Best Food Recipe

introduction computers mcqs

2024-04-22T20:21:00.001+05:00

Ans: Here you add your correct answer of the Question.

How many walnuts can we eat per day?

2019-08-20T14:30:00.000+05:00

Do you know that walnuts and hazelnuts, which are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, provide incredible benefits to human health when consumed daily? Especially during the day consumed walnuts and nuts from the bones to the heart and vascular health renews many areas in the human body. However, this needs to be done in moderation. What if you eat five walnuts or nutty a day? We have investigated the answer to this question for you.

consumed in the evening or day nuts and nuts, the body needs vitamin E, mineral, zinc, calcium, and magnesium is rich in antioxidant substances. In one day, according to the studies of 5-consuming hazelnuts and walnuts individuals who consume more health against diseases and l it was observed to be more resistant. These two miracle nutrients that increase the concentrated power of the brain have been used as natural remedies in alternative medicine for centuries. Experts emphasize that especially pregnant women and children of developmental age should consume. It strengthens the skeletal system against impacts by increasing muscle and bone mass and also supports the regeneration of brain nerves.

What Happens if you eat 5 nuts or hazelnut?

These nutrients consumed as snacks can support deformed nerve cells because they are rich in unsaturated fatty acids. In addition, it does not leave waste like other nutrients to clean the vessels. Strengthens heart health.
Fiber is the most effective substance in the regulation of digestion. It accelerates metabolism by increasing the functions of the stomach and intestines. As walnuts and hazelnuts are rich in this substance, they help to lose weight by preventing digestion by regulating digestion and burning fat.
Omega-3 fatty acids support the regeneration of cells in the body, thus preventing cancer formation by renewing the cells that are prone to mutation. It is especially effective in preventing prostate and breast cancer.
It renews skin cells and prevents wrinkles and delays aging. It also prevents inflammation of the dermis layer of the skin.

Philips Avent 3-in-1 Electric Steam Sterilizer

2019-03-30T22:18:00.001+05:00

Philips Avent 3 in 1 electric steam sterilizer destroys 99.9 per cent of germs through powerful steam sterilization. Just plug the unit into any standard electrical outlet to safely and successfully eliminate most household germs in as little as six minutes. The changeable size allows you to modify to your needs.

Flexible Design

The sterilizer's exclusive modular design allows you to fit the bottles and accessories flexibly, and organize them simply. Thus baby bottles and accessories loading and unloading are very useful. It also takings up slight kitchen space.

Quick Sterilization

The sterilizing cycle takes just six minutes. After this period, the sterilizer automatically closes off, giving you additional speed and safety.

Sterile Contents for up to 24 Hours

The sterilizer will save its contents (baby bottles, soothers and accessories.) sterile for up to 24 hours if the lid is unopened.

Chemicals Free Steam Sterilizing

The sterilizer procedures natural steam to sterilize baby bottles and other accessories, killing 99.9% of dangerous germs without using chemicals. Perfect for giving you peace of mind that all your baby bottles and other accessories are sterile.

Holds up to Six Baby Bottle

It holds up to six 330 ml / 11oz Philips Avent Classic and Natural baby bottles and other accessories to be sterilized at once.

Works through Baby Bottle Types

The sterilizer is right for use with both wide neck and standard neck baby bottles. It also fixes other baby items and accessories.

Exposed Design

With open design you can simply save the heating plate clean, allowing you to sterilize with 100 per cent clean steam every time.

How to Assemble Philips Avent Sterilizer

There are different ways to assemble the sterilizer.

With just the small basket on the base to sterilize small baby items such as soothers.
With just the large basket on the base to sterilize medium-sized baby feeding items such as breast pumps, toddler plates or toddler cutlery.
With the large basket and the little basket on the base to sterilize up to six 11oz/330ml baby bottles. Place the bottles upside down in the large basket and place the baby bottle dome caps, screw rings and teats in the small basket.

How to Use Philips Avent Sterilizer 3 in 1

Just place baby items in the sterilizer which are proper for sterilizing. Do not sterilize baby items that are filled with liquid, e.g. a teether with cooling liquid.

Note: Before you sterilize baby bottles and other items, clean them first.

Use for example a perfect clean baby bottle and pour just 100ml tap water directly into the water reservoir of the base.
Assemble the steriliser and place the baby items to be sterilized in it.
Place the cover on top of the small or large basket.
Put the plug in the wall 110v/220v socket.
Press the power-on button to switch on the steriliser.
The power light lights up to indicate that the machine starts operating.
When the sterilization process is complete, the prepared light goes on. After three minutes the ready light goes out to show that you can now securely open the steriliser.
Remove the top lid, hold up until the appliance has cooled down before you remove the top lid.
Be careful, hot steam may leave the steriliser, remove the bottles and different items from the basket. Use the tongs to remove the little items.
Be careful, the sterilized items may even now be hot.
Unplug the machine and hold up until the machine has cooled down completely.
Empty out any remaining water from the water reservoir and wipe the water reservoir dry.

Note:

If you plug in the machine after you have pressed the power-on button, the steriliser starts to heat up instantly.
Make sure you shower your hands completely before you touch sterilized items.
The machine does not work for 10 minutes after a sterilizing cycle; it wants to cool down first.

How to Clean Philips Avent Sterilizer

Do not try abrasive or forceful cleaning agents (for example bleach) or a scouring pad to clean this machine. Never dip the base, the mains power cord or the mains power plug in water or any other liquid.

Note: The sterilizer base is not dishwasher-proof. The baskets and the top lid can be cleaned with hot water and some washing-up liquid.

Always unplug the machine and let it cool down completely before you clean it.
Clean the base with a damp cloth.
Clean the other parts in hot water with some cleaning -up liquid.

Note: After cleaning, store the sterilizer in a perfect, dry place.

How to Descale Philips Avent Sterilizer

When you use the baby bottle sterilizer, minor spots may show up on the heating element in the base. This is a water scale that is building up. The harder the water, the quicker the scale builds up. Descale the sterilizer at least every one or two weeks to make sure that it continues to work successfully.

Pour 80ml/2.7oz of any white vinegar (5% acetic acid) and 20ml/0.7oz of water into the heating element in the base.
Leave the solution heating element in the water reservoir until the scale has resolved.
Empty the heating element water reservoir, completely rinse it and wipe the base with a damp cloth.

Danger:

Never immerse the base of the sterilizer, the mains power cord or the mains power plug in water or any other liquid.
Failure to follow the descaling guidelines may cause permanent damage.
Never disassemble the base to avoid the danger shock.

Warning:

This appliance can be used by persons with compact physical, sensory or mental skills or lack of experience and information if they have been given supervision or guidance concerning the use of the appliance in a safe method and if they know the hazards involved.
This appliance will not be used by children under eighteen. Save the appliance and its power cord out of the reach of children.
Children will not play with the appliance in the home.
Check if the voltage shown on the appliance relates to the resident mains voltage before you connect the appliance.
Do not use the appliance if the power plug, the mains power cord or the appliance itself is damaged.
If the mains power cord is damaged, it must be changed by Philips, a service centre approved by Philips or similarly trained persons in order to avoid danger.

Buy in Pakistan

Attribution: Text & Photo Source by Philips Avent

Chocolate Milkshake Recipe

2019-03-03T17:08:00.000+05:00

Chocolate milkshake recipe is simple to make and every time taste decent if you are a chocolate lover. You can throw one together with some ingredients, or experiment with all kinds of additional flavours.

Prep time: 10 (ten) minutes
Cook time: 5 (five) minutes
Total time: 15 (fifteen) minutes

Ingredients:

Makes one large glass or two small milkshakes glass

¾ cup cold milk
¼ cup chocolate or flavoured syrup
3 scoops (1/2 cup each) vanilla ice cream

Method:

In a blender, add cold milk and syrup. Cover and blend on high speed for two seconds.
Put ice cream. Cover and blend on low speed around 5 seconds or till smooth. Taste before you put it into the glass, so you have the choice to blend in extra milk (thinner) or extra ice cream (thickener). Pour into glasses. Serve immediately.

Note:

Set up a milkshake tablet for the family, using the recipe (have dual the ingredients ready) as an initial point. Add out small dishes of chunky peanut butter, candy covered chocolate bits, heavy caramel or butterscotch ice cream garnish, and toffee baking bits, and or broken cream filled biscuit cookies or gingersnaps. We make sure to have a heavy duty blender!

Coffee Is Good For You

2016-10-01T10:52:00.000+05:00

The coffee bean is the seed of the coffee plant. The market is dominated by the beans of just two species Coffea Arabica, the oldest and best known approximately 75% of world production, and Coffea Robusta. Each type of coffee has its own taste, aroma, caffeine content, and other characteristics.

Coffee sold on the world market is still "green" that is, unroasted as green beans can be stored for several years with no loss in flavour. Before roasting, a process that brings out the coffee's flavour and aroma, the beans undergo a final grading and are blended with other varieties. The longer coffee is roasted, the bitterer but less acidic the beans and the darker their hue brown beans have not been roasted as long as medium black or black beans.

Coffee quickly loses its flavour and aroma, particularly if it is ground and kept in an unsealed container. It is best to buy just enough vacuum-packed ground coffee to meet your immediate needs. Coffee is often used in desserts such as mocha cake, éclairs, and ice cream, as well as in frostings. To obtain optimum taste in desserts, use extra strong coffee brewed with half the usual amount of water. Coffee is also an ingredient in some liqueurs.

Decaffeinated Coffee

Decaffeinated coffee is coffee from which most of the caffeine has been removed through direct contact with a solvent prior to roasting. It from which 97% of the caffeine has been removed has been treated up to 24 times. Roasting eliminates any remaining traces of solvent. Swiss or natural decaffeinate, a process whereby the beans are soaked in hot water to bring the caffeine to the surface, is used much less frequently due to its higher cost.

