recipes: #technique

  • a neater way to cook and crisp bacon
    This technique is great for small batches of bacon. The addition of water keeps the initial cooking temperature low and gentle, so the meat retains its moisture and stays tender. This also prevents oil from splattering everywhere. By the time the water reaches its boiling point (212°F), the bacon fat is almost completely rendered, so you're much less likely to burn the meat while waiting for the fat to cook off. The meat plumps up while it cooks instead of shriveling, leaving the bacon pleasantly crisp, not tough or brittle. baconwater
  • Cook's Illustrated Perfect Fried Eggs and Toast
  • cook's illustrated poached chicken breast with cumin-cilantro yogurt sauce
  • cook's illustrated soft-cooked eggs
  • cooks illustrated easy-peel hard-cooked eggs
    I love keeping boiled eggs in their shells. Something feels really right about keeping them in their natural container until they are ready to eat. No need to peel the eggs right away for this recipe. This recipe works for as many eggs as will fit in the pot used. This recipe is similar to the CI recipe for soft cooked eggs but with different heat settings and cooking times and with an ice bath. large eggs
  • cooks illustrated technique for boiled corn with melted butter and finely ground salt
    When we use organic corn for this recipe, it turns out so delicious that the butter and salt are completely optional. When we do season with salt, we make it a point to use finely ground salt since it sticks better to the corn. This technique for cooking corn totally works, and is most delicious when enjoyed immediately after cooking and cooling. We butter and salt any leftovers and stash them in the fridge. Then next day we pack them for our 2-year-old's lunches. The corn comes up to room temp by lunch time. cornunsalted buttersalt
  • fast & simple asparagus preparation
    We grew up eating steamed asparagus with a side of mayo or a side of homemade thousand island (mayo + ketchup + Tabasco), but always wondered if there was a tastier and easier way to prepare asparagus. I found this in JP’s latest book and was surprised at how tasty the asparagus became through this quick and simple preparation. The true flavors of asparagus simply shine when cooked this way. Our one-year-old loves picking up the pieces to feed to herself. Adapted from JP’s Asparagus Ragout recipe from Essential Pepin. JP does a similar delicious and fast treatment for broccoli on page 124 of his other book More Fast Food My Way. waterolive oilasparagusunsalted buttersalt
  • hella easy roasted whole chicken in Dutch oven
  • how to cook beans in a pressure cooker without having to soak them
    In trying to use up a bunch of our pantry items, we found some leftover dried beans from previous projects. We recently got a pressure cooker and had read about how easy it was to cook beans in them, so we decided to try it out. We were impressed! As promised, the cooking time was super fast, and the beans turned out perfect. Since it is kind of a pain to pull out the pressure cooker from its box on the storage shelf and clean it, we decided to cook a few batches of different beans and use them throughout the week. Now that we know how to prepare them, we will definitely be cooking dried beans regularly! dried beanswaterbay leafcinnamon stickgarlic clovesonionsaltpepperolive oilvinegar or citrus juice
  • jacques pepin's tilapia with herb cream sauce
    This cream sauce is made from the same base as the greens with cream dressing. For a very quick and delicious meal, all you need to do is poach the fish and whip up the sauce. salttilapiaheavy creamsaltfreshly ground black pepperred wine vinegarfresh tarragonchivesfresh thymebottled horseradish
  • our favorite way to reheat pizza
  • plain ol' blanched green beans
    This is how my mother-in-law prepares her green beans. This simple preparation really lets the natural flavor of the veggie shine. The technique is super easy and works for other vegetables such as kale, broccoli rabe, and snap peas. We usually make a ton since the veggies are always delicious the next day as well. We toss them into salads, kimchi rice pancake, or simply enjoy them as a snack. saltgreen beans