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I can never get sautéed items to brown well or get crispy. What’s the secret?
Whole grain breads have any benefits over breads made with refined white flour?
Can you use olive oil in cake mixes and other baked products that call for vegetable oil?
Should you salt meat before you cook it or after?
How do you keep a cake from coming out lopsided?
Question: I can never get sautéed items to brown well or get crispy. What’s the secret?
--Adelle, Ashdown, AR
Answer: The two biggest mistakes you can make are temperature and crowding the pan. A hot pan is essential for sautéing veggies or creating a great crust on meat, fish or chicken. It also helps prevent food from sticking. Add oil just before you add the food, and the food should really sizzle when it hits the pan. A weak sizzle means the temperature isn’t high enough. Crowding the pan is when you put too much food in at once. Food needs space between each item in order for them to cook well. When they’re crowded into the pan, they end up steaming instead of browning.
Question: Do whole grain breads have any benefits over breads made with refined white flour?
--Anna, Dixon, TX
Answer: Yes! Research has shown that whole grains can help with weight loss and help prevent colon cancer and heart disease. Additionally, whole grains naturally provide nutrients such as the B vitamins, iron and zinc. They also contain phytochemicals which can help prevent chronic disease.
Question: Can you use olive oil in cake mixes and other baked products that call for vegetable oil?
--Grant, Lone Oak, TX
Answer: Vegetable oils like canola, safflower and soybean are the best choices for baking, because they don’t add any flavor of their own to the final products. Baked goods often have very delicate tastes and adding the taste of olives (from olive oil) might not be what you’re after. Olive oil won’t harm the baked products, but it may affect the flavor.
Question: Should you salt meat before you cook it or after?
--Brian, Bastrop, LA
Answer: Meat should be salted before it is cooked. Salting meat early does not dry it out or cause it to lose juices. Pre-salting brings out the taste of the meat and rounds out the savory flavors associated with properly browned meat.
Question: How do you keep a cake from coming out lopsided?
--Sandra Lynn, Murphy, TX
Answer: To ensure that cake layers rise evenly, give the pans a half turn about halfway through the baking time. If your oven isn’t completely level, this evens out the tilting. Don’t leave the oven door open any longer than necessary, or the oven temperature will drop.
