I've moved out on my own and lost the instant search results who is my mother cooking with me, I have had to learn by trial and error myself. I've made quite a few mistakes these past few weeks, some resulting in just not good food, other times resulting in some form of pain or agony. Other times it was straight up slicing open my hand on a cheese grater attempting to make zucchini bread. However, none of these hurdles have squashed my desire to cook, learn and share the food I make (as long as it isn't burned or incinerated). But In order to prevent you from experiencing the same agony (or maybe to give you something to laugh about) I've gone and put down some of my own experiences below.
1. Don't remove jalapeno innards with your bare hands!
These guys have an awful punch in their inner membrane. Capsaicin is what leaves the hot, oily and painful burning sensation on your fingers if you decide to gut them with your fingers. Instead, cut off the stem, slice long wise, and scoop out the insides with a spoon.
However, if you do get burned, find a citrus! Lemon or lime juice is the best, and rub it all over those tingling fingers. Dish soap won't work super well, nor will a cold compress, because it's not a temperature burn. Some other good options are milk, rubbing alcohol (strictly for a skin burn, folks!).
2. Red Cabbage Dyes Everything Purple
Red cabbage is a lovely color, and I wanted to experiment with some. However, it sat in my fridge for way too long between uses, so in desperation I made a vegetable stew, cutting off the brown parts and heaping it into the pot. It was delicious!
However, two days later when I went to reheat my soup, I was looking at a purple mess. The broth was purple, the potatoes were purple, and to my surprise even the corn kernels had started absorbing purple, turning into a weird mesh of yellow and the intruding color. While it may be awesome in a stir fry, try sticking to a typical green cabbage.
3. Stick your bread in the freezer!
Fred Meyer typically has a bakery cart loaded with one or two day old breads,and I picked up a loaf of artisan garlic bread for two dollars less than usual. I was delightfully eating my way through it until I pulled it out of my pantry one morning to learn it had gone to a polka-dot mold designer in the middle of the night without my noticing.
To prevent this, toss it in your freezer. Sure, it will take a few more seconds to toast, but you won't have to throw money in the garbage.
4. Store your mushrooms in a paper bag
Unless you're eating all of your mushrooms at once, and they're whole (I haven't figured out pre-sliced mushrooms yet) you need to store them in your fridge. If placed in a plastic container, they'll sweat and mold, growing weird blue slime. It's unpleasant.
If you're at Winco, grab a paper bag by the mushrooms. If not, throw them in a plastic one until either you get to the check out and grab a small one, or try at find one at home.
5. Turn the Stove off
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This sounds like a no-brainer, but my freshman year my roommate texted me to turn off the stove because she'd remembered only once she'd gotten to class. Fortunately it was within minutes, but even now in my apartment with five other women, an occasional hot burner or stove is left on. Double, triple, quadruple check! Nobody needs to burn down everything they own.
6. Parchment paper
Sure, baking on your cookie sheet, wet with butter or PAM works, but if something sizzles over and burns through the butter, you might have a hard time cleaning it. I'm specifically thinking of the recent occurrence of rogue cheese creeping out of it's jalapeno shell and gluing itself to the tray.
7. Avocados are tricky!
Many people are ardent lovers of avocado - that creamy green goodness can go anywhere from a facial, to a chocolate milkshake, to something more ordinary like guacamole. Be warned! I've found even with a heap of lemon juice, the poor stuff just wants to be brown once it hits air. Try to buy enough to eat, but not so much you can't save some for later.
Pro tip: Leave the pit in the half, and it will stay ripe longer.
P.S. Pro tip: Do not, do not try and "make them ripe" in the oven. To ripen, place in a brown paper bag with either a banana or apple until they're ready.
