Tips From the Experts in Cooking Rice, Potatoes and Pasta

The word "chef" is used to refer to any person who cooks professionally. In a professional kitchen setting, however, the word is used only for the one person in charge of everyone else in the kitchen, the executive chef. A chef is a widely respected because of his expertise and intricate abilities in the art of cooking. Here, I present you expert tips from professional chefs to be taken into consideration when cooking pasta, rice, or potatoes.

When pasta is fresh it tends to require less water than dried pasta. You need to have a large saucepan of rapidly boiling water ready—just about enough boiling water for the pasta to cook in. To prevent the pasta from sticking together, a little oil should be added to the water. After that, add pasta to the pan, making sure that the water remains boiling, while at the same time stirring for ten seconds to separate the pasta. Depending on the type of pasta you're using, boil for two to four minutes.

Spaghetti should be untangled before serving. Sometimes, when you allow spaghetti to cool for too long, it becomes tangled. If this happens, toss it back into the hot water and stir with a large spoon. Right after that, drain and rinse the pasta in cold water. Some olive oil may be added if you see it fit.

Al dente pasta is a special type of pasta. Al dente, an Italian phrase, means "to the tooth".
Cooked pasta should be soft but still firm when you bite it. It is said that the easiest way to determine whether pasta is "al dente" is removing a piece from the saucepan and testing it between your teeth. The ideal "al dente" pasta will have some texture when bitten, but it should not be dry and hard in the middle.

Pasta is also cooked dried. Do not fall prey to the common mistake of not having enough boiling water when cooking dried pasta. Prepare a large saucepan of rapidly boiling water. Add a little oil and pasta to the pan. To separate the pasta, stir for twenty seconds. Boiling should be for ten to fourteen minutes--depending on the shape of the pasta and the flour used. To serve hot, drain and eat immediately without any extra oil or butter. To serve cold, rinse pasta under warm water, and then rinse under cold water.

If you want perfect pasta, do not boil the noodles! Instead, boil the water and add pasta after turning off the fire. Cover the pasta, removing cover only to stir the pasta every five minutes for twenty minutes. This way, you will never have overcooked pasta, but perfect pasta every time.

Let's now move on to rice. Here are some tips for making fluffier rice. Before adding rice, add one teaspoon of lemon juice to the water. This will not change the flavor but will plump up the grains to give you perfect rice.

Here are some tips for adding flavor to rice. Substitute plain water for chicken stock, beef stock, or tomato juice when boiling flavored rice. It may be served "as is" or more flavor may be added by sautéing some vegetables in olive oil and garlic and then adding them. This will give you a delicious and healthy side dish.

Here are some tips for reducing the stickiness of pasta and rice. Because of the starch in pasta and rice, they tend to stick together. This may be avoided by adding a splash of vinegar when boiling them. This gives you perfect, stick-free pasta and rice every time.

Here are some tips for making the fluffiest possible baked potatoes. You need to choose a potato with high starch content. Examples of good choices are Russets and Idahos. To aid steam in escaping during baking, pierce the potatoes several times with a knife before placing them in the oven. Wrapping your potatoes will cause them to steam rather than bake, so do not do this. When serving your baked potatoes, before adding toppings, cut a slit in the top and squeeze the sides of the potato.

Here are some great tips for making the skin edible when you're baking potatoes. Before placing them into a hot oven, rub the outside of your potatoes with some vegetable oil. This will cause it to become not only soft,but delicious as well. A little added butter and sour cream, or even shredded cheese gives you a perfect side dish!

Smothered in butter or drowned in gravy...however you like them...mashed potatoes are a wonderful accompaniment to a variety of meals. To copy a page off the professional's book, start making your mashed potatoes by putting several whole garlic cloves in the water with the boiling potatoes. All this garlic cooked up will add a superb flavor during mashing. Add buttermilk, cream cheese, sour cream butter, or a combination of these while mashing potatoes. Careful experiments in this will help you discover what his best.

If you need baked potatoes in a flash, here are some excellent tips from the experts. Potatoes may be microwaved, but are always nicer in the oven. Slicing your potatoes in half (lengthwise) and baking them with the flat part facing down, will facilitate speed in baking. Remember to grease the baking sheet, then simply place potatoes into a 375-degrees oven for approximately thirty minutes.