Instant Coffee

Instant coffee is a soluble coffee powder that can be reconstituted into a beverage by the addition of hot water. The beans used to make the powder (often Robusta) are generally of inferior quality. In some cases, the instant powder is flavoured with concentrated coffee.

Robusta Coffee

Robusta beans are smaller and rounder than Arabica beans. Robusta coffee has a less refined, somewhat bitter taste and the beans contain about 2% caffeine. The term Robusta refers to the plants, superior resistance to diseases and heat. Grown mainly in Africa, Robusta coffee fetches a lower price than Arabica.

Arabica Coffee

Arabica beans are relatively large. It brewed from these beans, which contain only 1% caffeine, is prized for its mild, refined taste and fragrance. The species is cultivated mainly in Arabia, Ethiopia, India, Brazil, Mexico and Colombia, and is also found in certain mountainous regions of Africa, such as Kenya, and Asia.

Organic Coffee

Organic Coffee is a coffee that is grownup without using some synthetic fertilizers or pesticides, on a land-living that was given the necessary time to clean itself, without the help of any naturally modified organisms and to finish processed and packed without the association of any chemical. Organic Coffee is decent for health in the logic as it does not contain some toxic residues of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, non-natural flavours, and colours, or stabilizers. Therefore, these dangerous elements cannot enter your body.

Nutritional Value of Coffee

Coffee beans have best impressive organic compounds and nutrients, including B vitamins riboflavin, pantothenic acid, niacin, potassium, manganese, magnesium and Perhaps. It holds caffeine, which has a wide range of health aids when used up in moderation and at correct times during the day.

Health Benefits of Coffee

A number of the best important health benefits of coffee has long include help in weight loss efforts, increase energy levels, make the most of fitness efforts, rise liver protection, brain improving ability, improve the metabolism, defend against certain types of cancer and an improved heart ratio and blood pressure.

How to Make Homemade Sour Cream

2016-09-26T09:19:00.000+05:00

The cream is the fat that rises to the surface of milk during the first stage of the butter making process. The cream is pasteurized and homogenized before it is sold, it may also be sterilized, either by normal means or by means of ultra-heat treatment (UHT). It has to be heated to higher temperatures than the milk from which it is derived because it contains more bacteria.

As well as varying in texture, It can be fresh, which is the best for all purposes, treated with a culture which helps prolong its life, sterilized, when it acquires an odd, flat, sweetish flavour or treated to a version of UHT, when it has a long life but is not the best choice when the flavour of the cream is important. Fresh cream is obviously the first choice and this will keep, refrigerated, for up to 4 days in summer and days in winter. Some firms still deliver untreated cream to local stores, and this is the cream with the best flavour of all.

The cream is widely used in cooking, particularly in French food, because its taste and texture are hard to match. It is added to coffee, vinaigrettes, soups, sauces, omelettes, terrines, desserts, candies, and liqueurs. Whipped cream is used to garnish and enrich pastries, soufflés, pies, ices, charlottes, sauces, and fruits. It is an essential ingredient in vacherins and puffs. It is high in calories because it is relatively fatty. Milk and yoghurt are being substituted for cream more and more, as people become increasingly concerned about their consumption of fat and calories.

Whipping Cream

In Canada, whipping cream contains between 32% and 40% fat. In the United States, a distinction is made between light whipping cream between 30% and 36% fat and heavy whipping cream at least 36% fat. In Europe, a cream that contains at least 30% fat is known simply as heavy cream. Chantilly cream is made by adding sugar and vanilla to whipped cream.

Coffee Cream

Coffee cream contains 10% fat.

Country Cream

A cream that contains only 15% fat but has the same consistency as 35% cream and can be whipped.

Table Cream

A cream that contains between 15% and 18% fat. In Europe, this kind of cream is known as single cream and contains a higher percentage of fat.

Crème Fraiche

Crème Fraiche, an important ingredient in French food, is pasteurized and has a lactic fermenting agent added, giving it a taste that is slightly acidic without being sour. It can be prepared by using one part buttermilk to two parts whipping cream, heating to 25° Celsius, left to sit for 6 to 8 hours, and then refrigerated. Crème Fraiche is an indispensable ingredient in many sauces.

Clotted Cream

This is a speciality of the west of England, where great pans filled with milk are heated, cooled and then skimmed of their thick, wrinkled, creamy crust. This cream is usually eaten in Devon and Cornwall piled on to scones with strawberry jam.

Sour Cream

Sour cream (or sour cream) is pasteurized cream that has been soured with a bacterial culture. It makes food taste slightly acidic. Sour cream is frequently added to soups, dips, sauces, goulash, bread, and cakes. In the United States, baked potatoes are rarely eaten wit hour a touch of it. Two popular sour cream dishes are Eastern European borscht and Russian Smetana sauce.

Health Benefits and Nutrition of Eggs

2016-09-24T10:06:00.001+05:00

Unless otherwise specified, the word egg is usually taken to a hen’s egg. Eggs have not always been consumed as widely as they are today: the development of poultry farming and breeding techniques have made it possible to meet rising consumer demand. The fresher the egg, the denser and firmer the white around the yolk. When buying them, always check the side of the carton for the expiration date. The best before dare is reliable only if they are stored at the proper temperature (below 40°F) and degree of humidity (70% to 80%). To test the freshness of eggs, place them in cold water; fresh eggs will sink to the bottom, while older eggs will float to the surface because of their enlarged air chamber.

Certain preparations require that be at room temperature. This is the case when making mayonnaise (all ingredients should be at room temperance) when beating egg whites (cold egg whites will not peak as well), and when boiling (cold eggs tend to crack when they are plunged into boiling water). Particularly egg yolks should never be added directly to a hot liquid (soup, white sauce, custard, etc.), as the heat will cause them to curdle.

Because of their high water (75%) and protein (13%) content, they should be cooked for a short time, over low heat. Prolonged cooking at a high temperature will make them rubbery. When whisking egg whites, observe these points, the whites should be at room temperature, avoid using plastic utensils, as they tend to retain fatty substances that inhibit the frothing power of egg whites, if possible, use a copper bowl. Eggs are eaten on their own or incorporated into other foods (crepes, quiches, cakes, pastries, ice creams, beverages).

They are used both as a thickening and binding agent and to give a smooth and creamy texture to various preparations (sauces. soups, stuffing’s, flans cream fillings, puddings, purees, croquettes, pasta). Egg yolk is used in breadcrumbs, bread, rolls, pies, and other baked goods to give them an attractive golden colour. They can also be emulsified to make mayonnaise and sauces and the whites can be whisked into a foam for mousses, meringues, and shuffles.

Egg Nutritional Benefits

Eggs are an excellent source of protein, The fat in eggs is composed of 32% saturated fatty acids, 38% monounsaturated fatty acids, and 14% polyunsaturated fatty acids, a large egg contains 5% cholesterol (213 milligrams). The colour of the shell is a genetic trait that depends on the breed of hen, as such, it is not an indication of the nutritive value or flavour of the egg. The nutrients are not equally distributed between the white and the yolk: the white supplies more than half the protein, potassium, and riboflavin, while the yolk provides the A and D vitamins and most of the other vitamins and minerals; the yolk also contains all of the fat and three quarters of the total calories.

Types of Eggs

No other bird has proved anywhere near so obliging as the domestic hen, which lays up to 250 eggs a year, but hen's eggs are by no means the whole story.

Ostrich Eggs

One ostrich egg is equal to two dozen hen's eggs are rarely sold these days but Queen Victoria once tasted one made into a giant omelette and declared it to be very good.

Duck's Eggs

They are extremely rich with somewhat gelatinous whites, so although they taste quite good on their own they are best in custards, mousses and other puddings.

Goose Eggs

They are also rich and make very good omelettes, custards, and mousses.

Quail's Eggs

Miniature in size and speckled, come both fresh and preserved. Fresh and hard-boiled, they make a good first course served with celery salt. Poached, they look charming on salads.

Gull's Eggs

They are in season briefly in spring, and are eaten hard-boiled with celery salt. Plover's eggs and pheasant's eggs are sometimes to be found, but in many countries they are, quite rightly, protected from the underfeeding gourmet.

Chocolate Health Benefits and Facts

2016-09-22T15:19:00.000+05:00

Chocolate is a softly textured paste produced when chocolate mass or liquor is mixed with sugar and cocoa butter, heated, agitated and cooled. Good quality chocolate is shiny, breaks cleanly and is free of white spots and small bubbles. The dull, greyish, whitish, or crystallized is not fresh and should be avoided.

Cocoa and chocolate are popular flavourings in a wide variety of foods (cakes, tarts, puddings, biscuits, sauces, icings, ice creams, mousses, flans, bread, candy, syrups, milk, beverages, and liqueurs). It is the essential ingredient in Black Forest cake and Sacher torte. Some countries, Spain and Mexico in particular, use it in savoury dishes such as the sauces that accompany mole poblano, a turkey stew that also features peppers and sesame.

When cooking with chocolate, it is generally best to use the least sweet variety that you can find (the less sugar that is added, the stronger and chocolatier will be the flavour, and you can always add more sugar). To ensure the best flavour, look for chocolate with at least 5o per cent cocoa solid content, 60-70 per cent is even better, whether it is for cooking or eating.

When melting chocolate for use in a recipe always follow two simple but firm rules, the temperature should never exceed 120°F, or its flavour will be altered, and not a single drop of water must ever come into contact with, as this will cause lumps to form. Break into pieces and heat gently, stirring constantly, in an uncovered double boiler.

Cocoa

The product extracted from the beans of the cacao tree, cacao is the basic ingredient in chocolate, Cocoa powder is obtained by pressing the chocolate liquor to extract cocoa batter, a yellow fat. This powder is difficult to dissolve in liquids, it is best to combine it with a cold liquid and then add sugar. Cacao is all excellent source of copper, potassium, vitamin B12, iron and it is very rich in fibre. Cacao and chocolate contain the stimulants the bromine and caffeine.

