Useful tips

• When peeling boiled potatoes, always peel while still hot. The skin comes off easily and you save lots of time

• When frying onions for gravies/pulao add required amount of salt with the onions. This makes browning the onions quicker.

• If adding whole spices to gravies or pulao like, cinnamon, cardamom etc., add them only once the onions are browned or they burn and give a bitter taste to the food.

• If a recipe requires pre boiled chicken, don't throw away the chicken stock(water in which you boil the chicken). Use it to make some sweet corn chicken soup. Shred some of the boiled chicken and add it to the stock along with one small tin of sweet corn and bring to boil. Then add 2 tbsps of Cornflour dissolved in 1/2 cup water to this and stir to avoid lumps. Once it thickens, remove from flame and add a beaten egg to it and stir quickly.

• Added too much salt?? Don't worry!! Add a small ball of  wheat dough to it and continue cooking. This soaks up the excess salt. Alternatively you can add a raw peeled potato if your Dish can do with it. Adding pepper powder also neutralizes excess salt.

• Cutting onions makes you cry?? Chew some gum while cutting onions or halve the onions and soak them in water before cutting them.

• If you store ground ginger/garlic paste in the fridge, add 2-3 drops of olive oil to it. This prevents it from discolouring and keeps it fresh longer.

• When you buy Semolina(rava/suji) dry roast it before you store it in an air tight container. This saves you a lot of time as most of the recipes require the semolina to be roasted first.

Cleaning tips

• Need to give your fridge a thorough clean and get rid of stale, lingering odours? Dissolve 3 tsps of baking soda in a bowl of hot water and use it to wipe your fridge to a sparkle and get rid of odours.

• To clean your microwave and get rid of oil stains on the walls use this quick and foolproof method. Fill a microwavable bowl with 1/4th part white vinegar and 3/4th parts water and heat on full power for 8-10 minutes. Wait for a minute before you open the microwave. You will see condensation on the walls, just wipe it with a clean kitchen towel. See the difference

• To clean you kettle, fill it with white vinegar until the minimum mark and fill the rest with water. Switch it on and let it boil. Leave the water inside overnight. See the difference next morning when you empty the kettle. Rinse well with luke warm soapy water.

• Use an old toothbrush to clean your combs. This will get rid of any stuck in dirt which is hard to remove otherwise.

Happy cooking and cleaning :)

Shabnam