Even the best Chef in town started as an inexperienced aspiring cook in the kitchen. One should not be ashamed of the absence of cooking skills in the kitchen. Meanwhile, if you are tired of the same uninspired output and minor but annoying kitchen mishaps, maybe it’s time to ramp up your cooking skills. Don’t you have the time to go to an actual cooking school?
Following an online cooking classes Melbourne curriculum, you can constantly improve your cooking skills at your own pace. Yes, you can learn to cook remotely. There’s no reason why you can’t do it! Online cooking classes Melbourne courses have top chef instructors willing to share their time and expertise with students. With the right cooking equipment and dedication, you can fuel your passion for cooking and take it to the next level.
Are you ready to take this challenge? Here are eight ways to improve your cooking that you may want to apply before investing in an online cooking classes Melbourne course.
Be acquainted with proper knife use.
Expanding your knowledge of the different types of knives in the kitchen is essential if you want to take your cooking seriously. This knowledge will prepare you to listen to more exciting instructions when taking online classes in Melbourne.
It would be best if you got hold of three essential knives: the Chef’s, Paring, and Serrated. The Chef’s knife is the most common knife you should expect to use 90% of your time. It is suitable for cutting, slicing, and overall prepping. As a beginner, you should go for a more comfortable chef’s knife rather than settling for a more expensive one. The Paring knife has a thin blade and is useful when cutting and peeling smaller fruits and vegetables. When slicing cakes or waxy fruits and vegetables, get a Serrated knife.
Wait and have patience when preheating the pan.
Preheating the pan is essential to avoid coming up with soggy, unevenly cooked food without the right color. As a rule, preheat the pan for 2-3 minutes and the oven for at least 5 minutes. This length of time ensures that heat is distributed evenly on the surface so that food will start to cook immediately without taking so much time, resulting in soggy and unappealing textures and looks.
Place enough ingredients on the pan.
Putting too many ingredients in a pan is a prevalent error that one should avoid. Why should we avoid it? First, if the pan is overcrowded, its heat will quickly drop, resulting in poorly-cooked food. Also, food may lose its water and natural juices, thus may yield unfavorable flavors and textures.
Be careful in using salt.
Salt is essential in cooking as it neutralizes bitterness and emphasizes sweetness and umami flavors. Meanwhile, be careful not to add large amounts of salt, or it will ruin the entire recipe. Also, consider salting your meat before cooking to improve its taste and juiciness.
Make your workstation more organized.
An organized workstation reduces stress and allows more efficiency in cooking. This ensures that you are ready to receive instructions in all your online cooking classes Melbourne exercises. Consider having all ingredients and cooking equipment ready. Place all of them in front of you before you start preheating the pan. Also, arrange everything within arm’s reach to save time.
Taste your food several times along the way.
Have you been disappointed that your cooking turned out bad in the end? This may have resulted from deliberately ignoring taste changes while cooking it. If you want to become a professional, consider developing the habit of tasting while you are in the process of cooking. Be careful not to add lots of salt in the first few minutes. Gradually adding salt gives you the chance to improve the meal and make its flavor better.
Give the meat time to rest before slicing it or serving it.
Meats absorb the sauces and flavors added to them to their internal muscles or fibers when cooked. The sizzle that one hears signals that its inner fibers are reacting to the heat and are pushed out. Meanwhile, it would be best to let the meat rest before serving it so that its flavors will spread more and make it more flavorful. Cutting the meat into pieces while still hot would make the flavors escape.
Baked goods also need time to rest.
It is so tempting to serve freshly-baked bread from the oven to the table. The smell of fresh bread is a gastronomic experience that every family member would love! Meanwhile, better bread happens when you leave hot bread to rest for a few minutes. This allows the process of starch retrogradation to take place, resulting in a firmer crumb and a more developed sweetness.
