Do not refrigerate tomatoes

Tomatoes lose flavor below 50 deg. F

An international group of horticulturalists has published an extensive study in the “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences” looking at the effects of refrigeration on” flavor” compounds in tomatoes.cherry_tomatoes

They say: “Chilling fruits at temperatures below 12 degrees Celsius hampers enzymes that help synthesize flavor-imparting volatile compounds, resulting in relatively fresh but insipid fruits.”  Read on

Tip of the day: Easier fried chicken

Tip of the day: Easier fried chicken

great idea
great idea

Frying at home gets a bad rap. It’s easy to see why—the fear of sputtering hot oil or under-cooked food is enough to give even the most confident home cook pause. But with the right equipment, making a recipe like the easier fried chicken  is a straightforward process that hinges on keeping both the oil at the right temperature and an eye on the clock.

The following fried chicken recipe works:

To season the meat and ensure it turned out juicy, we soaked chicken parts in a buttermilk brine (buttermilk heavily seasoned with salt). We also incorporated baking powder, an unconventional ingredient in fried chicken, into our dredging mixture (flour seasoned with garlic powder, paprika, and cayenne pepper). As the chicken fries, the baking powder releases carbon dioxide gas, leavening the crust and increasing its surface area, keeping it light and crisp. And while most dredging mixtures contain purely dry ingredients, we added a little buttermilk to our mixture because the small clumps of batter it forms turn ultra-crisp once fried.