JH FOODS OPTION
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Good and Cheap - Leanne Brown - Welfare Diet
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Cook Book Testers
Answer the following questions about your recipes:
What could go wrong with your recipe? (Common mistakes that might be made.)
What is the time frame?
How many ingredient are there? How expensive are they?
How many dishes will be made?
What are the risk assessments and what procedures are in place for safety?
Answer the following questions about your recipes:
What could go wrong with your recipe? (Common mistakes that might be made.)
What is the time frame?
How many ingredient are there? How expensive are they?
How many dishes will be made?
What are the risk assessments and what procedures are in place for safety?
Safety...
Cooking is fun, but kitchen safety is a priority. Think about it: Knives! Fire! Bacteria! Observing basic rules of kitchen safety is a good habit to develop. Always pay attention to what you’re doing in the kitchen because one slip can cause serious injury or accidents.
The very best safety is prevention. Whenever you're heating oil for pan-frying or deep-fat frying, stay in the kitchen. Use a heavy pot with a lid and clip a thermometer to the side so you know the temperature of the oil.
Keep an eye on the oil as it's heating. If you see wisps of smoke or smell something acrid, immediately turn down the heat or remove the pot from the burner completely. The oil won't immediately catch fire once it starts smoking, but smoke is a danger sign that it's well on its way to getting there.
If the worst happens and your oil does catch on fire, do the following:
• Turn the Heat Off - Don't try to move the pot. You might accidentally splash yourself or your kitchen with burning oil. And that would be bad.
• Cover the Pot with a Metal Lid - Fire cannot exist in the absence of oxygen. With the lid on (and the heat off), the fire should quickly consume all the oxygen and put itself out. Use a metal lid since glass will shatter.
• Pour on Baking Soda - Baking soda will extinguish grease fires, but only if they're small. It takes a lot of baking soda to do the job.
• Spray the Pot with a Class B Dry Chemical Fire Extinguisher - This is your last resort, as fire extinguishers will contaminate your kitchen. Still, it's better than the alternative if the fire is getting out of control.
• Get Out and Call 911 - If the fire does break out of control, don't try to be a hero. Get out and find a phone to call 911.
Whatever you do, DO NOT do the following:
• Do Not Use Water - Pouring water can cause the oil to splash and spread the fire. The vaporizing water can also carry grease particles in it, also spreading the fire.
• Do Not Move the Pot or Carry It Outside - Throwing the pot outside might seem logical in the frenzy of the moment. But trying to move the pot might splash burning oil on you, your home, and anything outside.
• Do Not Throw Any Other Baking Product On the Fire - Flour might look like baking soda, but it won't react the same. Only baking soda can help put out a grease fire.
Phew, now that we're clear on all of that, hopefully you'll never be in a situation where you have to actually use this advice. Be safe, fellow cooks!
Any other advice on preventing or dealing with grease fires?
FIRST AID: Who has first aid? What do you do when something goes wrong? PREVENTION WORKS BEST!!
CANADIAN FOOD SAFETY TIPS
- Store knives in a wooden block or in a drawer. Make sure the knives are out of the reach of children.
- Never cook in loose clothes and keep long hair tied back. You don’t want anything accidentally catching fire (not to mention hair ending up in the food!)
- Keep potholders nearby and use them! Be careful not to leave them near an open flame.
- Turn pot handles away from the front of the stove. Children can’t grab them, and adults can’t bump into them if they’re out of the way.
- Don’t let temperature-sensitive foods sit out in the kitchen. Raw meat, fish, and certain dairy products can spoil quickly, so refrigerate or freeze them right away.
- Wipe up spills immediately. Keep the floor dry so that no one slips and falls.
- Separate raw meat and poultry from other items whenever you USE or store them. This precaution avoids cross-contamination of harmful bacteria from one food to another.
- Wash your hands before handling food and after handling meat or poultry. Hands can be a virtual freight train of bacteria.
- Get a fire extinguisher for your kitchen. This device may not do much for your cherries jubilee, but it can avert a disaster. Make sure you know how to use it before a fire breaks out. You can’t waste any time reading the directions amidst the flames.
The very best safety is prevention. Whenever you're heating oil for pan-frying or deep-fat frying, stay in the kitchen. Use a heavy pot with a lid and clip a thermometer to the side so you know the temperature of the oil.
Keep an eye on the oil as it's heating. If you see wisps of smoke or smell something acrid, immediately turn down the heat or remove the pot from the burner completely. The oil won't immediately catch fire once it starts smoking, but smoke is a danger sign that it's well on its way to getting there.
If the worst happens and your oil does catch on fire, do the following:
• Turn the Heat Off - Don't try to move the pot. You might accidentally splash yourself or your kitchen with burning oil. And that would be bad.
• Cover the Pot with a Metal Lid - Fire cannot exist in the absence of oxygen. With the lid on (and the heat off), the fire should quickly consume all the oxygen and put itself out. Use a metal lid since glass will shatter.
• Pour on Baking Soda - Baking soda will extinguish grease fires, but only if they're small. It takes a lot of baking soda to do the job.
• Spray the Pot with a Class B Dry Chemical Fire Extinguisher - This is your last resort, as fire extinguishers will contaminate your kitchen. Still, it's better than the alternative if the fire is getting out of control.
• Get Out and Call 911 - If the fire does break out of control, don't try to be a hero. Get out and find a phone to call 911.
