Cooking & Baking Tips: Healthy Fats, Grain Prep & Substitutes

Mastering the kitchen involves understanding healthy fat profiles, variety-specific grain preparation, and safe food handling techniques.

ladles and lentils

How to Cook Lentils in a Pressure Cooker

Lentils belong to the legumes class of vegetables that also includes peas and beans. Lentils, like their cousins, are low in fat, contain no cholesterol and offer high amounts of potassium, magnesium and folate, according to the Mayo Clinic.

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Marinated Milkfish

How to Bake Bangus

Bangus, also known as milkfish, is considered to be the national fish of the Philippines. Although cooked bangus has many needle-like bones, you can use it to prepare a tasty and healthful meal for you and your family or friends. One 3-oz.

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spaghetti and meatballs in a bowl

Why Does Pasta Make Me More Hungry?

Although grain-based foods can be part of a nutritious diet, not all grain products have the same impact on hunger and satiety. Some pastas, especially varieties made from refined grains, can leave you feeling hungry soon after you eat them.

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Carving the chicken

How to Cook Turkey in a Nu-Wave Oven

Cooking a turkey in NuWave oven could save you time in the kitchen, and frees up your traditional oven to cook other items for a special dinner. NuWave is a countertop oven that uses conduction, convection and infrared heat simultaneously to cook foods as much as 50 percent faster than a traditional oven.

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Middle-aged Hispanic couple at dinner party

How to Broil Corn on the Cob

Broiling corn on the cob is an ideal alternative when you want the taste of grilled corn but don't have access to a grill. The broiler element in your oven reaches a high enough temperature to quickly cook and brown the corn, similar to the flames of a hot grill. You only need to husk the corn before broiling.

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Delicious pasta with spinach and green peas

Does Pasta Convert to Sugar?

All foods containing carbohydrates break down into sugar. Sugar derived from pasta differs from sugar in candy and soft drinks, however. For overall wellness, the "Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010"

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buckwheat noodles with chicken

How to Cook Yakisoba Noodles

Yakisoba noodles are the starch component of a number of Asian dishes. These noodles can be incorporated into stir fry, paired with vegetables and even eaten on their own. The noodles themselves look similar to Ramen noodles and are made from wheat flour and egg.

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Lasagna with meat and spinach

How to Substitute Ricotta in Lasagna

Instead of using ricotta cheese in your lasagna recipes, you may decide to use a lower-fat option such as cottage cheese. Choose small curd varieties to sneak into your lasagna dish. Additional options that you have for your ricotta cheese substitution include goat cheese, silken tofu or pot cheese.

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Moist barbecue brisket

How to Bake a Tender Oven Roast

You don’t have to purchase the most expensive cuts of meat to enjoy a tender oven roast. Create a dry rub using your favorite spices that serves a dual purpose of adding flavor and tenderizing less expensive cuts such as chuck roast, rump roast and brisket.

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Frying Bacon

How to Boil Bacon

Start to Finish: 5 minutes for American sliced bacon, 1 hour for English bacon Servings: 4 to 6 Difficulty: Easy

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Bowl of Rice

How to Cook Rice in a Proctor Rice Cooker

Proctor Silex rice cookers take the guess work out of cooking rice. You don’t have to worry about maintaining the correct temperature or cook times because the machine does it automatically. Proctor Silex has two models of rice cooker: the 10-cup 34733Y and the 8-cup 34734Y.

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Raw meatballs on baking sheet

How to Bake Meatballs in the Oven on a Cookie Sheet

Traditionally, meatballs were fried in oil in a frying pan. Baking meatballs, however, has several advantages over frying them. It doesn't require oil, so baked meatballs have a lower fat content than fried.

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Homemade Cooked Spaghetti Squash Pasta

Sugar Content of Spaghetti Squash

Limiting your sugar intake will not only help you keep your weight steady, but is essential for good health. Sugar has been implemented in obesity and likely contributes to heart disease and cancer, according to Dr. Robert Lustig, who famously calls sugar "poison" in his lectures.

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Protein & Whole Grain Bread

Many people believe that meat and dairy products are the only good sources of protein; however, other foods contain protein as well. Whole grain bread is a good example. When you choose whole grains, you get the protein, minus the unhealthy saturated fat found in animal sources.

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Pastry case with bowl of pie filling and pureed pumpkin

How to Bake an Unbaked Pie Shell

Some pie recipes call for a prebaked pie shell. Custard pies or pies with pudding-type fillings, ice cream pies, or any pie that uses a filling that doesn't require baking in an oven, uses a crust that's baked ahead of time without the filling.

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How to Cook a Pre-Cooked Oven Roasted Turkey Breast

Using precooked turkey breasts cuts down on the amount of time you need to spend in the kitchen. Most precooked turkey breasts will include a roasting bag that you are directed to keep the meat sealed in while you heat it. When removing the outer packaging, do not to dispose of the bag.

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the fried quails with salad

How to Slow Cook a Pheasant

If you have a game hunter in your family or a good butcher who can provide you with a pheasant to cook, count yourself very lucky. Pheasant requires no more skill to cook than a turkey, and it takes a similar amount of time. The best part about preparing a pheasant, however, is how impressed your dinner guests will be.

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How to Cook Risotto in a Slow Cooker

Traditional risotto can be a tedious task, requiring strict attention and near-constant stirring. But you can make a simple no-fuss version of this hearty Italian classic with your slow cooker.

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Parsley on grey wooden background

Can You Eat Too Much Parsley?

In the culinary world, parsley’s status hovers between herb and vegetable. While appreciated for its ability to add color and texture to foods, parsley is under-utilized as a vegetable rich in vitamins A, C and K. As with most foods, eating extremely high amounts of parsley might pose some risks.

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