Carob

Fruit of the carob tree used as a cacao substitute and as an additive. Carob powder has a much lower protein and fat content than cacao. It contains less phosphorus, potassium, and iron, but is twice as rich in calcium and is a rich source of fibre. It does not contain stimulants and does not cause allergies. When it is used in place of cacao, its flavour can be enhanced with cinnamon without the addition of sugar.

Dark Chocolate

Dark chocolate is the term used for both bittersweet and semisweet chocolate; it contains between 35% and 70% chocolate liquor, sugar, and sometimes emulsifiers. Dark chocolate can be eaten on its own or used in baking.

Unsweetened Chocolate

The chocolate mass once it has solidified without the addition of sugar or milk solids. It is used makers and confectioners for baking. Unsweetened chocolate is too bitter to be edible on its own.

White Chocolate

White chocolate is made from cocoa butter with the addition of evaporated or powdered milk, sugar, and vanilla extract. It has a sweeter flavour and creamier consistency than milk chocolate and is not as widely used in confectionery.

Milk Chocolate

Milk chocolate consists of varying amounts of milk powder, sugar, and flavourings such as vanilla blended with cocoa butter to yield a sweet flavour and rich texture. It is not suitable for use in cooking because the milk solids tend to burn.

Milk Health Benefits and Nutritional Information

2016-09-18T13:46:00.000+05:00

Unless otherwise specified, the word "milk" refers to cow's milk. Milk is usually sold pasteurized and homogenized. It is a key ingredient in the foods of many Western countries but is consumed less widely in Asia and Africa. Milk is added to a vast array of foods, including soups, sauces, pancakes, cakes, pastries, desserts, custards, ice cream, and a variety of cooked dishes. Milk burns very easily. It is best to heat milk over low heat, preferably in a double boiler, because it boils over very quickly once it reaches the boiling point and readily sticks to the bottom of the pan, forming a precipitate that tends to turn brown. Milk is an excellent source of protein, and few foods provide as much calcium, milk is also rich in phosphorus and potassium, and it contains an essential fatty acid, linoleic acid.

Homogenized Milk

Homogenized milk containing fat that has been forced through very small openings, breaking the fat globules into tiny particles that remain suspended in the liquid and cannot accumulate on the surface of the milk.

Whole Milk

Whole milk that generally contains 3.5% fat and is fortified with vitamin D. If it is not homogenized, the fat rises to the surface, forming a layer of cream.

Evaporated Milk

Evaporated milk from which approximately 60% of the water has been evaporated. Evaporated milk contains at least 7.5% fat and 25.5% milk solids. It is slightly darker than regular milk and has a faint caramel flavour. Nourishing and high in calories, evaporated milk is enriched with vitamins D and C, low fat and skim evaporated milk are also enriched with vitamin A.

Nonfat Milk

Nonfat milk containing no more than 0.3% fat. Vitamin A is added to compensate for the nutrients lost when the fat is removed. It is also usually fortified with vitamin D.

Low Fat Milk

Low-fat milk containing 1% to 2% fat. It has almost the same nutritional value as whole milk but less fat. It is fortified with vitamins A and D.

Raw Milk

Untreated milk, it is illegal to sell raw milk in Canada, many American states, and numerous European countries. Raw milk is an ideal medium for bacterial growth and is therefore regarded as a major health risk.

Pasteurized Milk

Pasteurized milk heated to just below the boiling point to destroy most of the pathogenic bacteria. Depending on the process, pasteurized milk can retain most of its flavour and colour, as well as most of its nutrients such as thiamine, vitamin B12, and lysine.

Goat's Milk

Goat's milk is whiter than cow's milk and has a stronger taste, it contains slightly less cholesterol than cow's milk and is easier to digest.

Condensed Milk

Evaporated whole milk with sugar added. Condensed milk contains 40% to 45% sugar, as well as at least 8% fat and 28% milk solids, and this is particularly high in calories. Regulations require that it be fortified with vitamin A but vitamin D is an optional ingredient. Condensed milk is used to make numerous desserts and candies.

Flavoured Milk

Flavoured milk to which a flavouring has been added. The most popular kind is chocolate milk, but there are also malted milk, fruit or vanilla flavoured milk, and mixtures of milk and fruit juice.

Ice Milk

Ice milk contains less fat than ice cream (between 2% and 7% fat), but as much sugar, if not more. It is slightly less creamy. Soft vanilla ice milk is an excellent source of vitamin B12.

Ultra-Filtered Milk

Ultrafiltered milk that is filtered by a process that removes 99.9% of its bacteria. Ultrafiltration prolongs the shelf life of milk without diminishing its nutritional value.

UHT Milk

UHT (Ultra heat treated) milk is packaged in sealed, aseptic containers, it can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 months. Once the container is opened, the milk should be consumed within a few days, because it is more perishable than other milk.

Powdered Milk

Powdered milk enriched with vitamins A and D. An unopened package of powdered milk can be stored for up to 1 year at room temperature, but once opened it should be used within 1 month. Powdered whole milk contains a minimum of 26% fat, while powdered low fat milk contains 9.5% and powdered skim milk 0.8% fat.

Butter Benefits and Types

2016-09-14T08:48:00.000+05:00

A smooth, fatty substance made by churning cream. Although butter is usually made from cow's milk, it can also be churned from the milk of other mammals such as goats, buffalo, or camels. It is a key ingredient in the cuisines of many countries because of its unique flavour. It is used primarily in sauces, pastries, and various soups. Since butter burns more easily than oil, it should not be cooked at high temperatures. However, it can withstand higher temperatures when used in combination with oil.

Butter should be eaten in moderation because it contains high levels of fat, saturated fatty acids, and cholesterol. But for normal everyday use, we tend to buy butter by brand name or according to the country of origin or by price, the cheaper being the blended ones. Both for eating and cooking it is always better to buy a good quality since a low grade can have such an overpowering flavour that it spoils the taste of fresh vegetables and delicate sauces such as hollandaise.

Buy only a week's supply at a time and, if possible, take out of the refrigerator some time before using it. Rewrap what has not been used and keep it well away from strong-smelling foods in the refrigerator, particularly anything flavoured with garlic, and soft fruits such as strawberries butter absorb these flavours, and once tainted will not recover. Butter freezes well. Butter can either be salted or unsalted.

Salting used to make all the difference between butter that kept fresh and that quickly went rancid. Salt still improves the keeping qualities, the deposits in salted butter burn at a fairly low temperature. Unsalted butter has a sweeter taste. It makes an excellent table butter and is preferred in cooking. Its delicate flavour lends itself particularly well to cakes, and it is better than salted butter for frying. Unsalted butter has fewer of these deposits and so can withstand higher temperatures.

Butter can be blended with a number of ingredients to make delicious garnishes and fillings for sandwiches. Mix it with garlic to make the classic accompaniment for snails and with herbs, especially parsley, to serve with fish or meat. With Roquefort cheese, it is delicious with steak, and with pounded anchovies, lobster coral or mustard it makes an excellent garnish for fish. The addition of a little oil will prevent butter from burning when cooking, but perhaps the best butter for frying very delicate foods is clarified butter, from which all the milk solids have been removed. This is the ghee used in India, but only for special occasions, less expensive vegetable ghee is used for everyday cooking.

Clarified Butter

However, is nowhere near as appetizing on vegetables and potatoes as fresh butter.

Fresh Cream Butter

This can be salted or unsalted and is also known as sweet cream butter, made from unripe cream. The cream is pasteurized, deodorized, cooled and placed in ageing tanks for at least 12 hours before being turned into butter. Salt, which acts as a preservative, can be added during this time. British, New Zealand and American butter tend to be of this type.

Ripened Butter

This is also known as lactic butter, and like fresh cream butter can be either salted or unsalted. A pure culture of lactic bacteria is introduced to the cream, which is then allowed to ripen to develop a delicious, slightly acid flavour before the butter is made. This butter has a slightly more pronounced taste than fresh cream butter and is also softer.

Light Butter

Which contains much more water than regular butter, is normally used only as a sandwich spread. It contains only half as many calories as regular butter, as well as 50% less fat, 46% less cholesterol, and 25% less salt.

Whipped Butter

Which is slightly lower in calories and fat than regular butter, should not be used in recipes that call for regular butter. It is normally used only as a sandwich spread.

Easy Homemade Vegetable Biryani Recipe

2016-07-30T11:20:00.000+05:00

Vegetable Biryani prepared in an old-style pressure (Dum) Biryani, In the first look, you can feel that this vegetable biryani recipe needs so numerous ingredients but don’t let it fool you, it will be taking only 40 minutes to cook and flavour, fragrance and quality of the final dish will shock your mind and taste buds gone making it valuable to try this recipe.

Difficulty: Medium
Preparation Time: 15-20 mins
Represent Time: 35-40 mins
Serves: 4

Ingredients:

Three cups Basmati Rice (long grained rice and cleaned)
Two green cardamoms
One black cardamom
Two cloves
One small piece of cinnamon
One small bay leaf
Six tablespoon cooking oil
One onion (sliced)
One or Two green chillies
One teaspoon ginger garlic paste
Four or five black peppercorns
One green cardamom
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
Two potatoes (chopped)
One cup cauliflower (chopped)
One cup carrot (chopped)
One cup Sweet pepper (chopped)
1/4 cup fresh or frozen green peas
One teaspoon red chilli powder
1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
One teaspoon cumin-coriander powder
1/2 teaspoon garam masala powder
One cup curd or Yogurt (beaten)
One tablespoon fresh coriander leaves (chopped)
Fresh green coriander leaves
Fresh mint leaves
Saffron 15-20 threads
Salt to taste

Method:

Wash 3 cup rice in water for 2 to 3 times and then soak in water for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, drain water and keep rice aside. Pour 5 to 6 cups water in a large or deep pan and bring it to boil over medium flame. When it comes to boil, add drained rice, two green cardamoms, one black cardamom, two cloves, one small piece of cinnamon, one small bay leaf and salt in the water.

