Regardless of age, we all start at square one in the kitchen. Students in our flagship Edible Learning Lab in Buffalo, WY start with these basics kitchen techniques and build from there. If you are just starting to find your way in the kitchen, this guide will help.
Rip it: Increase the antioxidants in salad greens
When vegetables, like salad greens, are cut they respond to the “injury” by signaling an increase in the production of wound-induced phenols. These micronutrients are dispatched to protect the plant, which to some extent is still living. Go figure!
- Some evidence shows that ripping salad greens is less damaging to the cellular structure of the greens than cutting. Making a cleaner cut using a sharp knife or ripping may result in a slower breakdown of the greens over time than using a dull knife.
- According to Jo Robinson, author of Eating on the Wild Side, the process of ripping greens as a preparation before eating can increase the antioxidants in the leaves. This process results in a release of wound-induced phenols. This explains the increase in antioxidants by count, which some studies show can be as much as a 400% increase, but may not be the entire story. According to the research of WHFoods.org, the process also results in a loss of antioxidants like Vitamin C which may render this a zero net gain.
- Research shows that diets richer in phenolic compounds may have a positive impact on disease in the human body.
The proper technique: Prep salad greens by washing and soaking in cold water, drying completely with a salad spinner or towel, and then ripping the greens into bite size pieces. Place the dry greens in a large resealable micro perforated plastic bag along with a dry paper towel and squeeze out as much air as possible without damaging the greens. Using a needle, poke 10-20 holes in the bag and place in the crisper drawer of the refrigerator.
Ripping salad, whether there is a net gain or not, results in an increase in some antioxidants and is a great way to prep the greens for consumption. Ripping them a day in advance is advised and makes the meal prep the following day that much quicker but also allows for the increased in wound-induced phenolic compound accumulation without the unwanted browning that comes from the breakdown of the greens’ structure.
When to use this technique
- Prepping greens for a salad or sandwich
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Peel it: Prep and presentation
The question is “to peel or not to peel.” The easy answer is found in personal preference. There are some folks that don’t like the taste of the apple peel or the skin of the potato. But that begs the larger question “What is the value of the skin or peel?”
There is solid science that states you lose a ton of concentrated vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber when you peel fruits and vegetables.
- The pigments in fruits and vegetables give them their color and are often a concentrated source of phytochemicals and phenolic compounds. Peeling many fruits and vegetables would be detrimental to the nutrient content of the recipe.
- Peels are also storehouses for soluble fiber, including pectin, which are shown to help lower cholesterol and regulate blood sugar.
- Peels for some fruit – especially apples – are loaded with antioxidants which have a reputation for being cancer fighters.
- And consider the potato. The skin has more fiber, iron, potassium and B vitamins than the flesh when compared in equal portions.
The proper technique: Begin with a good wash. Use cold running water and be sure to give attention to the area where the stem is located. That depression can often be a collection zone for bacteria and other contaminants. Peeling can be done with a paring knife or a hand peeler. Using a hand peeler, hold the fruit or vegetable in one hand, thumb on top and finger underneath, and peel with a down and away motion. Peel in slow motion to avoid cutting your thumb or finger.
When to use this technique
- Recipes that are being pureed or blended may require that the ingredients be peeled as they can be tough. Peeling will allow you to reach a smoother end results.
- Cucumbers and beets can be bitter with the skins on so those can be peeled or you can counter the bitterness with acidity and sweetness.
- Vegetables with thick or undesirable skins may also require peeling. Pumpkins, squash are two such examples.
- If you are buying fruits and vegetables that are grown using pesticides it’s a good practice to peel those. You want to remove as much exposure as you can. Of course, the best practice is to buy organically grown produce.
- But peeling can also be a great preparation for fruits and vegetables that need to be presented in strips or ribbons.
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Emulsify it: The secret to great dressings
The process of emulsifying – mixing two or more liquids together that are otherwise immiscible – can be performed in a number of ways. The end goal is to suspend or disperse one liquid in the other.
Vinaigrettes, mayonnaise, and even milk are emulsified. For each, two liquids are used, a liquid matrix and a dispersion medium. For example, in a vinaigrette the oil is the dispersion medium and the vinegar is the liquid matrix.
