How To Cook: Answer The Most Frequent "why"

Prepare the dish according to the recipe, observing all the recommendations and proportions, but it still doesn’t work - it burns, falls apart, or even comes out completely inedible.

Prepare the dish according to the recipe, observing all the recommendations and proportions, but it still doesn’t work - it burns, falls apart, or even comes out completely inedible. For example, cheesecakes stick to the pan and burn, but inside they remain raw. And often cheesecakes float, the pie is not baked, and instead of crispy potatoes, it turns into porridge. We explain why this happens and what to do.

1. Why do cheesecakes burn?

 

Cheesecakes burn because you put them in a pan that is too hot. If you cook cheesecakes without breading (in flour), then it is better to put them in a warm pan, they will be pale, but will “grab” when turned over, the fire can be increased to medium-slow. Fry lightly on one side, then turn over and cook covered. The main thing is a slow fire and a barely hot frying pan.

Greater dexterity requires the preparation of breaded cheesecakes, such can be fried over medium heat, and they must be laid out in a well-heated pan to form a golden crust.

2. Why do cheesecakes float when frying?

Cheesecakes flow during frying (float, spread) because you made the dough not elastic enough. It should be firm and dry to the touch.

We offer a detailed recipe for making classic cheesecakes.

500 g of fatty cottage cheese; 1 egg; sugar to taste (you can not add at all); 5-6 art. l. flour (2 tablespoons of them - for breading); 4 tbsp. l. vegetable oil.

Mash cottage cheese with egg and sugar with a crush or fork. Add flour, stir. The dough should be collected in a lump, keep its shape, be elastic. With wet hands, take a tablespoon of the mass and roll into a ball. Flatten it and roll in flour. Grease a frying pan heated over medium heat with oil, it should cover the surface with a film. Spread the cheesecakes and fry until golden brown on both sides.

Or put the cheesecakes in a barely heated pan, fry on one side until pale yellow, turn over and cover with a lid. Fry over low heat for 2 minutes, then turn over and fry for another minute.

Sprinkle finished cheesecakes with powdered sugar, serve with sour cream and jam.

3. Why don't canned cucumbers crunch?

 

Pickled cucumbers don't crunch because you haven't soaked them in water first. For crispy pickled cucumbers, choose small fruits and be sure to pre-soak in water for 2-3 hours, so they do not become viscous and soft.

And to make salted cucumbers crispy, add horseradish leaves, cherries and currants to the jar.

Crispy pickled cucumbers for the winter

1 kg of cucumbers; 1 liter of water; 60 g of salt; 2 cloves of garlic; dill umbrella; horseradish leaf and root; cherry and black currant leaves.

Wash the cucumbers and soak in cold water for 3 hours. Rinse the leaves and dill, peel the garlic and horseradish root. Put the leaves and dill on the bottom of a clean jar, lay the cucumbers tightly, alternating with slices of garlic and horseradish root. Dilute the salt in cold water and pour over the cucumbers. Cover with a lid and put in a dark place for 2 days. Strain the cloudy brine, pick the cucumbers. If you get soft, choose. Fold the cucumbers in sterilized jars, top with a horseradish leaf, pour boiling brine (pour on the leaf) and roll up. Wrap in a blanket to cool, then store in a dark, cool place.

4. Why does pancake dough need to be lump-free?

 

When preparing batter for thin pancakes, beat well with a whisk to break up any lumps. The fact is that pancakes slightly bubble when frying, pimples form on the lumps, which burn.

Thin pancakes with milk

200 g flour; 2 eggs; 500 ml of milk; a pinch of salt; 1 tsp sugar (or to taste); 2 tbsp. l. vegetable oil.

Lightly beat the eggs with salt and sugar with a whisk until smooth. Add a small amount of milk and stir again. Add flour and fold in completely. Add the remaining milk, you can not all at once. The consistency should be the same as that of kefir, but more viscous. Oil can be added to the dough or grease the pan during frying.

