seasonings, spices & herbs

kitchen tips

• You can use a coffee grinder to mix up and grind your spices and herbs to make your own blends.
• Keep your spices away from sources of heat like the stove or lights. Herbs and spices can lose their flavour when exposed to humidity and heat.
• Store fresh herbs as you would fresh flowers: in a jar of water on your countertop. Pluck off what you need, change the water daily, and they'll last two to three times longer than they would in the fridge. You'll get the most extra mileage from flat-leaf parsley.
• When chopping herbs, toss a little salt onto the cutting board; it will keep the herbs from flying around.
• Store spices in a cool, dark place, not above your stove. Humidity, light and heat will cause herbs and spices to lose their flavour.
• Take the edge off something you made too spicy: if you added a bit too much ginger or chilli, add a squeeze of lemon juice to tone down the spiciness.
• To keep salt from clogging in the shaker, add 1/2 teaspoon of uncooked rice.
• Ground spices should be replaced every 6 months or so.
• If you want your food to taste pro, season it properly. The biggest single difference (apart from presentation) between restaurant food and home-cooked food is the amount of salt, pepper, spices, herbs (yes, and butter!) that is added during cooking.
• Onions and garlic become milder, sweeter and richer tasting when cooked slowly.
• Sometimes you don’t want a strong garlic or onion seasoning. Get a milder flavour by sautéing them in butter or olive oil for a few minutes prior to adding them to other foods. This will release their natural sweetness and give a wonderful flavour.
• Herbs are another wonderful way to add flavor to your food, start with parsley and basil that work with so many dishes. While dried herbs can quickly overpower, you should opt for fresh herbs that perk up foods with their fresh flavour.
• Fresh, tender herbs such as cilantro, basil, mint and parsley can be added at the very end or as a garnish.
• A great way of using spices is in rubs for meat. A rub is basically a dry marinade.
• For the freshest herbs possible, nothing beats planting your own herb garden. It is also convenient and cost effective.
• One way to preserve the flavour of fresh herbs is to make herb butter. Let the butter soften, then add finely chopped herbs in any combination, about 2 to 4 tablespoons per stick of butter.
• When grilling steak, sprinkle steak spice generously on the cooked side of the steak.
• Season prepared mixed vegetables with a touch of lemon pepper and butter.
• Basil is a good idea in just about everything with tomato. It is especially good in Italian dishes.
• Try using dried herbs in the oil when pan-frying. You have to work fast to avoid burning them, but this gets the flavour into the meat.