Mastering main dishes requires techniques for moisture retention, safe reheating of seafood, and adapting recipes for Keto or low-sodium dietary needs.
Salmon can be cooked in several different ways depending on your preference -- steaks and fillets are often grilled, broiled, baked and smoked, and you can even prepare it in the microwave. Meat can be stored in the refrigerator and saved for later use, but be careful when reheating the meat.
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You might be hesitant to cook pheasant due to its reputation as tough, dry meat. But you can roast a pheasant to tender perfection with the proper ingredients and timing. Young pheasants are typically more tender than older birds. Farm-raised pheasants are usually killed young, making them ideal candidates for dinner.
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The gizzard and heart of a chicken, usually called giblets, and the neck are typically removed from the bird before cooking and discarded. In many cases, they are removed before purchase, packaged in plastic and stored inside the abdominal cavity of the chicken.
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The flavor-packed juices leftover from slow-cooking chicken enhance any non-dessert dish. Once you observe a few important safety considerations, you can freeze leftover chicken juices in an ice cube tray, plastic zipper bag or other freezer-safe container for last-minute use.
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Tangy sauerkraut seems to be made for the crock pot. The sauerkraut cooks slowly, releasing its savory liquid and flavoring all of the other ingredients in the crock pot. Cooking sauerkraut in a crock pot is as simple as rinsing the sauerkraut and putting it in the slow cooker. The crock pot does the rest of the work.
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Italian sausage is traditionally made from pork, which must be cooked the sausage thoroughly to prevent food-borne illnesses. How you cook the sausage depends on its intended purpose. For example, if you intend to use the sausage in lasagna, you need to remove it from the casing or use bulk sausage.
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The French call it "lapin." The Italians say "coniglio." However it's pronounced or prepared, rabbit meat is a tender, white game meat popular in Western European cuisine. In America, it is more difficult to find. Few restaurants serve rabbit, and it is typically available only from specialty meat stores.
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What is known as "steelhead salmon" is actually an ocean-going species of trout, but it's often referred to as salmon by markets and restaurants for good reason.
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Spaghetti squash is a summer squash that resembles the popular pasta when cooked, with the inner flesh coming out in strings that look like noodles. It's a good alternative to pasta, particularly if you're cutting back on refined grains.
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Sport fishermen know that cobia is a fish that is notoriously difficult to catch. The fish can weigh up to 100 lbs. and they put up such a fight that they break lines or burst through nets. If you do manage to catch one, you are in for a real treat, because the sweet, almost nutty, flavor of cobia is unrivaled.
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Fried chicken is a classic favorite. While many recipes call for shortening, you don't have to make a special store run -- or spend lots of money -- to make fried chicken at home.
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Walleye is a freshwater fish commonly found in the United States and Canada. Similar in flavor to perch, walleye has a clean, relatively light taste, especially for a freshwater fish. Pair walleye fillets with roasted white potatoes and an arugula or wild lettuce salad for a healthy, well-balanced meal.
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Your selected cooking method affects the taste and texture of food, whether you're working with meat, vegetables or another favorite food. Most foods work with any of the cooking methods, although certain foods are more compatible with one or two ways of cooking.
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Ham is a specific cut of meat that comes from pigs. The meat is usually sold cooked or cured, but can be found in raw form as well. Ham is popular for use in sandwiches and also for roasting in an oven. Roasting hams are usually for gatherings or celebrations because they can feed several people.
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Chicken can be baked in the oven without using oil or butter. Use juice, wine and/or chicken stock in the baking dish instead, to flavor and moisten the chicken. Use chicken with or without skin. However, skipping the skin can cut calories and fat from your meal.
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Pan-frying is a traditional method of preparing fish fillets for a crispy finish. The breading or batter used to coat the fish affect the flavor and the crispiness of the cooked fish. When the breading hits the hot oil, it cooks quickly and seals it to the fish fillet.
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Salting is a traditional way to preserve fish, and herring is often salted because it spoils very rapidly. Salted herring is most often associated with Scandinavia, where herring has been a traditional part of the diet for centuries.
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Whether you grill or broil your sirloin steak, marinating it prior to cooking makes the meat more tender and flavorful. Marinades are mixtures of oil, spices and acidic ingredients like vinegar, wine or lemon juice. The acids in the marinade break down the meat tissue, resulting in meat that is tender.
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Defrosting ground beef in the refrigerator is a timely process that takes a minimum of 24 hours for every 5 pounds of meat. If your meat isn't thawed and you're trying to get dinner on the table, take a shortcut by cooking the partially thawed hamburger meat.
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For a simple staple food, rice can be surprisingly tricky to make. Undercook it and it's wet or mushy. Overcook it and it burns to the bottom of the pan. Fortunately, rice that's merely wet is easy to fix. It may need additional cooking time if the kernels are still hard, or you may have simply used too much water.
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