Proper use of salt can completely change the taste of a dish – the key lies in the method and timing of its use.

Salt is an ingredient that people often use without much thought, yet just a small pinch is enough to completely transform the flavor of a dish. However, many wonder not only how much salt to add, but also when is the best time to do it, reports Kuvar.

Most people add salt only at the end of cooking, but experts and research warn that this is wrong, as the dish does not develop its full, true flavor, writes "Tailgater Magazine".

Salt is best absorbed into food when added at the beginning of cooking, as heat helps it penetrate deeper into the ingredients.

During the process, salt draws moisture from the food, dissolves into it, and then redistributes within the ingredients, giving the dish a juicier, richer texture.

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In contrast, if salt is added at the end of cooking, it remains on the surface, so the initial taste is salty rather than the full, pronounced flavor of the ingredients themselves. That’s why the right timing for salting is crucial to achieving the best taste of the dish.

Chefs’ Tips for Salting Food

Professional chefs don’t add all the salt at once, but rather add it gradually, several times during cooking. This way, they slowly build the flavor, giving the dish a chance for all the ingredients to blend better and develop a richer, more complex taste.

In soups, broths, and sauces, salting at the beginning allows the flavors to evenly permeate and develop as a whole.

For example, salting onions while sautéing highlights their natural sweetness and speeds up the Maillard reaction, i.e., the caramelization process.

There is one important rule when preparing meat. Salting steak or chicken at least 30 minutes before roasting, and for larger cuts overnight, allows the salt to break down muscle fibers, making the meat more tender.

At the same time, salt helps create a crispy, golden-brown crust.

Also, the water used for cooking pasta must be generously salted, as pasta absorbs both water and salt while cooking, which significantly affects the final flavor of the dish.

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When Should You Avoid Early Salting?

As with every rule, there are exceptions. The best-known example is deep-frying. Salt is hygroscopic, meaning it attracts water. If you salt food before frying, the salt will draw moisture to the surface, preventing the formation of a crispy crust.

That’s why fried food should always be salted immediately after removing it from the oil. Caution is also needed with certain vegetables, such as mushrooms or eggplant – salting too early can cause them to release too much water and become mushy instead of nicely browned.

Taste the food as it cooks, gradually adding salt and monitoring how the flavors develop. This is the secret that makes the difference between a good dish and an unforgettable one.

It’s easy to prepare and tastes delicious. Perfect for lovers of creamy flavors, it combines chicken breast meat, vegetables, and cream.

Recipe for Creamy Chicken Soup

Ingredients:

400 g chicken (cut into cubes)
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 small piece of ginger
1 carrot
3 cups chicken broth (ready-made or from a cube)
3 cups boiling water
½ cup small pasta
1 tablespoon flour
2 egg yolks
2 tablespoons lemon juice
A little cold water
Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

Sauté finely chopped onion, garlic, and grated ginger in olive oil. Add the chicken cubes and chopped carrot, and sauté briefly.

Pour in 3 cups of chicken broth and 3 cups of boiling water, season with salt and pepper, and cook for 15–20 minutes.

Add the pasta and cook for another 5–7 minutes.

Mix the flour with a little cold water and add to the soup to thicken.

In a separate bowl, mix the egg yolks with lemon juice and a little cold water, then gradually add some hot soup, and return everything to the pot. Stir over low heat (do not boil).

Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.

Baked sea bass is a classic of Mediterranean cuisine – light, aromatic, and full of the taste of the sea. With a few fresh ingredients and minimal preparation, you get a healthy and elegant meal that will satisfy even the most refined palates.

Recipe for baked sea bass with garlic, lemon, and rosemary

Ingredients (for 2 people):

• 2 fresh sea bass
• 2–3 cloves of garlic
• 1 fresh lemon (half sliced, half for squeezing)
• 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary (or 1 teaspoon dried)
• A handful of fresh parsley (finely chopped)
• 4–5 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 200°C (392°F).

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Wash the sea bass, salt and pepper it inside and out.

Inside each fish, place a few slices of garlic, lemon slices, a sprig of rosemary, and some chopped parsley.

Place the fish on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Brush it with olive oil, then pour the juice of half a lemon over it.

If desired, arrange more lemon slices or a few olives/cherry tomatoes around the fish for flavor and appearance.

Bake for 20–25 minutes until the skin becomes slightly crispy and the flesh is soft and juicy.

Tip:
Serve with potato salad.