What makes emulsions challenging for the home cook is their relative instability. There is nothing to maintain the order of those countless little drops of each liquid suspended in each other. The big science behind emulsification explains how the small droplets of the dispersion medium combine to form larger drops and ultimately leads to the emulsion breaking. This happens in a number of ways:
- Flocculation – caused by an attraction between the droplets that produces clusters – or flocs – that resembles that of a bunch of grapes
- Creaming – droplets rise to the top and collect as a result of buoyancy
- Coalescence – results from droplets bumping into each other, combining, and forming larger droplets
So with something so volatile, there needs to be an emulsifier that stabilizes the relationship between the two liquids. In the case of vinaigrettes, mustard is often used. For mayonnaise, it’s egg yolks. Both increase the kinetic stability of the emulsion and afford it a longer shelf life by acting as connector for pair of drops. Emulsifying agents bind with a drop of each liquid creating something of a suspended pair.
The proper technique: Emulsification can be achieved using several methods. Many salad dressings can be made using a fork to whip the ingredients, a whisk to whisk them together, or a small mason jar to shake them. Emulsions like mayonnaise are typically made using a food processor, immersion blender or traditional blender.
When to use this technique:
- Vinaigrette emulsions – there are countless recipes for vinaigrettes that include mustard as an emulsifier as well as some that do not.
- Egg emulsions – mayonnaise can be made using egg yolk as an emulsifier and egg yolks are commonly used for meringues.
- Dairy emulsions – any recipe that uses butter, cream, or milk will inherit a benefit from the milk proteins that act as emulsifiers. This includes the froth on your upscale coffee drink of choice.
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Grate it: Easily prep cheeses and vegetables
Grated, shaved, shredded. What the difference? If you’ve ever seen a box grater, those somewhat square metal graters that have different sides then you might understand the difference between grated, shaved, and shredded.
The traditional box grater has two sides for shredding, one for grating, and one for shaving. The shredding sides are the ones with the holes that allow for the cheese or vegetable to pass and produce strands. The grater is the side with the sharp dimples that actual protrude outward. Working like a rasp, the grating side will remove small fragments from the cheese or vegetable. And the slicing side is the one with the long horizontal blade that produces a long thin strip when the cheese or vegetable passes.
The box grater is indelibly branded in the minds of many. But there are other tools that produce similar results.
- Hand peeler – a peeler works great on vegetables, fruits, and cheeses that are firm. The peeler produces ribbons or strips which add an interesting twist to salads and sandwiches but it’s not suitable for large jobs.
- Food processor – an essential piece of equipment for anyone serious about good eats. Food processors can make short work of cheese, fruit, and a wide range of vegetables but there is always the cleanup.
- Microplane – a long thin grating instrument with a handle. Microplanes can certainly be used to grate hard cheeses but their narrow width make them impractical for most vegetables.
- Hand grater – a one-sided handled grated. Hand graters can be found in most kitchens and there are a few different grating surfaces to consider, each producing a different result. They work well for grating cheese to top pasta or adding a bit of spice to a dessert but are not practical to for large jobs.
The only way to understand the function of each tool is to get some hands-on experience with each. There is certainly enough room in the kitchen drawer for more than one. If it looks like it may work, give it a try!
The proper technique: For the handheld graters, including the hand grate, microplane, and box grater, the proper technique is to hold the grater in a secure position and move the cheese or vegetable over it in one direction, from the end closest to the handle, and grate away from you. Return the cheese or vegetable back to the beginning position and repeat as many times as needed.
The same general approach can be used for the peeler but hold the cheese or vegetable securely and move the peeler away from you in one steady movement.
When to use this technique:
- Vegetable noodles, ribbons, or strips – these are great on a salad or as the salad itself. Use the hand peeler to make quick work of a carrot, zucchini, cucumber, or even broccoli stalk.
- Cheese strips – top any salad with strips of your favorite cheese. Caesar salads with parmesan strips are hard to beat.
- Grated cheese – the shredding side of a box grater with the smaller holes works great (see what we did there!) for grating parmesan cheese to use on garlic parmesan bread or in pesto, to top salads, or to integrate into a parmesan vinaigrette.
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Whisk it: Elbow grease gets it done
Whisking, like grating, seems to be so simple and straightforward, right? But there is much more science happening here than you might imagine.
Whisking is a technique often used to add air to a liquid in order to change its form. Think whipped cream, meringues, vinaigrettes, or chocolate mousse. All of those are whisked or whipped to varying degrees.
Whisking can be used to emulsify oil and vinegar in a vinaigrette, allowing the droplets of oil to remain suspended in the vinegar. With a little more elbow grease, whipping cream is whisked to all air to suspend itself in little pockets in the milk fats. The act of whisking allows the proteins to separate from the fat and surround the air bubbles bringing stability to the liquid.
