Undercover Chef Tip – Having your cake and cutting it too
Ever starting cutting up a beautiful birthday cake and found by the third slice it looks a little less than beautiful? So what to do? An easy solution is to warm up the knife in hot water to allow it to cut through the icing cleanly. So how do you warm up the knife easily? …
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The knives are out – how to choose a kitchen knife that works for you
Besides what is is my favourite food to cook, what type of knife do I use is another question I am often asked. So how do you know what type of knife to invest in, what to look for and where to save your dollars? Let’s start with some basic points to consider: 1. What …
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Undercover Chef Tip – Saving the Herbs
Fresh herbs are great when you are making a salad or cooking and sprinkling them in. But what do you do with them when no further recipe ideas call for them later in the week? A great way to preserve herbs is to freeze them in olive oil or stock for later use. You can …
Undercover Chef Tip – Garlic or Ginger In Recipes
Have you ever looked at a recipe that asks for finely diced garlic or ginger and just gone…ugh.. Trust me, even in a professional kitchen this step is a pain. So what to do to make it easier when all you need is a spoon of garlic so can’t use the food processor? A microplane …
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A picture is worth a thousand bites
Food photography. It can be a love hate sort of deal. Why are people taking photos of their meal? is a common refrain. As a chef, a photo of a meal can serve a multitude of purposes – as an example of how you’d like your meal plated so those replicating know exactly what goes …
Undercover Chef – Top and Tails
The last thing you want to do sometimes after a busy day is to prepare your vegetables for dinner – so how do you get your greens without having to stand in the kitchen for even longer? When you get them home from the market or shops top and tail them so they are ready …
Undercover Chef Tip – Keeping it Above Board
Wobbly chopping boards – the bane and danger of any kitchen be it household or commercial. Nothing is worse than trying to run your knife over some herbs and the board slips and slides. Or how about when you are trying to dice some meat for a casserole and each slice of the blade sends …
Undercover Chef Tip – Weigh the Sides for Success
Ever have friends over and you start to serve up the sides and realise that everyone’s plates looks, well a little sparse? How do you avoid this dinner party faux paux? Whilst most recipes give serving size guides, check what they define as a portion size to make sure that you have the same idea …
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Hints and tips for dinner party success
Have you ever read a lovely cookbook or foodie magazine and thought, “If Only”. If only I could make that food for friends, if only I could create a lovely table setting, if only if only. Well, what if having a dinner party is easier than you think? About three weeks ago it was my …
Undercover Chef Tip – You say potato, i say keep it fresh
Do you ever wonder how restaurants have the time to make mashed potatoes, fries, wedges, frittata’s and all forms of potatoey goodness in one day? Well here’s a little secret. We get the potatoes ready ahead of time. Peeling and cutting them and storing them in water allows potatoes to retain their clean white colour. …
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Undercover Chef Tip – Keeping food warm
Nothing is worse than creating a nice meal and have it go cold because the weather outside is a bit chilly. So how do you keep your food as warm whilst you eat? Warming plates under a low grill before you put your food on allows the food to stay warm whilst you eat without …
Undercover Chef Tip – Measuring sticky ingredients
Honey, treacle, golden syrup, glucose….all a bit of a pain to measure out for a recipe without making a sticky mess or losing half of it to the sides of your cups. So how do you make sure you have all your measured ingredients into the mix without fuss? Running the cup or spoon under …
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Undercover Chef Tip – Cutting the Cheese
Cheese boards are a lovely way to end a meal, especially with a great glass of wine and some crackers. So how do you cut soft cheese neatly and cleanly for a board when it is nice and ripe and oozy? Our good friend dental floss (unscented as minty cheese isn’t a new trend) can …
A Carpaccio by any other name would be raw beef…
Following my last post of the translations for pasta in Italian, I started looking into food history and origins a little further. One of the anedotes I have heard in passing before is that of the origin of the word Carpaccio. It’s definition is thin slices of raw beef but the word itself does not …
A Carpaccio by any other name would be raw beef… Read More »
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