Farmer's markets and upscale groceries are fine places to find interesting and unusual vegetables, from exotic imports to variations on old familiar favorites. White beets fall into the second category, a pale vegetable that lacks the signature coloration of its commonplace cousins.
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Pigs are among the most adaptable and self-reliant of domesticated animals, and native or feral wild pigs are correspondingly common in much of the world. In the U.S. most wild pigs are feral descendants of escaped domestic animals, though European wild boar is farmed for sale to pork enthusiasts.
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Although purists might argue that barbecued ribs are best cooked over charcoal, a propane grill is easier for novices to handle. Keeping charcoal at the low temperature required for ribs is a challenge, requiring skilled manipulation of the vent and draft.
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The intense heat of a charcoal or gas grill gives foods a deeply savory flavor, but it isn't always the most practical way to cook. A ridged stovetop grill pan isn't an ideal replacement, but it's still a useful tool for preparing chicken and other meats when your outdoor grill isn't an option.
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Cooking seafood on a regular basis is an appealingly low-stress way to eat healthier. Fish is a good source of high-quality protein, and even relatively fatty fish are low in saturated fats and high in heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids. Of course, your choice of preparation methods matters as well.
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Tender white-fleshed fish are the seafood equivalent of chicken, a mild and tasty ingredient that lends itself to a remarkable range of preparation methods. The best of them, such as catfish, have a moist and delicate texture that's equally at home in the finest of restaurant meals or the simplest homestyle fish fry.
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Banana squash is the offensive lineman of the vegetable garden, a behemoth that frequently tops 100 pounds and can easily grow to more than 3 feet long. Although its size makes it impractical for most home gardeners, it works in the favor of cooks.
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If you're already a health-conscious diner, eating better is usually about small incremental changes rather than a radical alteration of your diet. For example, replacing the butter in your cookies with vegetable oil can become part of your larger strategy to cut saturated fats.
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Working with fresh crabs can be awkward. They're highly perishable once they're killed, and require a degree of cleaning and preparation. If they're still alive they'll defend themselves vigorously, at some hazard to your fingers.
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The chuck, or beef shoulder, contains a large number of mostly small muscles running in several different directions. Appropriately, they're known by a similar variety of names in different parts of the country. For example, two different roasts are sold as inside-blade, depending on your butcher's preferences.
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Lobster tails are often sold raw and frozen in the shell, but it's less common with whole lobsters. They're ordinarily pre-cooked and then blast-frozen at the processing plant, to preserve the fresh and delicate flavor of the lobsters and make them more durable for shipping and storage.
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Some of the toughest cuts of beef, such as the bony neck neck, are also the most richly flavored. They require long, slow cooking to tenderize the dense muscles and stringy connective tissues, but that's a good thing.
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Cuts of beef -- from the delicate tenderloin to the flavorful but leather-tough shank -- vary widely in flavor and tenderness. Often, a tough large cut contains one or two small muscles that are unusually tender, which can be separated out by a careful meat cutter.
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Soft, creamy puddings are an easy dessert to like, combining sweet, rich flavors with a cool and silky-soft texture. Most recipes use a starch thickener -- typically flour or cornstarch in the United States -- to bring the pudding to a suitable consistency.
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Substituting fish for red meat once or twice a week is a quick way to make your diet healthier. Most kinds of seafood cook quickly, so they fit with even the busiest of lifestyles. The only drawback is that fish is a supremely perishable ingredient, so keeping it on hand for impulse meals is problematic.
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Most snow crab is caught in the frigid waters of Alaska, and very little is transported south as live crab. Ordinarily the crabs are boiled or steamed right on the boat or as soon as they're landed, then blast-frozen to maintain their quality at its fresh peak.
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When major outbreaks of foodborne illness occur, news coverage tends to focus on the food's producers and manufacturers. It makes for good ratings and readership, but glosses over the fact that good food handling in the home can sharply reduce the risks.
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Some food products are obviously susceptible to foodborne illness, and cooks know to treat them with care. Eggs, dairy products and perishable meats and seafoods fall into that category, and cautious cooks diligently rinse their salad greens and sprouts.
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There are few parts of a hog that don't respond well to curing, from its meaty jowls -- the storied "guanciale" your deli charges so much for -- to crisp bacon and juicy hams.
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It's hard not to love peanut butter, at any age. It's rich, mellow flavor works well in everything from Thai food to a simple PB & J, and it's high in both protein and healthful unsaturated fats. Unfortunately, at about 100 calories per tablespoon, it's terribly easy to have too much of a good thing.
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