Whatever you do, DO NOT do the following:
• Do Not Use Water - Pouring water can cause the oil to splash and spread the fire. The vaporizing water can also carry grease particles in it, also spreading the fire.
• Do Not Move the Pot or Carry It Outside - Throwing the pot outside might seem logical in the frenzy of the moment. But trying to move the pot might splash burning oil on you, your home, and anything outside.
• Do Not Throw Any Other Baking Product On the Fire - Flour might look like baking soda, but it won't react the same. Only baking soda can help put out a grease fire.
Phew, now that we're clear on all of that, hopefully you'll never be in a situation where you have to actually use this advice. Be safe, fellow cooks!
Any other advice on preventing or dealing with grease fires?
FIRST AID: Who has first aid? What do you do when something goes wrong? PREVENTION WORKS BEST!!
CANADIAN FOOD SAFETY TIPS
KNIFE SKILLS:
MEASURING TECHNIQUES
Dry Ingredients
When measuring dry ingredients, you want to use individual measuring cups (like the silver ones in the picture above) or measuring spoons to ensure an accurate reading. My "baker" friends weigh their flour, which is even more accurate than measuring. I'm too lazy to do this, but if you're a little more hardcore than me: 1 cup of flour should weigh 4.5 ounce or 128 grams.
Always use the spoon & level method for measuring flour.This same rule can also be applied to other dry ingredients, but there are a couple of exceptions (I'll get to that in a minute).
Do not scoop the flour out of the bag with your measuring cup. Spoon flour from the bag lightly into the measuring cup. Do not "pack" the flour. Also avoid "tapping" the measuring cup (this causes flour to settle and become more dense). Lightly shake off the excess or use a knife to gently level it off. (For more tips, watch my video on how to properly measure flour.)
I also apply this rule to instant oats, but with rolled oats I "cheat" and scoop with my measuring cup. 1 cup of rolled oats should weigh 3 ounces or 85 grams.
With sugar (i.e., raw sugar or brown sugar), you can scoop it with the measuring cup, unless you want to scale back on how much sugar you're using, then you can use the spoon method. In most recipes, the sugar should be "packed tight" and leveled off, unless directed otherwise. I tend to scoop it lightly and I never pack it down tightly.
Generally, bakers consider "sugar" (as in dry sweetener) a "wet" ingredient, but I don't. I always mix it with my other "dry" ingredients. If my sweetener is a liquid, however, such as maple syrup, then I hold off and add it with the other wet stuff.
Powdered sugar is the exception — you want to sift that, if you can, to prevent lumps.
Liquids
Liquids (such as non-dairy milk) should be at eye level in a liquid measuring cup (like the one above, on the left). When checking to see if the ingredient is at the right level, make sure the measuring cup is on a flat surface. Holding it up to your face may give you an inaccurate reading.
I'll admit, I've used my dry measuring cups to measure liquid and it's usually not a big deal. I filled my plastic 1 cup with water, poured it into my liquid measuring cup - the same! You won't get the same results with dry ingredients though.
Rice, Chopped Nuts, Chips, etc
Like dry ingredients, "bulky" ingredients should be spooned into a measuring cup. Use your fingers to level the contents, but don't pack it down.
When measuring dry ingredients, you want to use individual measuring cups (like the silver ones in the picture above) or measuring spoons to ensure an accurate reading. My "baker" friends weigh their flour, which is even more accurate than measuring. I'm too lazy to do this, but if you're a little more hardcore than me: 1 cup of flour should weigh 4.5 ounce or 128 grams.
Always use the spoon & level method for measuring flour.This same rule can also be applied to other dry ingredients, but there are a couple of exceptions (I'll get to that in a minute).
Do not scoop the flour out of the bag with your measuring cup. Spoon flour from the bag lightly into the measuring cup. Do not "pack" the flour. Also avoid "tapping" the measuring cup (this causes flour to settle and become more dense). Lightly shake off the excess or use a knife to gently level it off. (For more tips, watch my video on how to properly measure flour.)
I also apply this rule to instant oats, but with rolled oats I "cheat" and scoop with my measuring cup. 1 cup of rolled oats should weigh 3 ounces or 85 grams.
With sugar (i.e., raw sugar or brown sugar), you can scoop it with the measuring cup, unless you want to scale back on how much sugar you're using, then you can use the spoon method. In most recipes, the sugar should be "packed tight" and leveled off, unless directed otherwise. I tend to scoop it lightly and I never pack it down tightly.
Generally, bakers consider "sugar" (as in dry sweetener) a "wet" ingredient, but I don't. I always mix it with my other "dry" ingredients. If my sweetener is a liquid, however, such as maple syrup, then I hold off and add it with the other wet stuff.
Powdered sugar is the exception — you want to sift that, if you can, to prevent lumps.
Liquids
Liquids (such as non-dairy milk) should be at eye level in a liquid measuring cup (like the one above, on the left). When checking to see if the ingredient is at the right level, make sure the measuring cup is on a flat surface. Holding it up to your face may give you an inaccurate reading.
I'll admit, I've used my dry measuring cups to measure liquid and it's usually not a big deal. I filled my plastic 1 cup with water, poured it into my liquid measuring cup - the same! You won't get the same results with dry ingredients though.
Rice, Chopped Nuts, Chips, etc
Like dry ingredients, "bulky" ingredients should be spooned into a measuring cup. Use your fingers to level the contents, but don't pack it down.