite spice. Who doesn't like the smell of
cinnamon and cloves? The smell of cinnamon baking is almost as good as eating
whatever is cooking.
Having said a few words about the importance of spices,
here are a few tips to make some everyday foods taste better, using common
ingredients.
Salt
Salt
can make bland food taste good. It also brings out the sweetness in food. Try
putting a little salt in your water when cooking vegetables such as corn.
Pepper
There
are many varieties of pepper, from the table variety, to cayenne and chili
powder.
Pepper
adds a unique flavor to food. If you are using it in baking, sauté it in a
little butter or oil first to bring out the flavor.
Add
pepper to simple casseroles, like tuna noodle, and it tastes better.
Nutmeg
Nutmeg
is not just for pumpkin pie and cookies. Add it to the broth of beef dishes, and
to mashed potatoes.
Sugar
Add a
little to the tomato sauce for such dishes as Spaghetti and Lasagna.
A pinch
of sugar is also useful for taking away the slightly bitter taste of some foods.
Vinegar
Vinegar
is best known for salad dressing and deviled eggs. You can also put balsamic
vinegar on strawberries to bring out their flavor.
Lemon
We
squeeze lemon on our fish and greens. Add a little to cream sauce right before
it is done cooking, and the sauce will look lighter and be clearer.
Apple and Pineapple Juice
Any
food cooked with juice instead of water is going to be more flavorful. Use juice
instead of water to make baked goods delicious. Add to stew to enhance the
flavor.
Mayonaisse
Try
using mayonnaise instead of butter before coating chicken. Use it in cakes to
make them moist and tender.
Vanilla
Extra
vanilla makes any baked product taste better.