Boil for until rice grain is about 80% cooked only because they will be pressurized (dum) later. Do not cook for too long the rice as they will be cooked for the second time in later steps and we need each rice grain to be soft and isolated. Transfer cooked rice to a strainer and sewer complete water.

Cut all the vegetables almost into 1 inch thin pieces. Make sure of not cut them into very small pieces. Heat three tablespoons cooking oil in a medium pan over high flame. Add one sliced onion, one to two green chillies, one teaspoon ginger garlic paste, four to five black peppercorns, one green cardamom and 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds.

Fry them until they get starts to turn a light brown colour. Add two chopped potato, one cup chopped cauliflower, one cup chopped carrot, one cup chopped Sweet pepper and 1/4 cup fresh or frozen green peas and salt, fry for 5-7 minutes. After 7 minutes Mix fine and cook covered until vegetables are completely cooked. It will take around 5-7 minutes. Stir infrequently in between to avoid sticking.

Add one teaspoon red chilli powder, 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder, one teaspoon cumin-coriander powder and 1/2 teaspoon garam masala powder. Stir and cook for 2-3 minute. Add one cup beaten curd or Yogurt and one tablespoon fresh chopped coriander leaves. Mix fine and cook for 2-3 minute. Turn off the heat and keep the gravy covered until rice is cooked.

Take one big and flat heavy based bottom pan (to avoid sticking of rice), add one tablespoon cooking oil and a half layer of the rice. Now layer the set vegetables on the upper of the rice and spread it equally. Layer rest of the rice on upper the vegetables and spread them equally.

Sprinkle green coriander and mint leaves on the surface of the rice, Pour 2 tablespoon cooking oil from top and saffron sprinkle it on top of the rice. Now cover the biryani strongly and correctly. Heat the Tawa over a low flame, put a pan over it and cook for 13-15 minutes to get pressure (Dum) effect. After about 15 minutes, turn off the flame. Open the cover of a pan and mix all layer nicely. Hot and delicious vegetable biryani is ready. Serve biryani in the plate with raita or salad.

Nutritional Information:
Calories 1494; Sugars 5 g; Protein 9 g;
Carbohydrate 60 g; Fat 0.50 g; Saturates 0.80 g
All nutrition values are per serve.

Green Pea Vegetable Health Benefits and Types

2016-07-28T12:26:00.000+05:00

Once inordinately expensive and considered a great luxury, peas have become one of the best-loved of all vegetables. Endless varieties have been developed, especially in England where the climate suits them to perfection.

Garden Pea

Gardeners make a distinction between two types of garden pea, the larger marrow fat, which is wrinkled when dried, and the varieties that remain smooth when dried. The former is much sweeter and is the one most often frozen. The reason for the disappearance of many varieties of green pea is, of course, the ubiquitous frozen pea more expensive to be sure, but a great time saver.

Garden peas respond to all sorts of treatment, in England, they are preferred plain, boiled and bathed in butter, although some cooks like to add a small sprig of fresh mint. In Italy, peas are often mixed with fine shreds of raw ham, or with rice. In countries such as France where vegetables are habitually served in a light coating of béchamel sauce, peas, too, are given this treatment. They are often mixed with carrots.

Contrary to popular belief, Petites poi’s are small not because they are immature but because they are a dwarf variety. These are the peas canned in vast quantities by the French and Belgians, and they are excellent tiny, dull green and very sweet, quite unlike most other canned peas. The fat, ugly canned peas, swimming in green dye, that are sold in Britain are best avoided altogether.

Petites are peas cooked in a lettuce-lined saucepan with a little sugar, some tiny silver onions, a lump of butter and only as much water as clings to the lettuce leaves after washing. Cooked in this way, the peas turn a delicate yellowish colour and have a most delicious flavour, even larger peas on the mealy side become melting and young tasting. Really solid older peas are best for fresh green pea soup or purees.

Mange Tout Pea

As their name suggests, mange tout peas, which are also called snow peas and sugar peas, are eaten pods and all. There are many varieties, all bred with the minimum of the thin, tough membrane that lines the pod of the common green pea, so both the large, flat mange tout pod with immature seeds and the smaller, darker kind make tender eating, provided they are very young. If they have strings at the sides, these should be removed in the kitchen during topping and tailing. Mangetout peas taste best when they are very briefly boiled or steamed.

When cooked, they should still have a little bite to them, and they are best served perfectly plain with enough butter to coat each pod. Very young mange tout are salads, and all mange tout peas Good In are also excellent when stir-fried. Like the mange tout, the sugar snap Pea has an edible pod, but it is eaten after the peas inside have matured and swollen. As a result, the pod is lumpy rather than flat. Asparagus peas, not a relation of the asparagus but of the cowpea, and in fact not a true pea at all, are rarely seen these days. They have winged pods which, like the mange tout, are eaten as well as the seed, but they are only good when they are very young and 5 cm/2 in long or less.

Cauliflower Health Benefits and Nutrition Facts

2016-07-27T11:32:00.000+05:00

Since early cauliflowers used to be no larger than tennis balls, one can justify the complaint made by six seventeenth-century travellers to Italy who rose from the table in a marble palazzo as hungry as they arrived, having shared among them one cauliflower, a dish of anchovies and three hard-boiled eggs. Modern cauliflowers can be enormous, although ironically a strain no larger than golf ironically a strain no more. One bail is being grown once a type of cauliflower grown in Sardinia and but turns green southern Italy is purple when cooked: another is green with a pointed head.

When purchasing cauliflower, look for a fresh, soft white, solid curd in which the bud clusters are not divided. Marked or dull-colored should be avoided, in addition to those in which small flowers look. Heads that are enclosed by various thick green leaves are well secure and will be fresher. As its size is not linked to its value, choose one that best suits your wants. It stores raw in a plastic or paper bag in the fridge where it will save for up to a week. To avoid moisture from increasing in the floret clusters, store it with the stalk side down.

If you buying pre-cut florets, eat them within one or two days as they will drop their freshness after that. Since cooking causes cauliflower to treat faster, eat it within two to three days of placing in the fridge after cooking. Cauliflower florets are the part of the vegetable that maximum people eat. However, the stalk and leaves are eatable too and are particularly good for addition to soup stocks. To cut, first, remove the external leaves and then cut the florets at the base where they happen the stalks.

You can more cut them if you want pieces that are minor or of even size. Trim any brown colouring that may occur on the ends. Cauliflower holds phytonutrients that issue fragrant sulfur mixtures when fiery. These smells become stronger with improved cooking time. If you required to less fragrance, hold the vegetable's crunchy texture, and decrease nutrient damage, cook for simply a little time. A number of phytonutrients may respond with iron in cookware and reason to take on a brownish shade.

To avoid this, add a little bit of lemon juice to the water in which you lighten the cauliflower. Cauliflower needs sauce: a light creamy sauce flavoured with cheese or mustard; perhaps an Italian sauce incorporating chopped onion, capers, olives and anchovies; or fried breadcrumbs and chopped hard-boiled eggs. It has a special affinity, it gratin is a classic, and the English nursery dish, cauliflower cheese, can be delicious if cooked well.

Serve florets of raw as part of a dish of crudités, arranged around a bowl of mustardy mayonnaise; and cold cooked florets in a mustardy vinaigrette dressing as a delicious salad. While cauliflower is not a well deliberate cruciferous vegetable from a health viewpoint, you will find numerous dozen readings linking it, containing foods to cancer anticipation, mainly with reference to the following types of cancer: breast cancer, bladder cancer, prostate cancer, colon cancer, and ovarian cancer.

This linking between cauliflower and cancer anticipation should not be amazing since delivers superior nutrient support for body systems that are thoroughly associated with cancer growth. It is an excellent source of vitamin C, folic acid, and potassium. Like the other members of the cabbage family.

Bell Sweet Peppers Health Benefits and Nutrition

2016-07-25T14:23:00.000+05:00

Sweet Peppers may be mild or sweet, hot and unbearably fiery, but they are all members of the genus Capsicum. The large sweet peppers include the bell, some varieties are called bull, nosed because of their shape), the cubanelle or Cuban pepper, Italian frying and the sweet banana. Sweet peppers may be red, yellow, orange, purple, white or green, and squares or long in shape. Chilli peppers add heat and flavour to a dish, although some are quite mild.

They can be green, red, yellow or black, and in general the smaller the chilli the hotter it is. To test for heat, just touch a piece of the broken flesh to your tongue. Most peppers are green, to begin with, ripening to red and finally becoming red-brown when dried, although some peppers turn a pale yellow or bright orange when ripe or deep mahogany colour. Peppers that are sold half ripe part red and part green, may never ripen to full red. Paprika, cayenne and Tabasco sire all made from peppers.

Sweet Pepper

Bought fresh, large sweet peppers which are a rich source of vitamin C are quite light in weight. Red peppers are sweeter than the green ones. And the yellow and orange ones are closer in flavour to red peppers than to green. Capsicum means box and the fleshy wall of sweet peppers contain no more than a few clusters of seeds. These should all be discarded to the last flat seed, which even in the mildest pepper can occasionally be bitingly hot.

The empty boxes can then be filled with any number of stuffing’s cooked rice mixed with minced meat and perhaps yoghurt or with a mixture of anchovies, tomatoes and garlic or olives and capers. They are then put side by side in an oiled pan, sprinkled with oil and baked slowly. Some people like to blanch the peppers in boiling water for a minute or two before stuffing them. As well as being stuffed, sweet peppers can be cut into strips and used in a variety of dishes.

