alt=""/> Normally, food will thicken when chilled, but when re-heated it will return to its original consistency. If the food is still thick after being reheated, simply add some water to thin it out.
Do not double or triple a recipe until you get used to making the recipe, especially the rice dishes.
If a recipe calls for a lime, you can use a lemon instead if that is all you have on hand. I use limes since they are less expensive and easier to find. If a recipe calls for the juice of one lime, you can also use the juice of one-half lemon instead (since lemons are bigger than limes). If you prefer to use key limes, you can use two of those to equal one lime.
If you accidentally add cumin seeds to an overheated pan or if you cook them too long in oil and they burn, discard them along with the oil and start again. Burnt cumin seeds will ruin the taste of your dish and they are unsightly.
Canola and peanut oils are better than vegetable oil for frying since they have higher smoke points (the temperature at which the oil starts to emit smoke and unpleasant odors, resulting in poor flavor and burning).
Always use fully ripe, soft, red tomatoes for quicker cooking times, the best flavor, and for their beautiful deep red color. In the cooking process, tomato skins usually separate from the flesh. For better presentation, I often remove the big pieces of loose tomato skins before serving the dish. I prefer not to cut up the tomato into many small pieces, since that means the cooked dish will have many tiny tomato skins in it that would be hard to pick out.
I cook with yellow onions since they are readily available and provide a nice flavor to food. Red onions are slightly sweet and white onions are milder than yellow onions, but you may use any variety you prefer. There are different stages of cooking onions, from becoming translucent to a golden brown, brown, dark brown, and finally to the point of caramelizing them, when the natural sugars cook and lend a sweet taste. Always cut or shred onions right before you are ready to cook them so they do not sit for too long and start releasing their water and smell bad.
I have provided measurements in both American and metric units. Measurements don't have to be exact so don't stress about measuring ingredients precisely. Do note that the metric measurements are rounded so you can easily measure the ingredients; also note that I use a standard 250-milliliter equivalent when using cup measurements.
My cooking times are based on using heavy cookware over a gas stove. Light cookware can be used, and is beneficial in the sense the food will cook faster; however, you have to keep a sharp eye on it and stir the food more frequently.
If the recipe calls for a nonstick skillet, but you prefer to use a skillet without a nonstick surface, add an additional tablespoon of oil and stir the food more frequently. If your skillet it not heavy bottomed, you may also need to lower the heat to keep the food from burning. However, when pan-frying tofu, paneer, or potato cubes, the best results come with using a non-stick skillet. If I do not specify in a recipe that a nonstick skillet should be used, such as when roasting or tempering spices, then you can use either a nonstick or stainless-steel skillet
I use plain iodized table salt in all of my recipes. Salt to taste. You may also use kosher salt or sea salt if you prefer. Both are coarser than table salt, so you will need to add a pinch or so more that what is indicated in the recipes for equal seasoning.
You can control the fiery spice level in dishes by decreasing or increasing the amount of ground red pepper (cayenne), dried red chili peppers, or fresh green chili peppers used in the recipes.
If a recipe calls for yogurt, you may use fat free, reduced fat, or regular yogurt. Make sure the yogurt is plain yogurt and not Greek yogurt or a flavored yogurt. You may also plain soy yogurt as a dairy-free, vegan substitute.
To prevent cut or cubed potato pieces from browning, immerse in a bowl of cold water until ready to use.
Basic Techniques
If you run across a recipe and wonder how to cut a carrot into matchsticks, deal with a whole garlic bulb, roast spices, or even the difference between cubing, dicing, chopping and mincing, this section is the place to find the answers!
Roasting, Grinding, and Peeling Whole Spices
Cardamom Pods
To open a cardamom pod, place it on a cutting board. Place a small knife on its side flat on top of the cardamom and press on the knife to crack the pod open. Pry it apart with your fingers and remove the black seeds.
If you need to crush the seeds for a recipe, use a mortar and pestle to coarsely crush the seeds. Alternatively, put the seeds in a plastic bag. Put the bag on a cutting board and hit with a rolling pin until the seeds are coarsely crushed.
Roasting Whole Spices
Roasting spices is a common Indian technique used to deepen and bring out the flavors of the spices. The intense aroma given off by the spices while roasting and grinding them is amazing! It is best to roast and grind spices just when you plan to use them, since they lose their potency over time.
1 Place a small skillet over medium heat. When the skillet is heated, add the whole spices. Roast the spices until they are fragrant, stirring frequently, about 2 minutes. (Roast cumin seeds until they are dark brown, but not burnt.) Transfer the spices to a bowl and let cool before grinding.
2 Place the spices in a mortar and pestle and grind to a fine powder. Alternatively, put the spices on a small piece of foil, fold the foil over the seeds, and roll a rolling pin over them to crush the spices into a fine powder. You can also use an electric coffee or spice grinder. (In some recipes, spices are ground without roasting, such as mustard seeds.)
3 Use now or place in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 months.
Freezing Raw Vegetables
Fresh vegetables may be frozen if you will not be able to use them soon. My mother always has more tomatoes than she can cook in her garden, so she simply washes them and puts them in freezer-safe plastic bags and places it in her freezer for up to a month. When she is ready to cook with them, she thaws them by bringing them out at room temperature, and then she cooks with them. Similarly, most vegetables may be frozen such as okra, eggplant, and opo squash. You may freeze these vegetables whole, without cutting them up. Blanching is used to set the color and flavor of vegetables before freezing, but I do not find it necessary.
Preparing Dried Beans
Kidney beans, chickpeas, black beans, and black-eyed peas.
1 Place the dried beans on a plate. Sift through them and remove any grit or blemished beans.
2 Transfer the beans to a large bowl. Rinse the beans three times by repeatedly filling the bowl with cold water
