<p><strong>Cooked meat salads</strong></p> <p>When preparing dishes like chicken or cooked meat salads, use chilled ingredients. In other words, make sure your cooked chicken has been cooked and chilled before it gets mixed with other salad ingredients.</p> <p align=”center”><img width=”272″ src=”images/stories/cychefs chefstips/mar09a.jpg” alt=”mar09a” height=”250″> </p> <p><strong>Cool left over’s</strong></p> <p>Cool leftovers as quickly as possible. Reheat to 80c before serving again.</p> <p align=”center”> <img width=”322″ src=”images/stories/cychefs chefstips/mar09b.jpg” alt=”mar09b” height=”252″> </p> <p><strong>Avoid crowding food</strong></p> <p>Avoid crowding food that is deep-fat-fried. The food must be surrounded by bubbling oil, and you must keep the temperature from falling too much. If you add too much food to a small amount of oil, the temperature will plummet, and the food will wind up greasy and soggy.</p> <p align=”center”> <img width=”274″ src=”images/stories/cychefs chefstips/mar09c.jpg” alt=”mar09c” height=”175″> </p> <p><strong>Mincing garlic</strong></p> <p>When mincing garlic, sprinkle on a little salt so the pieces won’t stick to your knife or cutting board.</p> <p align=”center”> <img width=”268″ src=”images/stories/cychefs chefstips/mar09d.jpg” alt=”mar09d” height=”192″> </p> <p><strong>Leftover wine</strong></p> <p>Don’t throw out all that leftover wine: Freeze into ice cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces.</p> <p align=”center”> <img width=”194″ src=”images/stories/cychefs chefstips/mar09e.jpg” alt=”mar09e” height=”243″> </p> <p><strong>Liquids in your recipes</strong></p> <p>Instead of the water your recipe calls for, try juices, bouillon, or water you’ve cooked vegetables in. Instead of milk, try buttermilk, yogurt or sour cream. It can add a whole new flavor and improve nutrition.</p> <p align=”center”> <img width=”224″ src=”images/stories/cychefs chefstips/mar09f.jpg” alt=”mar09f” height=”217″> </p> <p><strong>Raw potatoes</strong></p> <p>Let raw potatoes stand in cold water for at least half an hour before frying to improve the crispness of french-fried potatoes.</p> <p align=”center”> <strong><img width=”262″ src=”images/stories/cychefs chefstips/mar09g.jpg” alt=”mar09g” height=”222″></strong> </p> <p><strong>Opening jars</strong></p> <p>If you have a problem opening jars: Try using latex dishwashing gloves. They give an on-slip grip that makes opening jars easy.</p> <p align=”center”> <img width=”212″ src=”images/stories/cychefs chefstips/mar09h.jpg” alt=”mar09h” height=”283″> </p> <p><strong>Braising meat</strong></p> <p>When braising meat, cook it at a low temperature for a long time to keep the meat tender and have it retain all the juices.</p> <p align=”center”> <img width=”200″ src=”images/stories/cychefs chefstips/mar09i.jpg” alt=”mar09i” height=”200″> </p> <p><strong>Dried beans</strong></p> <p>When using dried beans and peas, keep in mind that 1 cup dry beans or peas makes 2 1/2 cups cooked</p> <p align=”center”> <img width=”224″ src=”images/stories/cychefs chefstips/mar09j.jpg” alt=”mar09j” height=”184″></p>