Sicilians make lovely salads with grilled red or yellow peppers, mixing them with anchovy fillets, capers, garlic and olive oil. Yugoslavians have a similar salad, using peppers roasted until they have blistered and then skinning them and in the south of France, there is the beautiful papered a mixture of sweet peppers, tomatoes, onions, garlic and sometimes bacon, to which beaten eggs are added at the last moment. Sweet peppers are also sometimes combined with chillies, as in roiled the bright orange, fiery sauce that floats in the centre of the bowl of bouillabaisse, and is served with a number of other fish dishes that have their origins in the south of France.

Chili Pepper

When fresh, chilli should look bright dullness is a sure sign of over maturity with no brown patches or black spots. Chillies can vary in size from 30 cm/12 in length down to just 5 mm/ ¼ in and may be anywhere from mildly warm to blisteringly hot. As well as fresh, they are sold dried (whole, crushed into flakes or powdered), canned and bottled, often pickled. In Central America, notably Mexico, chillies are second only to maize in their importance in cooking, and they are widely used in the foods of many other countries, including Africa, India, China and Thailand. In most of Europe and North America, hot chillies are generally used sparingly.

Chilli experts, of course, can distinguish between the dozens of varieties, but non-experts tend to differentiate only between the mild, the hot and the unbearable. Large chillies include the mild Anaheim or California, the similar but slightly larger New Mexico, the poblano, which can range from slightly hot to hot when ripened to red and dried this is called an anchor, which is sweet but can be quite pungent, and the Hungarian yellow wax pepper. Among the smaller chillies are hot to very hot when smoked this becomes a chipotle.

Carrot Vegetable Health Benefits for Skin and Nutrition Facts

2016-07-24T10:17:00.000+05:00

These range from slim little slips, pale apricot in colour and no longer than a little finger, to long, stout cylinders, light orange to the deep colour of nectarines. It has different varieties contain differing quantities of these antioxidant phytonutrients. Red and purple carrots, for example, are greatest recognized for the rich anthocyanin content. Young carrots, tender and melting, have a most delicate flavour.

Washed and cooked in boiling water for no more than 7 minutes, then simply tossed in butter and sprinkled with parsley, they are one of the celebratory dishes of early summer. Parboiled and glazed in a stout pan with butter and possibly a little sugar to emphasize they are natural sweetness, they become one of the essentials of cuisine. It is best boiled in their skins. They can then be drained and eaten with their skins or rubbed in a towel to slip off the skin. Main crop carrots are the great standby for winter.

They accompany such hearty dishes as boiled beef and dumplings. And it is to carrots, together with onions, celery and leeks, that good warming broths owe their flavour but don't put in too many or the broth will become so sweet that people will think there is sugar in it. It is also used to make the excellent classic French carrot soup.

The stubby, bright, almost translucent carrots of uniform size usually found in supermarkets are bred more for the convenience of the seller than the buyer because they travel well. Although their flavour is a little elusive they are delicious eaten raw, and they make a good dish on their own, either like it, Vichy sliced and cooked in Vichy water and butter and sprinkled with parsley or simply served with butter and parsley.

Buying and Storing Carrots

Avoid specimens that are rubbery, blemished or sprouting little roots. If storing carrots in the vegetable compartment of the refrigerator, take them out of their plastic wrapping. Outside the refrigerator, keep in a cool, airy place to preserve crispness. Wash carrot roots and smoothly scrub them with a vegetable brush correct before eating. If they are old, bushy or not mature naturally, it is not required to peel them. If they are not naturally mature, peel them, maximum all usually mature carrots are mature using insecticides and other substances.

If the end of the stem is green, it should be cut gone as it will be unpleasant. Depending upon the recipe or your individual favourite, it can be left entire or julienned, grated, ragged or carved into sticks or bands. Carrots are delightful eaten raw or cooked. While warming can frequently injury some of the wonderful phytonutrients in vegetables, the beta-carotene as found in carrots has been shown to be amazingly warmth-steady. In fact, beta-carotene may become extra bioavailable over fine timed baking. Still, be cautious not to cook for too long if you need to hold their extreme flavour and strong overall nutritional value.

Health Benefits of Carrots

Carrots are possibly greatest known for their amusing source of the antioxidant nutrient that was essentially named for them: beta-carotene. However, these wonderful root vegetables are the basis not only of beta-carotene but also of a wide range of antioxidants and extra health secondary nutrients. The zones of antioxidant, cardiovascular, and anti-cancer benefits are the top researched zones of health study with respect to nutritive consumption of carrots.

Different varieties of carrots contain differing amounts of these calories and antioxidant phytonutrients. Red and purple carrots, for example, are best known for the rich anthocyanin content. Oranges are particularly outstanding in terms of beta-carotene, which accounts for 65% of their total carotenoid content. In yellow carrots, 50% of the total carotenoids come from lutein. You're going to receive outstanding antioxidant benefits from each of these carrot varieties!

Potato Health Benefits and Nutrition

2016-07-22T10:11:00.000+05:00

The potato goes to the tuber family, they are the enlarged portion of the underground stem which is named a tuber and is planned to deliver food for the green leafy portion of the plant. If permitted to flower and fruit, the potato plant will stand an unbeatable fruit like a tomato. Potatoes, whose mysterious underground swellings make better use of their patch of ground than any cereal, are one of the world's most important food crops.

They are the most obliging and good-natured vegetable. Easy to grow, cheap to buy, simple to cook and tremendously filling, they also seem to be the one vegetable, apart perhaps from tomatoes, that nobody ever seems to get tired of There are almost endless varieties of it about 80 in Britain alone. Popular varieties change rapidly, coming into the flavour with the growers because they keep well or are resistant to disease, and then being ousted by newer, even hardier kinds with higher yields or fewer eyes.

This makes it extremely difficult to prepare a catalogue of varieties. However, different types of potatoes, round, oval or kidney-shaped, pink, red, and white or, more rarely, blue or purple potatoes, do have very different qualities, and a well-informed supplier will be able to tell you which variety is which. There are floury or mealy potatoes, ideal for mashing and baking, but annoying if you want to boil them whole as they tend to fall apart in the water.

They are also useless for making chips. there are very firm, fleshed and not at all good for mashing because they become glutinous, but they make excellent salads, lovely boiled and delicious gratins when they are cooked in slices that are supposed to remain whole. There is also all-purpose well as different varieties there are, as of course, new and old potatoes. New potatoes are not a specific variety, but any harvested when small and young.

Special varieties that go under the name of earlier are usually dug between June and August, while they are still small and sweet. Main crop, or old potatoes, are lifted from late summer onwards when they are mature and fully grown and have converted their sugar into starch. The main crop can be stored through the winter and until the beginning of the next season when the new potatoes always tremendously welcome reappear. An only baked potato will also deliver you with above 3 grams of fibre, but remember the fibre is generally in their skin.

Buying and Storing Potatoes

New potatoes should be small and faintly translucent under a coating of slightly damp loam or if ready -washed, they should be taught and shiny. If the skin is a little ragged and so tender that you can pull it off in strips, so much the better this shows that are fresh and will be easy to scrape. New potatoes do not keep particularly well, becoming more difficult to scrape (in which case scrub them and cook them in their skins). They also lose their flavour after a few days, so buy them in small quantities and keep them in a cool, dark place.

Old potatoes are more amenable and can be stored in a cool, dark, dry place for months on end. Choose dry with some earth on them, free of sprouts and without the green patches that appear when are exposed to light these contain poisonous alkaloids. If your potatoes do have green parts, cut them off. Avoid that have scaly or rotting patches. If buying washed in plastic bags, avoid those that look damp or show signs of condensation as you may find that they have an unpleasant, moldy flavour.

Rice Health Benefits and Nutrition Facts

2016-07-21T10:47:00.000+05:00

Next, to wheat, rice is the largest food crop in the world. The more than 8,000 varieties of rice are generally divided into short grain or round grain, medium grain and long grain types. It is used in a variety of ways. It is added to soups, chicken, meat and vegetable stuffing’s, salads, puddings, pies, and cakes, and is the key ingredient in risotto, pilaf, paella, and curry dishes. It is also used to make noodles, cereals, syrup, wine, vinegar, and miser. As a replacement for potatoes, it is commonly served with meat, poultry, fish, and seafood dishes, and it is a traditional accompaniment for grilled fish and brochettes. It can be served plain or stir-fried.

A delicately sweet and slightly granular flour can be made by grinding rice in a food processor or coffee grinder. Rice flour gives cakes and pastries a slightly crunchy texture. It can also be used to thicken sauces, although it is not suitable for bread making, as it does not contain gluten.

Rice is used to make a number of alcoholic beverages popular in Asia, including Japanese sake and mirin and a Chinese yellow wine called Chao xing. Sake, a sweet drink is served hot, warm, or cold, usually in tiny cups; it has an alcohol content of 14% to 16%. Mirin, a sweet or savoury -vane with lower alcohol content (about 8%), is used mainly as a cooking wine.

Rice is a good source of magnesium and contains niacin, vitamin B6, thiamine„ phosphorus, zinc, and copper, as well as traces of pantothenic acid and potassium. It is known to be a remedy for diarrhoea (its cooking water is particularly effective). It is also said to alleviate hypertension and is used as an astringent. There is an enormous number of varieties, each with its own special properties, and it is important to choose the right variety for the right dish.

Basmati Rice

One of the most popular of the perfumed varieties, this variety, a standard in Indian cooking, has a light, dry texture. Basmati rice should be soaked in water and then cooked over low heat. Available in Asian food stoics and many supermarkets, this is superior long grain rice. It is slightly more expensive than Patna, but its better flavour and consistency is well worth the extra cost. Before cooking, it sometimes needs to be carefully picked over for any bits of grit and husk and should then be rinsed thoroughly under cold running water to remove excess starch.

