An article in our local paper not long ago mentioned grilling asparagus. I happened to pass a farm stand a few days later that had fresh asparagus, so I decided to try it. I worried they might come out too dry, so I cut the ends and threw them in a bowl, covered them with water and added some lemon. After a half hour or so I threw them on the grill, turning them over occasionally. They were perfect.
Huh. Mine does; the muscles that move the thumb tense more as you count towards the little finger. And meat thermometers poke holes in your steak; they let the juices out.
**Dogzilla ** I also feel no difference with the Okay sign. I was taught a different way. Instead of making an OK sign, make a fist. Touch the tip of your thumb (lightly) to the second knuckle of each finger (or as close as your thumb can get). Don’t stick your thumb between your fingers to do this, keep it outside the fingers.
You may have to adjust slightly to what works for you and how strong your hands are, but you should get the hang of it pretty quickly.
When chopping a large quantity of onions, I find that I don’t cry at all if I wear my contact lenses. (I rarely wear them, as I have wickedly dry eyes). Some people swear by cutting onions next to a burning candle.
If you don’t already do it, always add salt to the pot when cooking pasta. I don’t know why it changes things (maybe because salted water has a lower boiling point than unsalted), but pasta cooked in salted water always tastes better, but not saltier, than pasta in “plain” water. Do not rinse pasta if it’s being served hot.
Never buy that evil parmesan-like-substance in the shaker. Buy a piece of parm, and get yourself a good box grater. I like to shave it onto my salads, or sometimes shred it instead of grating it for pasta. I’m sure all the foodies here already know this one.
Roasted tomatoes, sauteed onions and a bit of garlic are the perfect pasta accompaniment. Toss in some fresh mozzarella balls and enjoy.
No matter what you might expect to happen, always allow the man to cook! My husband thought he was kitchen-challenged until I went back to work. He rocks!
Brewing tea for iced? Sweeten it half-n-half with honey and sugar. I recently bought a Mr. Coffee Iced Tea Pot. It’s our new favorite gadget. I mix green and black tea 2:1 for perfect iced tea.
To really remove food stuck to a pan (baked on, burnt on, sticky, whatever), sprinkle liberally with baking soda, let it sit for an hour. Works beautifully, little elbow grease required.
Noodle soup? Keep the noodles seperate from the soup until serving. Mushy noodles are gross.
Don’t use really fresh eggs for hard boiling. Fresh eggs are very hard to peel. Use the older eggs (not like, a year old of course). Add a splash of vinegar to the water before boiling, and the shells will probably not crack.
My church-lady cookbook also has the index by page number. Cracks me up.
Since it’s mostly water, celery lasts longer in the fridge if you separate the ribs and store them in a container of water (you may have to cut them in half or smaller, depending on the size container you use – ziplock bags work, too).
Does anyone know why cottage cheese stays good longer when stored in the container upside down? I tried looking it up, but all the sites say “no one knows why, but it works.” But I’m curious – it doesn’t seem to make any sense.
Specifically, if you plunge green vegetables - broccoll, green beans, etc. - into boiling water (blanching), they stay bright green insted of turning all gray. That’s one of my favorite tips of all. Don’t know about the root vegetable thing, other than you can’t really over-cook them.
Another ringing endorsement for good parmesan! The taste is so much better it’s incredible. Since I’m a klutz and usually scrape my knuckles on box graters I much prefer a microplane grater. Those things purely rock. They work great on fresh ginger, lemon/lime rind, etc. too. It’s my favorite kitchen tool.
Oh Lordy, yes! I love, love, love mine. It’s a great convenience since I go through a pitcher of iced tea per day.
My mother has one of these — it’s all dog-eared and takes up a whole drawer in her kitchen. It’s enormous! But it’s a great source of entertainment. I believe she started collecting them shortly after she married in 1953. Yup, one section a week from the local grocery.
Are you telling me that Toaster-leavin’s are a delicacy in France?
I find if I chill onions before chopping them, they don’t make my eyes water so much.
You’ve never deglazed a pan, have you?
Dijon Warlock knows what she’s talking about. You clearly don’t.
Give up, or learn.
The explanation that I’ve heard is that if you store it “right side up”, it allows air (and thus spores, bacteria, etc.) into the container. If you store it upside down, the liquid seals the opening, and thus nothing can get in…or at least much less can get in.
On onions: yes, chilling them keeps the eye-irritation down when you chop them, as does cutting them under running water.
I take it that you’ve never seen me naked. 
I know what I’m talking about. I’m talking about a joke from Married With Children. The Bundy’s were so poor that somtimes they had to scrape the “FONNNNND” and ashes out of the toaster and eat it for dinner. They called it toaster-leavin’s.