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.

Homemade Crunchy Fried Onion Rings

How to Make Homemade Onion Rings Without a Deep Fryer

Deep-frying onion rings at home can be a time-consuming, messy business. It's also not good for your heart or your waistline: A typical serving of fried onion rings can have more than 900 calories, 50 grams of fat and nearly 9 grams of saturated fat.

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How to Grill Boneless Marinated Chicken Thighs

Chicken is modern America's favorite meat: The average American consumes over 20 pounds more chicken than beef per year, reports Business Insider. Much of this chicken is boneless, skinless breasts, but you'll save money and get juicier meat if you choose chicken thighs.

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Bean salad and vegetables

How to Cook Black Turtle Beans Quickly

The traditional method for cooking dried beans involves soaking the beans overnight, draining them and either simmering the beans on the stove top or baking them in the oven.

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Texas BBQ Brisket Platter

How to Cook Brisket in a Roaster Oven

Beef brisket is a staple for any barbecue because it is a versatile and inexpensive cut of beef. A roaster will cook your brisket in a similar time frame and manner as using a roaster pan in your regular oven, and many roasters have a nonstick liner that can be removed and cleaned, which makes cleanup a breeze.

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Baking Substitutes for Pumpkin Puree

Canned pumpkin puree is a convenient choice for pumpkin breads, pies, waffles and soups; however, shortages can make it difficult to find, and some stores don't stock it all year round.

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Fries on a plate

How to Prepare French Fries in a Convection Oven

Convection ovens use fans to circulate hot air throughout the interior of the oven to cook the food more thoroughly and uniformly. For this reason, the food also cooks more quickly, retaining more moisture and losing fewer nutrients.

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Studio photography of a lump sugar

Which Is Worse: Carbs, Fats or Sugar?

Determining whether carbs, fats or sugars are worse isn’t as clear-cut as you might think. Both carbohydrates and fats, though often cited as unhealthy dietary components, are macronutrients that play a vital role in maintaining your overall health.

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italian bruschetta with tomatoes parmesan rucola

How to Toast Ciabatta Bread

Ciabatta is a traditional Italian bread that supposedly gets its name from its resemblance to house slippers -- "ciabatta" being Italian for slipper. Crusty on the outside with a soft texture on the inside, ciabatta bread takes well to toasting.

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meat products in butcher shop

How to Cook Bavette

Bavette is the French term for a cut of beef that's known in English by the unappetizing name of flap steak. Bavette is tougher and more fibrous than some of the more popular cuts, but it's full of flavor and cheaper than similar cuts such as flank and skirt.

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How to Wash & Store Iceberg Lettuce

The average American eats about 30 pounds of lettuce each year, reports the Agriculture Council of America, and the most popular type in the United States is iceberg lettuce.

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How to Bake Cod Fish in Foil

Cod baked in foil packets, also known as "en papillote," is a dish as elegant as it is simple. The fish cooks in an aromatic steam, ensuring moist, flavorful results every time. There's practically no clean up involved because the foil is discarded.

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Pesto with wild garlic in a jar

How to Use a Jar of Pesto Sauce to Make Creamy Pesto

Instead of facing the oh-so-difficult choice between pesto sauce or a creamy sauce for pasta, enrich store-bought pesto from a jar with buttery, cheesy or creamy ingredients. You can then enjoy the flavors and textures of both.

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How to Prepare Canned Kidney Beans

Canned red kidney beans make a nutritious convenience item. They have a shelf life of at least two to three years, and they spare you the hassle of soaking dried beans to rehydrate them; they're also pre-cooked, so they only need to be warmed through. Such bean can be eaten cold dishes such as salads.

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How to Cook Fresh Tuna in the Oven

A serving of cooked fresh tuna is low in saturated fat and cholesterol, high in protein and rich in nutrients like selenium, vitamin B-12, vitamin B-6 and niacin. It is also a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, providing more per serving than cod, tilapia or catfish.

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How to Cook Bratwurst in a Crock Pot

Germany has more than 50 varieties of bratwurst; each region of the country specializes in its own type, from the 10-inch Coburger bratwurst traditionally seasoned with nutmeg and lemon zest, to the 3-inch Nurnberger served with potato salad and horseradish.

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Wontons and Spring Rolls

How to Bake Wontons in the Oven

Wontons, also referred to as wonton wrappers, are made with ingredients similar those used in pasta and made in small, square sheet form. Wonton wrappers come from Chinese culture and can be prepared in several ways, from boiling for a soft texture to baking in the oven for a crispy outside.

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Vegetables

What Is Parsley Root Good For?

Parsley is a member of the carrot family that includes celery, fennel, anise and dill. Parsley root is light beige, shaped like a carrot, but slender like a parsnip. The flavor is described as a taste between celery and carrots with a little parsley leaf and turnip.

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How to Cook Couscous in a Microwave

A staple in Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and African diets, couscous is made from semolina and water. Cooked couscous has a fluffy texture and mild flavor that pairs well with a variety of seasonings and dishes.

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Close-up of sausages frying in a pan

How to Cook Brats on a Big Green Egg

The Big Green Egg is a versatile outdoor cooker with features that set it apart from other grills. It's designed specifically for use with hardwood charcoal, which burns hotter than briquettes and adds a delicious smoky flavor to your food.

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