Recipes – how to use them (Part 2)
The second most important thing about using a recipe is: do what it says. Most kitchen disasters come from not following the recipe. You can’t always leave something out or substitute ingredients and have the dish come out the way it should. Leave the experimenting for after you’ve tried it at least once.
One thing people have trouble with is interpreting the abbreviations and terms. A small “t? or tsp means teaspoon, an uppercase “T? or tbl means tablespoon. Both “c? and “C? mean cup. A dash (like Tabasco) is generally a few drops, a pinch (like salt) the amount you can grasp between your thumb and finger.
A cook book will often have a glossary of terms or an explanation of abbreviations.
When they talk about spoon measures, they’re referring to a spoon in a set of measuring spoons. It really doesn’t work to use teaspoons and soup spoons from your silverware drawer. A teaspoon from a tableware set can be anything from ½ a teaspoon to a teaspoon and a half.
So do yourself a favor and pick up a set of measuring spoons, and while you’re at it, cup measures at the dollar store. Guaranteed you’ll save yourself some aggravation!
Today’s recipes are much improved over those from days past, which makes cooking much less an exercise in trial-and-error, and more one of following directions. If you read the whole recipe, and then do what it says, you’re well on the road to a good meal.
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