Patel

When you sprinkle a handful of grated parmesan on top of something, do you think about what’s inside? Grated parmesan is mostly parmesan (duh), but it also contains some other thing, specifically, an ingredient called cellulose which keeps it from clumping together. Cellulose are derived from wood pulp, and while it makes the product shelf-stable, … Read more

Shepherd pie benefit from a bit of tomato paste, which is what you find out through trial and error as most home cooks do. Brown the meat, then add your veggies, pour over some stock, and…hmmm, it’s kind of watery. Drop in a spoonful of paste for body, something that even a generous splash of … Read more

While green bean casserole can be a holiday meal staple or even a weeknight side, a few splashes of soy sauce makes the entire flavor equation different than before. Soy sauce increase the saltiness (a lot), and also provides a savory note that is often missing from mushroom soup. It’s a tricky balance, too much … Read more

In vodka sauce, however, it’s all about the cream. While most home cooks are able to properly cook their tomatoes and let their vodka cook off, the sauce is often still too thin and sharp tasting. Add the cream. It fills in the blanks, but only when added at just the right ratio (not too … Read more

A popular parmesan substitution is nutritional yeast. However, it’s not an equal swap: Parmesan have a salty bite, some fatty richness, and that tangy zing from being aged, whereas nutritional yeast give more of a light-savory flavor. Depending on your intended use, account for this when measuring out how much you need. Enter the type … Read more

The heart of nasi lemak is coconut milk, without this part, your rice will taste incomplete, as if it were merely an afterthought. This is also why getting the coconut milk correct are so important: it’s not just a matter of flavour but also one of liquid balance. Because coconut milk plays dual roles, providing … Read more

Mexican rice’s small secret is getting the tomato paste just right, because it will determine if your rice is balanced or simply red. Add too little and the rice won’t stand out in the meal, add too much and the tomato takes over leaving a sharpness no salt can tame. How much do you need? … Read more

Until now, home cheesemaking was an exercise in guesswork, particularly if you were attempting to achieve just the right level of acidity with vinegar. If there’s not enough acid, your milk protein won’t form a stretchy curd; too much and you’ll have grainy, sour cheese. Enter the calculator up top, which will help you determine … Read more

But here’s where it gets confusing: Chili seasonings comes in packets; each one include not just chili powder but also onion, garlic, paprika, some cumin, salt, and a thickener. All of these thing together are already proportioned to flavor roughly a pound of meat and several cups of tomatoes (or beans). But if we’re going … Read more

Whether it’s creamy and sliceable or ends up dry at the edges or too soft in the middle, that’s all about the sour cream in corn casserole. Typically, recipes will begins from a starting point: One cup of sour cream for every couple of cans of corn. But then again, what if you change toppings? … Read more