Basmati consistently produces Good results if cooked in the following way: add one part rice to three parts cold salted water, bring to boiling point, stir, cover the pan and turn down the heat until the water is barely simmering. After 12-15 minutes it will have absorbed all the water and, when forked up, the grains will be beautifully dry and separate. It is ideal for pilaus and as a filling and soothing foil for highly spiced Indian dishes.

Brown Rice

Any rice that has been hulled but has not lost its bran is called brown or whole rice. In Europe, it is also called cargo. To the regret of dieticians, polished white rice is usually preferred to brown rice, which contains more nutrients, particularly vitamin B, deficiency of which causes beriberi.

It is available in short, medium and long grains. Long and medium grains are best eaten as a vegetable, or as a basis for a pilaf. Short grains are delicious in puddings. You may need to cook less brown rice as it is rather more filling than its white counterparts, and it takes longer to cook.

White Rice

Hulled and polished rice that has been stripped of a significant proportion of its nutrients. It is much lower in fibre than brown rice. White rice is sometimes enriched-given a coating of magnesium silicate or a mixture of glucose and talc (polished rice).

Arborio Rice

A classic round white rice that is the essential element in Italian dishes. It is considered one of the finest types of rice because of its ability to absorb large quantities of liquid without becoming mushy.

Wild Rice

Wild rice grows mainly in marshes and still lakes in Canada and the United States. The Indians have harvested and valued it for centuries. This prized rice has a blackish colour and a pronounced hazelnut like flavour. It is boiled in water or stock after it has been soaked. It is often served as an accompaniment to wild game and blends well with mushrooms, fruits, and nuts. Wild rice is richer in protein than ordinary rice.

Parboiled White Rice

A bowl of rice that is steamed before being milled, and thus not greatly modified in nutritive value during polishing. Parboiled rice is slightly translucent and yellowish but turns white when cooked. It does not usually stick and is lighter and more delicately flavoured than brown rice. Next, to brown rice, this is the most nutritious rice, although it is not as high in fibre as brown rice.

Nutrients and Health Benefits of Vegetables

2016-07-20T13:07:00.002+05:00

Vegetables, along with rice, have long served as a staple of the human diet. The most significant improvements in a number of varieties are actually quite recent and are largely attributable to the discovery, of the principles of genetics in the late 19th and early 20th century. These discoveries have made it possible m produce new varieties with specific crop yields and qualities such as flavour, colour, and so on.

Today vegetables are consumed mainly as an accompaniment to main courses in most of the western hemisphere, although they continue to play a central role in the diet in Asia and the Middle East, In North America, the consumption has been on the rise since the mid-1970s, largely as a result of increased public awareness of their importance in a healthy diet. The recommendations of health professionals, as well as scientific research establishing a close link between high consumption of fruits and vegetables and the prevention of certain diseases, have contributed to making the health benefits more widely known. The greater diversity and availability in the marketplace have also contributed to the increase in their consumption.

Buying Vegetables

The outer appearance of vegetables can provide an indication of their freshness. To preserve this freshness, producers often cover with a wax coating, notably in the case of the eggplant, cucumber, squash, turnip, sweet potato, parsnip, sweet pepper, and tomato. This treatment minimizes moisture loss and the rate of deterioration, Look for firm, undamaged, and well-coloured that show no sign of mould, bruising frost damage, or softness. Avoid buying fragile vegetables that look as if they have been on the shelf for too long; peeled and with wilted leaves or shrivelled skin should also be avoided.

Preparing Vegetables

The manner in which vegetables are prepared, used, and preserved has an effect on their flavour, nutritional value, texture, and appearance. When preparing, avoid lengthy exposure to air, heat, and water; rinse them well under running water, but avoid soaking them, whether before or after cutting them, in order to minimize the loss of water-soluble vitamins (including B-complex vitamins and vitamin C).

Cooking Vegetables

Vegetables should be cooked as briefly as possible, as overcooking makes them bland and soggy. While also depriving them of a portion of their vitamins and minerals. The loss of vitamins B and C can be minimized by choking at a high temperature for a short time (in a pressure cooker, for example).

Boiling is a simple method that involves cooking vegetables in boiling water. However, it results in a significant loss of flavor and nutritional value, particularly if are boiled too long and if the cooking liquid is discarded. Although this is the most common method of cooking, it is also the one that is the most improperly used.

With the exception of green vegetables, should be cooked in a covered pot; this shortens the cooking time as well as reducing the evaporation of volatile substances, thus preserving the flavour, colour, and nutritional value. When cooking, remove the cover in order to prevent the concentration of acids, which has the effect of destroying their chlorophyll and discolouring them.

Storing Vegetables

There are several methods of preserving vegetables, including refrigeration, cold storage, freezing, canning, drying, marinating, and so on. The healthier-looking and firmer, the longer it will keep. While vegetables such as winter squash, garlic, potato, and taro tend to keep well even when stored at room temperature, most need to be refrigerated upon purchase. The fruit compartment of the refrigerator is the best place to keep perishable vegetables, as it is less cold and more humid than the upper shelves, where the drier air causes them to dry out. For this reason, stored on refrigerator shelves should always be wrapped.

Freezing is a method of preservation that is widely used for vegetables, most of which stand up to the process. The advantages of this method are that it makes it possible to consume seasonal vegetables throughout the year and, when properly done, preserves the colour, texture, flavour, and most of the nutritional value. For best results, users are fresh and in good condition and that reach peak ripeness soon after harvesting or purchasing.

Before being frozen, unripe should be placed in the refrigerator until ripe. While freezing does not keep from deteriorating, it does slow down this process, as well as halting the development of microorganisms (without destroying them); it also slows down the activity of the enzymes responsible for unpleasant odours and for the loss of colour and nutrients.

Nutritional Information of Vegetables

All vegetables supply certain nutritional elements, in proportions that vary depending on the type of vegetable. They also share certain nutritional characteristics:

They provide a range of vitamins and minerals, particularly vitamin A in the form of carotene, vitamin B 6, vitamin C, and folic acid, as well as potassium, iron, magnesium and calcium.
They have a high water content (80% to 95% of their total composition).
They provide soluble and insoluble fibre.
They are low in fat, with the exception of avocados and olives.
They are generally low in protein.
Most have a low-calorie content, and, since they are of plant origin, they contain no cholesterol.

Easy Homemade Hamburger Burger Recipe

2016-07-05T13:04:00.000+05:00

Difficulty: Easy
Preparation Time: 50-55 mins
Represent Time: 15-18 mins
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

800-grams beef mince
One large brown onion, grated
75 gram or one cup breadcrumbs, made from day-old bread
One egg, lightly whisked
Two garlic cloves, crushed
One tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup chopped fresh continental parsley
Salt, to taste
Ground black pepper, to taste
Two tablespoon olive oil
Six hamburger buns halved
Tomato sauce, to serve
Six iceberg lettuce leaves, shredded, to serve
180-gram cheddar cheese, thinly sliced, to serve
Three medium or 450-gram ripe tomatoes, sliced, to serve
1/3 cup American mustard (optional)
Two teaspoons tabasco sauce, to taste (optional)

Method:

Organize all your ingredients before you begin. It is significant to use mince from a cut of meat that has a tiny fat. This will not only enhance flavour, but it also confirms a tender burger by avoiding the patties from drying out through cooking.

However, mince that is too oily will expel the additional fat through cooking, producing the patties to shrink and strengthen considerably.

Topside is the recommended mince for making beef burgers as it holds the correct quantity of fat. Breadcrumbs are not commonly included in the modern burger patty mixture, but they're adding to this recipe advantages to provide the cooked patties a lighter, tenderer texture.

The egg actions as a tie ingredient so that the patties can be simply shaped. It also supports them grip together when cooked.

Add the beef mince, garlic, onion, Tabasco sauce parsley, Worcestershire sauce, egg and breadcrumbs in a big bowl. Spike with pepper and salt as per taste. Mix this ingredient with your hands until completely combined.

Distribute the mixture into 6 to 7 equal portions (you can use a 120ml or 1/2 cup measuring cup if you like). Shape all portion with your hands into a patty about 8cm to 10cm in diameter and 1.3 to 1.5cm thick.

Place the patties onto a tray or plate lined with- greaseproof paper. Cover with plastic wrapping and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 to 35 minutes to rest. Chilling the patties will support them hold together when cooked. This also permits the flavours in the patties to balance and improve. If you chill the patties for any longer, rise the cooking period slightly.

Heat half the olive oil in a large, frying pan (non-stick) over medium or low heat and cook half the patties for about 5 to 6 minutes on each side or until browned and cooked through. It is very important to cook mince right through because it has a greater percentage of surface area to volume than whole pieces of meat, and is therefore at bigger risk of infection by bacteria in the air. Transfer the patties to a dish or plate, put aside and keep warm. Repeat with the remaining patties and oil.

For the time being, preheat grill on high. Place the hamburger buns, cut-side up, under the warmed grill and toast for 1 to 2 minute or until golden. Leave the grill on. Place the patties on a baking tray lined with foil. First patties with cheese. Place under the grill for 2 minutes or until the cheese is just completely melted.

To serve, spread the base halves of the toasted hamburger buns with tomato sauce. Top with the patties, shredded lettuce, sliced tomato, mustard and cover with the hamburger bun tops.

Nutritional Information:
Calories 292; Sugars 8 g; Protein 44 g;
Carbohydrate 53 g; Fat 33 g; Saturates 14 g

Tip: To freeze, isolated the patties with non-stick freezer wrap or baking paper, pack flat into refrigerator bags and seal. Freeze for up to 1 month and allocation to the fridge to defrost 10 to 12 hours before cooking.

