Tip and tricks

1. Add a pinch of salt in green vegetable while cooking. This should retain the greenness even after cooking. cook them uncovered and on high flame.
2. Wash vegetables before peeling or cutting to preserve the water soluble vitamins.
3. Peel vegetables as thinly as possible to preserve the minerals and vitamins.
4. Soak potatoes and eggplant after cutting, to avoid discoloration.
5. If you boil vegetables in water, do not throw the water, keep it to make gravies or vegetable stock.
6. To avoid browning of apples after cutting, apply a little lemon juice on the cut surface. The apples will stay and look fresh for a longer time.
7.wrap coriander leaves in soft cotton cloth and keep it in the refrigerator. They will remain fresh for a longer time.
8. Remove the stems of green chilies while storing them .This will help them to stay fresh for long.
9. After peeling onions, cut it in half and soak in water for about 10 minutes before cutting to avoid crying.
10. Soak almonds in a cup of boiling water for 10 minutes .The skin will peel off easily.
11. Chopping vegetables can be done in different ways using a sharp knife and a wooden chopping board. Cutting on a marble slab will blunt your knives.
12. Keep curry leaves in a air tight container.The smell will remain as it is.
13. Wrap the fruits and vegetables in newspaper before refrigerating to keep them fresh for long.
14. Chopping dry fruits - Freeze them first for one hour, then dip the knife into hot water before cutting them.
15. Soak whole pulses overnight before cooking.
16. Heat the oil thoroughly before adding seasonings or vegetables
17. Fry the seasonings until they change color, to get full flavour of seasonings.
18. Always add hot water to the gravy to enhance the taste.
19. Add 1 Tbsp of hot oil (mohan)and 1 Tspn sugar to the dough for making Puris, Kachories or Pakodas crispy.
20. To clean copper vessels or copper bottoms on pots and pans, simply take dry tamarind and salt, rub it on and scrub then rinse. If you do this weekly, your pots and pans stay shiny clean. This is a very inexpensive way to clean copper and brass items!
21. If you accidentally over-salt a dish while it's still cooking, drop in a peeled potato-it absorbs the excess salt for an instant "fix me up."
22. When the noodles are boiled, drain all the hot water and add cold water. This way all the noodles will get separated!
23. To get really soft chapatis, the trick lies in the kneading. The more you knead, the smoother the dough becomes and the smoother the dough is, the softer the Chapatis.
24.Heat garlic cloves in the microwave for 10-15 seconds to easily peel off the skins or you can put them in the warm water for 10 minutes.
25. Avoid using aluminum products when cooking with yogurt, as the acidity of yogurt can react negatively with aluminum.