When you get the chance to buy some truffles, here’s a recipe on how to prepare them easily, quickly, and simply – and the taste will delight you. This recipe for tagliatelle with truffles serves 4 people.

Recipe for Spaghetti with Truffles

Ingredients

350 g tagliatelle (or other pasta)
100 g butter
50 ml white wine
20 g truffles
100 ml cooking cream
½ teaspoon dried basil
coarsely ground pepper
salt

Preparation

Cook the tagliatelle in lightly salted boiling water. Drain and rinse with cold water.

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In a large pan, melt the butter, then add the cream, thinly sliced or grated truffles, basil, wine, a pinch of salt and pepper.

When it starts to boil, stir in the cooked spaghetti and mix well. Serve immediately.

If you like, sprinkle the dish with grated Grana Padano cheese or Parmesan.

Sometimes we aren’t even aware that we’re doing certain things wrong. This is also the case when we try to preserve certain foods in the fridge, but they can actually become very toxic and lead to food poisoning.

Garlic

The doctor advises never to buy peeled garlic and not to store it in the refrigerator. This is because it will quickly become moldy. Since it is a water-rich crop, garlic easily absorbs moisture from the fridge, which makes it more susceptible to mold growth.

Garlic stored in the fridge can cause chest tightness accompanied by coughing. This indicates an advanced stage of mycotoxin production, which has been linked to cancer. Therefore, it is better to keep garlic on a dry kitchen surface.

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Red onion

Red onion is very similar to garlic and should not be kept in the fridge. Not only is it undesirable to store half an onion, but even a whole onion shouldn’t be left there, as it absorbs bacteria from its surroundings. Studies have shown that many Americans clean their refrigerators only once or twice a year, which turns their fridges into breeding grounds for bacteria.

Fresh ginger

Fresh ginger also shouldn’t be kept in the fridge. This is because mold quickly starts growing on it. Although ginger is very healthy, improper storage can be dangerous. Doctor Jangda explained that the growth of mold on fresh ginger is encouraged by cold temperature and humidity, making it very toxic.

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Cooked rice

The last on the list of foods that can become toxic because mold quickly forms on them is cooked rice. If you keep it in your fridge, it is recommended to consume it within 24 hours. In addition, it is noted that cooked rice can become a breeding ground for bacteria called b.cereus, which is linked to food poisoning.

Roasted potatoes are one of the favorite side dishes. They go well with all meat dishes and pair perfectly with seasonal salads. However, many home cooks struggle during preparation because the potatoes stick while baking and don’t turn out crispy enough.

To prevent this from happening, here’s a proven recipe, brought to you by the portal Kuvar.

Ingredients:

1 kg potatoes
2 tablespoons corn flour
100 ml oil
salt to taste
herbs (optional)

How to prepare the tastiest roasted potatoes:

Peel the potatoes, cut them into quarters, and blanch them in slightly salted water.

Then transfer them to a colander, let them cool slightly, and sprinkle with corn flour. Shake the colander so the potatoes get coated evenly on all sides.

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Preheat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius, oil the baking tray you’ll use for roasting, and place it in the oven. Only when the oil is hot, take the tray out, add the potatoes, and return it to the oven to brown, but reduce the temperature to 200 degrees.

If you like herbs, add them as soon as you transfer the potatoes to the hot tray.

If you put the potatoes in a tray with cold oil, they will stick and fall apart when you try to take them out. A hot tray with heated oil ensures that the potatoes won’t stick while baking.

After about twenty minutes, the potatoes should be roasted, golden, and crispy.

Serve while still hot.

Here’s a super useful recipe to make homemade ketchup without additives and other unhealthy stuff. The recipe is for a small batch so it doesn’t sit too long in the fridge. If you prefer, you can always double the quantities.
It can stay in the fridge as long as needed without any problem, and once you make it, you’ll forget about buying ketchup! Use it as a sauce for burgers, for pizza, with French fries...

Homemade Ketchup Recipe

Ingredients

1.5l tomato juice
100g red pepper
100g onion
100g apples
1 to 1.5dcl vinegar depending on taste,
70g sugar,
1 tablespoon heavy cream
half a teaspoon pepper,
half a teaspoon salt,
half a packet of preservative

Preparation

Cut the pepper and apple into pieces, finely chop the onion, then add everything to the tomato juice and cook until it’s all well cooked (about 30 minutes, no need longer).

Blend the mixture using a hand blender or regular blender.