Beef Health Benefits and Nutrition Facts

2016-07-05T12:47:00.000+05:00

This mammal was first domesticated over 4,000 years ago in Macedonia, Crete, and Anatolia. Whether wild or domesticated, the ox has been venerated throughout history and is still regarded as sacred in some countries. The word beef refers to meat from heifers, cows, bulls, bull -calves, oxen, and steers, although some of these meats are much tenderer and more flavorful than others. The quality of the meat is largely dependent on the age of the animal and the manner in which it was raised.

Cuts of beef vary not only from one country to another but also from region to region within a country; no matter where the carcass is raised, however, certain portions are referred to as "noble" cuts because they are particularly tender. These cuts make up only about 30% of the animal and are thus rarer, more prized, and more expensive than the less tender portions. The so-called inferior cuts can also be quite tender when prepared in the right way that is, if they are tenderized with a marinade or if they are cooked slowly in liquid.

Always consider the cooking method when buying beef, because there is no reason to pay for one of the more expensive tender cuts if the meat is going to be simmered for a long time. Conversely, never buy tougher cuts for grilling or roasting. It can be eaten cold or hot and can be prepared in numerous ways. It is an ingredient in the simplest as well as the most elaborate dishes. It is sometimes eaten raw (steak tartare). It is delicious salted or smoked.

Beef can be cooked for various lengths of time. It can be eaten very rare (raw on the inside and slightly cooked on the outside), rare, medium-rare, medium, or well done. Since the amount of time separating one degree of doneness from another is often very short, beef has to be cooked quite carefully (a meat thermometer can be very useful).

Tough or moderately tender cuts that contain a lot of connective tissue should be cooked at low temperatures for a long period of time, which transforms the collagen in this hard tissue into gelatin. Tender cuts can be cooked rapidly at high temperature, because they do have not be tenderized. Beef can be refrigerated or frozen. Ground beef can be refrigerated for 1 or 2 days, steaks for 2 to 3 days, and roasts or cooked for 3 to 4 days.

Ground or cooked beef can be frozen for 2 to 3 months, steaks and roasts for 10 to 20 months. The nutritional value of beef varies slightly, depending on the breed and the breeding method. The cut, the cooking method, and the amount of fat that is removed can also have a considerable impact on the nutritional value. Generally, beef is an excellent source of protein, potassium, zinc, and certain B-complex vitamins such as niacin and vitamin B12.

It is also a good source of iron and phosphorus. However, it may also contain large amounts of saturated fatty acids and cholesterol. Marbling (the streaks of fat in the muscular portion of the meat) helps make the meat tenderer, juicier, and more flavorful. It does not significantly increase the fat content of cooked beef because most of it melts as the meat cooks.

You can reduce the amount of fat in the beef you consume by:

Choosing lean cuts (top round, bottom round, sirloin) and cooking them in a minimum amount of fat (roasting, grilling, braising, etc.)
Serving smaller portions, removing any visible fat before cooking, and eating only the lean meat.
Cooking Asian dishes, in which moderate amounts of meat are combined with vegetables and cereals noodles, rice, millet, etc.) Is all excellent way to ensure that you consume healthy portions of beef?

Best Fish Pie Recipe

2016-06-25T12:22:00.000+05:00

A most simple, delicious and quick fish pie. This fast recipe does not use a white sauce in the fish pie. As a decent lot of individuals moan about that, I'll give you a clarification why. White sauce is made of milk, butter and flour. Mashed potatoes are made with milk and butter, so the hint here is to make a genuinely moist mash. So the main thing missing is the flour. In the event that you miss it, have a spoon of it on the sideways.

Difficulty: Very easy
Preparation Time: 45-50 mins
Represent Time: 10-15 mins
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

450g boneless white fish fillets
400 ml of milk
1 ½ teaspoon or 8ml olive oil
800g potatoes, peeled, chopped
100g unsalted butter
Two tablespoons or 40g flour
250g frozen peas
Three hard-boiled eggs, chopped
½ tablespoon lemons juice
180g grated cheddar cheese
1 ¼ teaspoon or 10 grams Salt
¼ teaspoon or o.8 grams ground black pepper

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius or 350 Fahrenheit or Gas Mark 4. Use an ovenproof (heat resistant) dish. Add a minor amount of olive oil into the dish and allocate equally with your fingers. This will save the fish from sticking to the dish. Put the fish pieces with the skin side down into the dish, pepper and salt lightly and add the milk above the fish so it's about half covered.

Peel the potatoes, place them in a medium saucepan and cover them with water. Add a touch of salt to the water and take to a boil. At the time when the potatoes are boiling, set the fish into the oven. Grate the cheese this doesn't have to be too good. The smooth cheese grater will do. After the 20 minutes, drain off the potatoes and let them put in the saucepan without a cover, we need the rest of the water to disappear.

Take the fish out of the oven (so it has been in around for 25 minutes) and drain off the milk. Have the drained off milk as we will use it later to create the potato mash? Now turn the heat of the oven up to 210 degrees Celsius / 430 Fahrenheit / Gas Mark 7. Take out any bits of milk skin from the dish. With two forks, separate the fish into minor bits dragging them off the skin. At that moment remove the skin from the dish. It will come off simply as we lubricated the dish earlier. Allocate the fish evenly.

Add the butter, flour, lemons Juice, little bit salt and pepper to the potatoes. Put 3/4 of the milk you drained off the fish before to the mash. At this moment mash, the potatoes up to them are creamy and smooth not crumbling. If it is too heavy, add further to the milk. You need a fine, charming, faintly moist constancy. Add the frozen peas and very smoothly mix them into the mash using a fork. Be alert not to damage or cut the peas.

Now fork the mash on upper of the fish and extent evenly. Add the grated cheese and egg on top and distribute it equally. Now we can place the dish back into the oven. Leave it there for 25 minutes. After 15 minutes, go it 190 degrees so the cheese and potatoes can brown equally, Serve the fish pie in dish instantly.

Nutritional Information:
Calories 325; Sugars 12 g; Protein 40 g;

Carbohydrate 39 g; Fat 294 mg; Saturates 22 g

Health Benefits of Eating Fish

2016-06-16T12:00:00.000+05:00

Fish is almost universally recognized as an important food. The most majority species live in the sea, but some are found in freshwater (rivers, lakes, streams). They have always been a staple of the human diet and food of tremendous character and charm, especially among coastal populations. To a cook with true feeling for the raw materials, there is a great satisfaction to be found in the beauty of form, the shimmering colours of scale and skin, and the distinctive flavours and textures of fish of all kinds.

Choosing fish

There is no excuse for bad fish being offered for sale any more, now that refrigerated equipment makes it easy to transport for long distances in a freshly caught state. What we are more likely to see in shops these days are fresh seafood that has been in the shops too long or that have been in and out of the freezer several times, thawed out and sold as ‘fresh’. Unfortunately, the telltale signs of a thawed out seafood are less easy to detect than those of seafood. If you are an expert, the best fish to buy are those you see in a crate, packed in ice and obviously straight from the quayside or wholesale market.

These will have been chilled not blast frozen immediately after they have been caught. However, with frequent visits to the fishmonger, it soon becomes easy to recognize the differences between good fresh that have simply been chilled, stale fish, and thawed out frozen it. Don’t be afraid to sniff if you are suspicious or to ask pertinent questions. Here are the signs to look for remembering that the fish is likely to be only marginally on the stale side rather than offensively bad.

When buying a whole fresh ensure that.

Gills are moist and bright red
Eyes are full, shiny, and slightly protruding
Skin is shiny, iridescent, tight, and firmly attached to the flesh
Flesh springs back when pressed and does not fall away easily from the bone
Scales are shiny and intact and adhere firmly to the skin
The belly is not swollen or faded
It has a mild, pleasant smell (a strong, fishy odour indicates that it is less than fresh).

Storing fish

Saltwater fish is less perishable than freshwater. Wipe fresh fish thoroughly with a damp cloth, then wrap it in waxed paper, put it in a tightly sealed container, and place it in the coldest part of the refrigerator as soon as possible; it can be stored for 2 or 3 days. It can be frozen quite easily. Wrap it well and keep it at a constant temperature no higher than 0°F or -17°C. Lean it can be frozen for longer 2 to 3 months than rattier fish 1 or 2 months because it spoils less quickly. It should always be gutted before it is frozen, and it should be as fresh as possible.

There is only one essential piece of advice on the storing of fresh fish don’t. If you must keep it overnight, put it, well wrapped in several layers of newspaper, in the coldest part of the refrigerator (but not in the ice making compartment). Fresh mackerel, herrings and sardines should be eaten the day they are purchased; if this is not possible, put them in the freezer overnight.

Cooking of fish

If fish is not cooked quickly it can be dry and bland. However, it can be difficult to determine just how long should be cooked, because several factors come into play, including shape, size, and fat content. To get a rough idea, measure the thickest part and cook it for 6 to 8 min per 0 inches in a 425°F or 220°C oven. The flesh is cooked when it is opaque, falls apart easily, and is uniform in colour (milky white if the flesh is white) but still moist.

Nutritional value of fish

Fish contain the same types of nutrients as other food and diet. In overall it may be said that food (meat, cereals, chicken, vegetables, etc.) Fish can be lean (plaice, haddock, and cod) moderately fatty (halibut) or Fatty (salmon, herring, and mackerel). It contains between 15% and 20% so called complete proteins. It is also rich in minerals and vitamins, including phosphorus, iodine, fluorine, copper, vitamin A, magnesium, iron, zinc, selenium, and B complex vitamins. Fatty type is a good source of vitamin D.

Lemon Health Benefits

2016-06-08T11:30:00.000+05:00

Lemons, logically known as Citrus fruit, are more generally known as the fruit that evokes images of brightness and the sweet smiles of children standing roadside at their homemade lemonade outlooks. Are oval in shape and skin a yellow, texturized outer skin. Like other citrus fruits, their inner surface is encased in sections, with the average having eight to ten.