The dough should rest for 15 minutes. Then heat the pan well and grease it with oil. You can use washed and halved potatoes for this. By the way, you need to grease the pan with oil once or twice in the process of frying all the pancakes. In a hot frying pan, holding it on the fly, pour half a scoop of batter and spread over the bottom. Fry the pancake on one side for a minute, then turn over with a wide spatula and fry for another half a minute on the other side. Lubricate the finished pancakes with butter and stack them in a pile.

5. Why is the cake not baked?

 

The cake is not baked if the recipe is not followed or because you have chosen the wrong temperature.

If the top of the cake is browning too much but the inside is raw, lower the temperature and cover the cake with parchment paper or foil. It is better to bake the cake longer at a temperature of 160-180 degrees than to put the mold with the dough in the oven heated to 200 degrees.

Often the ovens are "naughty" - the top or bottom of the cake can be baked more strongly. To do this, you need to study the features of your oven and put the cake not in the center of the oven, but above or below.

6. Why does fish stick to the pan when frying?

 

The fish sticks to the pan because it is too wet, the temperature setting is wrong, or there is not enough oil in the pan.

When frying, not only fish sticks to the pan, but also vegetables, meat, and other products. To prevent this from happening, you need to heat the pan with oil well. The heated oil becomes more liquid and fills all the cracks. In addition, the fish should be blotted with a paper towel before frying to remove excess moisture. And spread the breaded fish in heated, almost smoking oil. It is advisable to use a heavy-bottomed pan so that the temperature does not drop when you put the fish in.

There is one trick that will not allow the fish to stick to the pan. Cut a parchment circle to the size of your pan, place, then heat the pan, pour in the oil and fry as usual. Just!

7. Why honey cannot be heat treated?

 

There is a myth that honey when heated supposedly becomes toxic. Not really. There is no scientific evidence for this. Honey can be heated! The whole world drinks tea with honey for a cold and, it seems, everyone is only getting better.

The fact is that natural honey contains a huge amount of useful substances, and when heated, some of them are destroyed. Therefore, it is better to use fresh honey. But you can also heat-treat honey!

8. Why don't fried potatoes come out crispy but soft?

 

Everyone loves fried potatoes with a crust. But not everyone gets it crispy.

We'll show you how to fry the perfect crispy potato.

1. Cut the potatoes into cubes or slices of the same size, so they will fry evenly.

2. Pour the sliced ​​potatoes with cold water and leave for 10 minutes-3 hours. So we get rid of excess starch. You can change the water once or twice.

3. Drain the potatoes in a colander, then place on a kitchen towel. Dry potatoes before roasting.

4. Pour enough oil into the pan so that the potatoes do not stick, but no more.

5. If possible, do not use a non-stick frying pan to fry potatoes. It doesn't warm up properly.

6. Pour the oil into the pan and heat well before frying the potatoes. It should not smoke, but vibrate in the pan.

7. Spread the potatoes in one layer, do not overload the pan!

8. As soon as you put the potatoes in the pan, lower the heat slightly.

9. The frying pan with potatoes can be covered with a lid at the first stage of frying, but then the lid must be removed.

Fried potatoes with onions and garlic

6-7 large potatoes, cut into 6 mm slices; one large onion, cut into half rings; clove of garlic; salt, pepper to taste; 60 ml of vegetable oil; about 30 g butter.

Soak chopped potatoes for 10 minutes in salted cold water. Then fold in a colander, let the water drain, dry thoroughly with a towel. Potatoes must be dry. Heat the oil over high heat, add the potatoes and fry for two minutes without stirring. Cover the skillet with a lid, lower the heat to medium and cook for 2-3 minutes. Remove the lid and raise the heat again. After a minute, drain the contents of the pan into a colander, wipe the pan itself with a paper towel. Return the potatoes to the skillet, return to the heat, add the onion and garlic. Cook uncovered until potatoes are soft inside. At the end of frying, add oil and, if necessary, salt. Serve fried potatoes sprinkled with freshly ground pepper.

Ask your questions about cooking in the comments to this article. After collecting another batch of questions that concern you, we will prepare detailed answers and share cool recipes for cooking dishes that turn out perfect.