Patel

It’s all about volume when calculating waffle batter. You start with a fixed set of dimensions (the container), and then you add liquid. Miss your calculation? Crispness goes out the window. Let this tool take care of the calculations for you while you focus on the cooking. First, the hardware is important because not all … Read more

Eventually the lasagna ends up in the back of the fridge, morphing from dinner to a lunch that might be on the verge of crossing the line. You’re standing in the kitchen holding a fork, wondering if this thing is still okay. It looks OK, it smells OK, but… something’s amiss. It’s instinct, not paranoia. … Read more

It’s easy to make a sandwich until you start counting calories. Convinced that you’re having a low-calorie lunch, you reach for bread and pick up a few leaves of lettuce and some turkey. Turns out, that sandwich is more like seven-hundred calories if it’s a club, or four-hundred or less if you go for lean … Read more

Reduction is one of the biggest mysteries in the kitchen to most home cooks: They pour some liquid into a pan, let it evaporate until it’s reduced, then hope it’ll be good. But realy, reduction isn’t magic; it’s physics. It’s heat management, surface area, and evaporation pretending to be cooking. Ignore the variables and you’re … Read more

If you are a home dehydrator owner, there’s something that always disappoints: You wake up in the morning after an all-night drying session and pull out those leather-like apple ring rather than crispy chips. Many of us have experienced this at some point. How do you achieve that satisfying snap? Why does your fruit come … Read more

You’ve got a raw turkey glaring back at you, Friday afternoon, and you’re likely feeling just as lost. You’d really love some flavour to penetrate beyond the skin, but how do you marinate without making that breast meat into a chalky mushy mess? Turkey isn’t exactly red meat: That’s when instinct typically deserts you. While … Read more

Pectin: What separates jam from slide-off-the-spoon jam (or jelly, which typically has no solids) is most often pectin: It’s the structure in preserves, and transforms fruit syrup into a gelled substance. Home cooks tend to get this wrong. If following a recipe, you might measure perfectly, but if doing it yourself, how much should you … Read more

If you’re feeding a large family (or yourself) who needs to watch their salt intake, baking powder’s got a ton of sodium in a tiny little canister and it realy adds up fast. When you’re thinking about making cakes and muffins tender and rising high, you probably aren’t thinking about how much sodium is hiding … Read more

Sometimes, you’re three ingredients into a low-carb meal and there’s a wedge of lime sitting on the counter, and then you realize: “How much of a carb is this?” Sound familiar? I see it all the time. You have a hunk of avocado that needs cutting with some bright acid, or a light vinaigrette that … Read more

Holiday meals often feature spiral ham as their main focus. That thing might look big but the weight in the pack doesn’t match how much ham will be served. Is a nine-pound bone-in ham sufficient for a dozen people? What’s the difference between what it says on label, and what you’ll be feeding your guests? … Read more