After that, return it to the stove, add vinegar, sugar, heavy cream, pepper, salt, and preservative. Boil it a bit more until you get the desired ketchup thickness.

When the ketchup reaches the desired thickness, add a bit of cinnamon or oregano, as you like.

The finished ketchup can be poured into smaller wide-mouth bottles or jars.

Is pork lard healthier than oil? This is a question often asked in our region. Was lard unfairly banned from our pantries and diets for so long, or was that actually justified?

Dietitians and nutritionists have different advice when it comes to healthy eating, but they all agree on one thing – generalizations are never good. A perfect example of this is pork lard – which was banished from our diet, yet nowadays we often read and hear that it’s actually healthier than vegetable oils, reports the portal Kuvar.

So what’s the truth?

Most recipes require some type of fat – from roasting to salads. Fats are essential for heart health, body function, and brain health, but when choosing them, we want to make sure we’re picking the better option.

For years, we heard from doctors and nutritionists that animal fat leads to fat gain, high cholesterol, and pimples. Then scientific studies showed that pork lard had undeservedly gained its bad reputation.

Contrary to popular belief, pork lard can actually be a healthy addition to your diet when consumed in moderation.

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Using lard for frying instead of, say, sunflower oil could reduce the risk of heart disease and cancer, according to British scientists. Research conducted as part of the BBC program “Trust Me, I’m a Doctor” in 2015 proved that pork lard is healthier, and between oil and lard, you should choose lard.

In that program, a group of researchers was asked to answer the question: “Which fats and oils are best for cooking?”

They gave a group of volunteers various fats and oils – sunflower oil, corn oil, cold-pressed rapeseed oil, olive oil (refined and extra virgin), butter, and lard – and asked them to use them for cooking. The volunteers were then asked to collect leftover oil after cooking, which was analyzed at the Leicester School of Pharmacy at De Montfort University.

Researcher Michael Mosley explained that when oils and fats are heated during frying or cooking, their molecular structure changes.

“Oxidation occurs – they react with oxygen in the air to create aldehydes and lipid peroxides. Something similar happens at room temperature too, though more slowly. When lipids go rancid, they oxidize,” he said.

“Sunflower and corn oil are fine as long as you don’t expose them to heat, like frying or cooking,” said Professor Martin Grootveld. “If I had to choose between pork lard and polyunsaturated fats, I’d choose pork lard every time,” he added.

Although lard has cholesterol, it’s the good kind

Pork lard is rich in cholesterol, but consuming it helps regulate cholesterol production in the body.

In fact, too low cholesterol in the blood is linked to higher mortality, depression, suicidal and aggressive behavior, and Alzheimer’s disease. The cholesterol in lard protects health rather than threatening it.

There are 95 mg of cholesterol per 100 g of lard.

Although our body needs cholesterol, excessive intake can cause high LDL (low-density lipoprotein) levels in the blood, also known as “bad cholesterol.” High LDL can lead to lipid buildup in blood vessels, increasing the risk of heart disease and stroke, writes healthnews.com.

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Here are just some of the benefits of pork lard:

After fish oil, lard is the second richest source of vitamin D.

For stewing and deep frying, lard is ideal because it is neutral in taste.

Some studies claimed animal fats increase the risk of heart disease, but it has been proven that during the period when lard was widely used, the rate of such diseases was very low.

Scientists also pointed out that the rise in “diseases of modern civilization,” like diabetes and heart disease, occurred when animal fats were replaced with vegetable oils and margarine.

Numerous studies have shown that pork lard has 33% less saturated (“bad”) fat than butter, twice as much “good” monounsaturated fat, and three times higher omega-3 fatty acids content. Lard is also a great source of B vitamins and minerals.

High smoke point

Pork lard has a high smoke point, meaning it can withstand high temperatures without breaking down and creating harmful compounds. This makes it an excellent choice for frying and sautéing.

Rich in healthy fats

Lard is primarily made up of monounsaturated fats, which are considered heart-healthy. These fats can help lower bad cholesterol levels and reduce heart disease risk when consumed as part of a balanced diet.

Natural flavor enhancer

When used in cooking, lard gives dishes a rich and savory flavor. It enhances the taste of meat, vegetables, and even baked goods, giving them a delicious quality.

Unlike other oils, lard has a unique flavor that can elevate your dishes. Its high smoke point ensures even cooking and helps retain natural moisture, resulting in tender and juicy meals. Whether frying, baking, or roasting, lard is a reliable and tasty choice.