The proper technique: It’s important to have a good whisk but the technique is just as important. The best motion for whisking is side to side in most cases. As the whisk moves side to side, it crashes into the liquid that it pulled with it on the previous stroke creating channels that are then covered with more liquid trapping a little air in the process. This is referred to as shear force. There is more to the science of the proper whisking movement here and of course there’s a video.
When to use this technique:
- Emulsifying two liquids – the most common emulsifications created in the home kitchen are salad dressings
- Whipped cream – once you’ve made homemade whipped cream using honey or cane sugar you will never buy the stuff at the store again. Plus, the effort it takes to whisk it makes you feel like you’ve earned a reward!
- Pan sauces and gravies – though not as aggressively whisked, the same technique is used to marry the ingredients.
- Meringues and mousses – bakers all know how to handle a whisk and knowing how to make a mousse is an easy way to impress your dinner guests.
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Microplane it: A fine touch for zesting and spice dusting
If you have a minimal level of comfort in the kitchen it won’t surprise you that the term “zest” originated with the French in the late 1660s. Sometimes it seems like everything you learn about food started somewhere in France.
Zest refers to anything that adds flavor, though today, the act of zesting refers primarily to the process of removing the thin outer layer of citrus.
This outer peel contains a high concentration of essential oils and can pack a huge flavor punch. But you want to be careful to zest only the outer peel that has color. The white pithy layer just under that can be bitter so try to avoid that if at all possible.
Many recipes call for lemon or orange zest. Zest the fruit before you use it and always zest the fruit before you juice it if the recipe calls for the juice as well. The finer the zest the more aromatic and flavor-packed it will be. There are multiple ways to zest those fruits.
- Microplane – produces fine zest with every pass of the fruit
- Hand grater – produces a medium zest slightly thicker than the microplane
- Hand peeler – produces long strips of peel that can be minced with a knife to produce zest
- Channel zester – produces long thin strips of zest
- Channel knife – produces long slightly thicker strips of zest great for garnishing
The microplane is the preferred zesting tool for many. It yields a fine zest that can be immediately used without any additional steps. Before zesting any fruit, be sure to wash it thoroughly to remove any contaminants, stickers, or wax.
The microplane can be used for other preparations as well. It’s perfect for dusting spices like nutmeg, ginger, nuts, or cinnamon. Ginger is finely grated just like zest and the harder spices produce a dust that’s great for topping your favorite dessert.
The proper technique: Hold the microplane or hand grater in a secure manner and move the fruit over it, twisting as you move away from you. Rotate the fruit to ensure that only the top layer of peel is being removed. Repeat as many times as needed to produce the amount of zest needed.
When using the peeler, channel zester, or channel knife, secure the fruit in one hand and move the utensil over the fruit to peel away the top layer of the peel. Additional preparation may be required, like mincing with a knife, to produce a fine zest.
When to use this technique:
- Pasta loves lemon zest – add it right before serving to preserve the “bright” flavor that it delivers
- Pan sauces – lemon, lime, or orange zest brings out the natural flavors of the sauce
- Breads, muffins, and biscuits – zest brings out the inherent flavors in baked goods
- Vinaigrettes – use zest instead of vinegar or add it as well for a flavor boost
- Mayonnaise and Aioli – kick up ordinary mayonnaise and aioli with vibrant zest
- Chocolate dust – dust your favorite dessert with chocolate, enough said
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Grind it: A long way from the mortar and pestle
Proficiency as a cook is a matter of degrees and is highly dependent on the ingredients available. The typical home cook uses whatever ingredients are available, not giving much thought to their source or relative quality. Foodies seek out the best ingredients they can find which usually oscillates between the local organic market, the farmers’ market and maybe a few local farmers or food artisans. Professionals chefs commit at the highest level, often seeking out the very best ingredients, at their peak ripeness, and grown by farmers that understand how to produce a superior product by embracing the rhythms of the land.
Becoming a more proficient practitioner in the kitchen sounds like a daunting challenge, doesn’t it? It doesn’t have to be.
The act of grinding is itself a liberating practice. You start by replacing the jars of ground spices that have been in your pantry for months with bulk herbs and spices that come packaged whole, usually in a dried form. Herbs typically refer to the leaves and green parts of a plant whereas spices can be from the seeds, stem. roots, bulb, or bark.
