Handy Tips thread

[Badger's Mate Profile]

I give jars and lids a good wash and put them in an oven at about 90°C to sterilise them. I also fill them hot, so the glass doesn't get too much thermal shock.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

Tip: keep a plastic card ( I’m currently using last year’s National Trust card) with your washing up sponge

Use it as a scraper for removing labels etc, safer than a knife and won’t scratch things like Tupperware

[Sakkarin Profile]

I thought I'd share some useful tips from my Papau New Guinea cookbook...

Particularly useful is the cockroach tip, which gives everyone an excuse to buy chocolate for legitimate purposes - well it's not far off cocoa...

And it's great to know that ants can't swim though kerosene.

www.sakkarin.co.uk/foodforumpix/cocoa-cockroach.jpg

[scullion Profile]

i think a little washing up liquid, to break the surface tension, may be a little less smelly (and volatile) than kerosene‽

mamta's tip about storing fresh soft fruit in jars in the fridge was a really useful one. i did an experiment and after nine days the strawberries were still firm with no sign of mould or softness. the only downside of leaving them that long was that the proper flavour had decreased and they'd developed a slight hint of acetone.

[Sakkarin Profile]

I wonder if that works with mushrooms? I've thrown quite a few away that have gone slimy this summer.

[scullion Profile]

i think the trouble is that they get packed in plastic and chilled, too much, in the supermarket. some of the ones i used yesterday had grown their own veil of white fungal threads.
they probably won't store in the same way - they don't have a firm skin and would feel the need to open their caps to spore.
maybe that's your experiment!

[aero280 Profile]

There were some green plastic food storage bags from Lakeland that seemed to work. They claimed to contain some volcanic(?) mineral dust. I used them, but ran out and I couldn’t find them the last time I looked.

[edit]
Found them! Just needed a more thorough search...
https://www.lakeland.co.uk/1092/20-Lake ... -20-x-23cm

[Sakkarin Profile]

Are they reusable, Aero? If not, it's an expensive fix at around 40p a time for the large ones, considering their example pic has not much more than 40p's worth of carrots in it anyway...



EDIT:
P.S. Watford stuff... someone alerted me to this lot down Wiggenhall Road the other day, I am sorely tempted to get some of that pastrami...
https://www.jaydmeats.co.uk/

...and in case you hadn't discovered them, this lot do fabulous bread:
https://www.flourishbakery.com/

Any other local food heroes?

[Earthmaiden Profile]

Apart from the kerosene (which seems bit dodgy!), it is reminiscent of country larders before we all had fridges (but different things to keep the creatures off!), not many cockroaches there though. Keeping bay leaves in flour must give it an interesting taste.

I find that paper bags keep mushrooms quite well but they do dry out a bit after a while. I had heard that the Lakeland bags were good but am too miserly to buy them.

[scullion Profile]

it's a shame that supermarkets can't get/supply pre-packed mushrooms in cardboard/pulp punnets with a thin film of biodegradable plastic or whatever over. it would reduce the plastic and maybe allow the mushrooms to 'breathe' a little?
and the whole lot could just go straight in the compost if they are delivered in a bad state!

[PatsyMFagan Profile]

mamta's tip about storing fresh soft fruit in jars in the fridge was a really useful one. i did an experiment and after nine days the strawberries were still firm with no sign of mould or softness. the only downside of leaving them that long was that the proper flavour had decreased and they'd developed a slight hint of acetone.

I found exactly the same result Scully ... I'm glad you posted this as I thought it was me .. I can smell milk that is on the verge of turning a mile off and so put it down to extra sensitive sense of smell. However, I can confirm that quartered, macerated with some sugar, then a shot of Fraise des Bois does the trick, topped with yogurt.

[aero280 Profile]

I've reused those green bags in the past. They can be washed.

I should have some around, but after all the building work here last year they have gone AWOL.

Thanks for the links to the meat and bread. I'll keep them in mind. I like a bit of salt beef and pastrami!