Rich in vitamin C, this most indispensable of fruits can be large or small, with a smooth, thin skin or a thick knobby one. For culinary purposes, such as puddings and sorbets, butters, soups, frothy sauces and for the wedges served with fish and pancakes, it is better to use smooth skinned lemons as they have more juice. Choose specimens that are truly lemon yellow in colour.

Butter yellow lemons may have lost some of their acidity in ripening, and that look dull and do not have a moist looking sheen may be dry and rich, meaning that the almost invisible little sacs containing the juice have turned grainy through evaporation. Lemons owe much of their flavours and aroma to the oil in the outer part of their skin, which is known as the zest.

When serving quarters they should be cut lengthwise so that when squeezed the juice will be directed downwards on to the food. Whenever possible juice should be added to dishes after they are cooked, to avoid loss of vitamin C, which disappears when the juice is heated.

Apart from flavouring, lemon juice has certain other qualities. When poaching or stewing fruit, a teaspoonful of juice added to every 150 ml/1/4 pints of water will help prevent the fruit from breaking up or losing its shape.

A few squeezes of juice will help poached eggs to coagulate and boiled rice to keep its colour, and a few drops will acidulate water sufficiently to prevent the discolouration of vegetables such as celeriac and Jerusalem artichokes. Lemon juice can be used instead of vinegar in salad dressings. And, since it helps to counteract the richness of foods, it can aid digestion when served with fried foods.

The health benefits of lemon contain a treatment of throat infections, dental problems, obesity, fever, internal bleeding, cholera, burns, respiratory disorders, and high blood pressure, however, it also benefits hair and skin care. Lemon juice, especially, has some health benefits related to it. It is fine known as a suitable treatment for reducing strokes, kidney stones, and lowering body temperature. Like a cool drink, lemonade benefits you to stay cool and calm.

The health benefits of lemons are due to its various nourishing elements like vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin E, vitamin B6, niacin, folate, thiamin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, calcium, iron, potassium, magnesium, zinc, copper, phosphorus and protein. Lemon is a fruit that holds flavonoids, which are composites that contain antioxidant and cancer fighting properties.

People use lemons to make lemonade by mixing juice and water. Many people also use as a washing agent, because of its ability to remove stains. The scent can also repel mosquitoes, while drinking juice with olive oil helps to get rid of gall stones. It well known for its medicinal power and is used in many different ways.

Chicken Meat Nutrition

2016-06-03T10:33:00.000+05:00

Chicken is the most popular kind of poultry because it can be produced very cheaply, has a pleasant taste and can be prepared in various ways. In the days before intensive farming, when the chicken was a rare Sunday treat young farmyard fowls had to be specially fattened for the table. Today we eat chicken often and in a thousand and one ways. Unlike its ancestors, the intensively reared chicken is fattened so fast and killed so young that it does not have time to develop its full flavour. Sad though this is, modern poultry responds to being enhanced and improved and makes a good vehicle for any number of different flavours. Even so, it pays to begin with the best poultry you can find.

Poultry is divided into various categories in accordance with norms that vary from one country to another. Since poultry is generally graded on the basis of its appearance, these categories have no bearing on the quality of the flesh, which is largely dependent on the age of the bird. Poultry poses a risk of salmonella food poisoning. Salmonella is frequently found in the intestines of poultry and can spread to the surface of a bird when it is slaughtered. It is also found in eggs. In most cases, salmonella poisoning can be avoided by taking very simple precautions when storing, freezing, handling, and cooking poultry.

Wash your hands carefully after handling poultry, and use hot, soapy water to thoroughly wash all the utensils and surfaces that have come into contact with it. Wash the knife and the cutting board with particular care before using them to cut other food.

Buying Chicken

Chicken is sold fresh or frozen, raw or cocked. When purchasing it fresh, choose plucked, plump birds with supple, moist, intact skin without dry or discoloured patches. When purchasing it frozen, avoid dried out and packaging that is damaged or covered with frost, the presence of pinkish ice is a sign that the chicken has been defrosted and refrozen.

Preparing of Chicken

Chicken should be defrosted completely before it is cooked, to ensure that it is well done in the centre. Chicken can be defrosted in several ways, but defrosting it in the refrigerator is the safest method because the flesh retains more moisture and fewer bacteria develop; however, this is the slowest method (allow 5 to 6 hours per pound). Defrosting at room temperature is the riskiest method because the outside of the bird thaws before the inside and reaches room temperature very quickly. Defrosted chicken should be cooked within 24 hours.

Cooking with Chicken

Young chicken can be roasted or grilled in a conventional oven or alternatively, barbecued. These cooking methods, which render the skin crisp are appropriate for whole birds as well as pieces (thighs, breasts, wings, halves, quarters). Do not cook at low temperatures (less than 300°F/150°C), because the internal temperature should reach 140°F /60°C - the temperature at which salmonella is destroyed as quickly as possible. Insert a meat thermometer into the fleshiest part of the breast or thigh, and preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Remove the chicken from the oven when the meat thermometer reads 185°F/85°C. The juices should be clear, not pinkish, and the thighs should be easy to remove.

Poultry can be cooked quite successfully in a microwave oven because its flesh consists of short, muscular fibers. However, although it will cook faster in a microwave than in a conventional oven, it will not brown.

Storing Raw Chicken

Raw chicken is perishable because it is an ideal breeding ground for bacteria. Remove it from its packaging, wipe it with a damp cloth, and remove the giblets from inside the bird. Place them on a plate, loosely cover it with waxed paper or aluminium foil and refrigerate. Cook it within 2 or 3 days.

Chicken that is frozen whole can be stored for up to 12 months, poultry pieces (purchased frozen) for up to 6 months, and cooked, that is not covered with a sauce or stock for up to 2 months.

Nutritional Value of Chicken

Chicken contains the same types of nutrients as other food and diet. In overall it may be said that food (fish, meat, dates, tomatoes, vegetables, etc.) Chicken contains the same amount of protein as other butchered animals. The fat content varies greatly depending on the species (goose and duck are rattier than quail, pheasant, guinea fowl, and turkey) the part of the animal (breast meat is slightly less fatty than thigh meat and much less fatty than the skin) and the breeding method. The flesh of wild birds is less fatty than that of domesticated poultry.

Poultry has less saturated fat and more polyunsaturated fat than the meat of other butchered animals. Some of the fat is intramuscular, some is contained in the skin, and some is located beneath the skin, where it forms a yellow layer that can comprise up to 2.5% of the total weight of a chicken.

Nutrition Facts and Health Benefits of Tomatoes

2016-05-12T17:06:00.000+05:00

Ripened to a marvellous blazing red in the sun, the tomato is one of the cook’s most essential provisions. Ideally, one should have in the larder at all times, both fresh and in cans (fortunately, are one of the very few vegetables that take happily to being canned). The tomato used to be considered unhealthy and was not eaten raw for many centuries after it arrived in Europe from its native South America.

Spain was the first country to use tomatoes in cooked dishes, and the rest of Europe followed suit, but it was not until the middle of the nineteenth century. Even then they do not seem to have been highly regarded.

Today, however, there is no better salad than a tomato salad, preferably scattered with fresh basil leaves, which have a great affinity. The Italians often add slices of mozzarella, a fresh cheese that goes well. As for a dressing, a good sun-ripened tomato needs only olive oil, since it provides its own astringency, but a duller one needs vinaigrette. Tomatoes should never be allowed to sit about in their dressing because this will turn them soggy.

Buying and storing tomatoes

The best tomatoes are those that have been allowed to ripen slowly on the vine, developing their flavours in the warm sun. Buy bright red, ripe for immediate use: for use in the near future, choose those a paler red colour-after a day or two in a cool spot they will be a vivid red. If tomatoes have been picked when green but after reaching maturity, they are called ‘mature green’ and will redden well if kept in a drawer or in a brown paper bag (they will ripen faster with a red tomato keeping them company, exuding its ethylene gas, which is responsible for the colour change) or on a light but not sunny windowsill. Tomatoes picked when green and unripe will never turn red naturally, and are best used for making pickles and chutneys.

The large, ridged tomatoes, deep red or orange and green and often quite misshapen, tend to be the best, with rather fewer seeds than the more ordinary globe tomatoes, grown to a uniform size and often with very little flavours. Cherry tomatoes can be used whole in salads, while the richly favoured plum tomatoes, with relatively small seed clusters and pulp that is inclined to be dry, are perfect for sauces and purees.

Fleshy tomatoes, such as beefsteak or beef tomatoes, are best for sandwiches because there is less liquid to turn the bread soggy. Slice them across rather than downwards.

Golden-yellow tomatoes are like red tomatoes in every aspect except colour and make a pretty salad when mixed with the reds or on their own.

Cooking with tomatoes

The traditional tomato dishes include soup, which may be delicate and creamy or rich and strong, perhaps favoured with basil or chives; with stuffing’s of cooked seasoned rice mixed with lamb, currants, onion and garlic or with breadcrumb bound filling of olives, herbs or mushrooms and fragrant tomatoes Provencal, simply grilled with a sprinkling of herbs, garlic and olive oil. A la Provencal invariably means the presence of tomatoes in a dish and just as Provencal cookery relies on tomatoes, so does Italian cookery, using them liberally in a vast number of dishes with pasta and pizzas with poultry and meat and in soups and vegetable stews.

Many recipes require tomatoes that have been concussed skinned seeded and roughly chopped. In the case of Italian plum tomatoes the skin may come off perfectly easily but most tomatoes need a quick dip in boiling water first.

Tomatoes are also an outstanding source of vitamin C, biotin, molybdenum, copper, potassium, manganese, dietary fibre, vitamin A, vitamin B6, folate, niacin, vitamin E, and phosphorus.