With a few inexpensive implements you will be grinding herbs and spices as you need them.
- Electric coffee grinder – quick and efficient, but lacks controls for how fine or coarse the grind
- Manual coffee grinder – control the coarseness of the grind but requires a little elbow grease
- Mortar and pestle – total control over the grind and a hit with foodies and chefs alike
- Molcajete – similar to a mortar and pestle with a deep history
- Microplane – perfect for dusting spices but not viable for herbs
The proper technique: For the electric and manual coffee grinders, the technique is rather self explanatory though it does vary by model. Follow the instructions included with each unit.
For the microplane, hold the it securely in one hand and glide the spice over it as you move it away from you.
Using a mortar and pestle, place the seeds, spices, or herbs in the mortar, holding it with one hand, and use the pestle in the other hand to crush, pound, or grind until you reach the desired consistency.
When to use this technique:
- Coffee – every coffee enthusiast appreciates the complexity of a french press with freshly ground beans
- Herbs – the side effect of freshly ground herbs is the smell in the kitchen that lasts for hours
- Spices – add the perfect accent to desserts or a flavor boost to any recipe with freshly ground spices
- Nuts – nothing beats crushed nuts on a hot fudge sundae or scratch made peanut butter
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Press it: A little garlic goes a long way
The garlic press, like many other specialty kitchen utensils, is loved by some and despised by others. The serious cook, and many chefs, blast the garlic press as a one trick pony. Though it can be used to press garlic and other small ingredients like olives or shallot pieces, the garlic press offers only one result.
That end result is a paste similar to minced garlic but even finer. Pressing garlic releases the liquid in the clove while holding back the sometimes bitter center stem and the outer skin.
Many models of the garlic press have a piston with small pins to clear the holes of the press with each use though in our experience that rarely works as planned.
For the home cook, a garlic press is a valuable tool that can make quick work of a few cloves of garlic. For many, including kids, it’s much more comfortable to use than the sharp blade of a knife or risking fingertips on the microplane.
The proper technique: Using a garlic press couldn’t be simpler. Just place a clove of garlic in the chamber and squeeze. Remove the skin and repeat as many times as you need.
When to use this technique:
- Kids – the garlic press is perfect for kids in the kitchen
- Minced garlic – works great when you want to taste garlic but not see it
- Shallots – like garlic, shallot pieces can be pressed to release their juices
- Olives – add a little salty kick to sauces and dressings without seeing the olives
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Juice it: The colors of the rainbow
Juicing is another of those diet fads that swept the nation a few years ago and still garners considerable attention. What could be better than juicing 5 pounds of fresh produce and capturing all those nutrients in a 16 oz glass!
But juicing has been used by chefs for ages, adding the essence of citrus, or the acid from a lemon to balance flavors in dish. The process unlocks the nutrients, all those vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and compounds that promote health in an instant. The tools used to extract those juices haven’t change much over the years, well, at least not until recently.
Now home cooks and 3 star Michelin chefs have access to an array of tools to access the nutrient dense liquid content of both fruits and vegetables. It’s opening up the possibilities in the kitchen.
There are several juicing tools available for fruits and vegetables:
The proper technique: Wooden reamer – holding the fruit half in one hand, use the reamer in the other hand in a twisting motion to extract the juice and collect it in a bowl.
Citrus squeezers – place the fruit half in the squeezer, flesh side down, and close the squeezer applying even pressure to release the juice into a bowl.
Citrus Press – place the fruit half in the squeezer, flesh side down, and pull down on the handle to release the juice into the bowl.
Masticating & Centrifugal juicers – prep the fruits and vegetables as instructed in the User’s Guide provided with the unit. In general, most power juicers suggest that the fruits and vegetables be prepared by cutting them into pieces small enough to fit into the hopper.
When to use this technique:
- Juice for snacks – nothing beats fresh made fruit or green juice. Recipes abound online and many health stores and organic grocers have juicing stations. By why pay $5 for a small cup of green juice when you can make your own! And it’s a great way to provide little ones with a kitchen experience where they can create a fresh juice with all the colors of the rainbow.
- Juice as an ingredient – many recipes calls for the juice of a lemon, lime, or orange. Handheld manual juicers make that a breeze.
- Vegetable pasta – kids love colors so why not give them colorful pasta. Use a masticating or centrifugal juicer to extract the juice from spinach, beets, or peppers to make colorful homemade pasta.
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