Can I offer our local butcher, who is very good. He does rare breed meat and all his meat is traced back to source. Only on facebook. https://www.facebook.com/ShallisButchers They are still doing local deliveries while the virus is about.

[liketocook Profile]

Mayonnaise is good for removing residual sticky stuff on jars.
Store opened yoghurt, cream etc. in a jar, it saves finding something to cover the lid as many only have a foil seal these days. it also keeps it fresher for longer. I use a whiteboard marker to write on the glass what is in it.

[Pampy Profile]

I use, and re-use, the green Lakeland bags - they really do work. With some foods, though, I wrap them in kitchen roll before putting them in the bag - they absorb moisture and keep the contents in better condition.

[ZeroCook Profile]

I wonder if that works with mushrooms? I've thrown quite a few away that have gone slimy this summer.

Ditto. If I leave them out in the kitchen they dry out - good for stews n stuff but I have loads now because I keep buying mushrooms and not using them fast enough. But it doesn't solve the fridge fresh issue.

Lately I've removed the plastic film , taken the mushrooms out of the plastic box placed a paper kitchen towel folded to size on the bottom, replaced the mushrooms, covered the box with another kitchen towel covered that with a piece of cling film and secured with an elastic band. Theres still some condensation so Ive replaced the paper towel a couple of times when it looked too damp. So far they've lasted a lot longer.

I also do it with greens and lettuce. Remove any tires, wash, lay out on a towel to almost but not quite dry, roll around with paper towel, put into polyrhene bag and into fridge.

It's sort of what I do with big bunches of parsely and green coriander only they go in a mug with a bit of water.

It's counter intuitive but washing the herbs and veg really helps. BUT DON'T WASH MUSHROOMS!

I've had organic stuff that's lasted over 3 weeks that way. What we've learned during lockdown!

Gleaned some of this from Serious Eats but don't have room for loads of storage boxes.

https://www.seriouseats.com/2020/07/how ... oduce.html

[herbidacious Profile]

mamta's tip about storing fresh soft fruit in jars in the fridge was a really useful one. i did an experiment and after nine days the strawberries were still firm with no sign of mould or softness.

I was very excited about this, but when I tried it, mine went mouldy after 4 days No, I didn't wash them...

I was sent some in a biodegradable cardboard carton by one supermarket. I have kept it and transfer strawberries into that now. It is better than plastic, I suppose because it abosrobs some of the moisture.

I have been tipping mushrooms out of plastic and cling film packaging into one of those nylon net bags that Sainsburys introduced as an alternative to plastic bags for loose fresh produce - primarily because I didn't want to wash the punnet or the mushrooms. (Covid precaution.) Not surprsingly, they tend to dry out in it rather. Better than going slimy? Not sure.

[PatsyMFagan Profile]

Last Friday, I bought raspberries, strawberries and blueberries. As soon as I got home, I transferred them all into sealed containers. I have a square, flatish lock and lock box that held most of the strawberries in one layer. The rest went into a 450g yogurt pot. The blueberrries are in a jam jar and raspberries are in another 450g volume plastic jar. All containers were dry and in the case of the raspberries, I have scrunched up a sheet of kitchen roll and popped that on top of the berries. Today I have just had a mixed fresh berry mix. All berries are as fresh as when I bought them on Friday .. I think they are all now beyond their BBDate

[Earthmaiden Profile]

I expect my supermarket berries to last a week anyway. I do have to pick a couple out sometimes during the week but they usually last for daily breakfasts.

[herbidacious Profile]

Wonder what I did wrong... the jar was dry, the fruit was not washed. I suppose if there are mould spores already on them, putting them in a jar won't stop the mould. Reminds me: I have strawberries to eat up (I hope).

[Sakkarin Profile]

Mushroom storage update.

Bought mushrooms on the 15th, lined their plastic tray with microfibre cloth and put half back in there leaving the top open. Put the other half in a Lakeland vegetable bag (the mesh ones, not the stayfresh vegetable bags).

11 days on, the ones that are left are still just about usable.