Tips and hints
Pizza
To prevent cheese or tomato sauce from dripping in the oven, you can
place a piece of baking paper between the grid and the pizza.
Pies /Quiches:
Avoid glass and porcelain dishes: because they are too thick, they
extend the cooking time and the bottom of the crust is not crispy.
With fruit, the bottom of the tart risks becoming soggy: Just add a few
spoonfuls of fine semolina, crushed biscuit crumbs, almond powder or
tapioca, which will absorb the juice during cooking. With high-water
content or frozen vegetables (leeks, spinach, broccoli or tomatoes) you
can sprinkle a tablespoon of cornmeal.
Fish:
When buying, the odour should be pleasant and not too "fishy".
The body should be firm and rigid and the scales should be firmly stuck
to the skin; the eye should be bright and rounded and gills will appear
shiny and moist.
Beef
/
Pork / Lamb
It is imperative that you remove all meat from the refrigerator well
before cooking it: cold-hot temperature shocks toughen meat; this way you
will produce a roast beef that is golden outside, red inside and warm in the
middle. Do not salt before cooking: salt absorbs the blood and dries out the
meat. Use spatulas to turn the meat: if you pierce the meat the blood drips
out. Always let meat sit after cooking for 5 to 15 minutes: wrap it in a sheet
of aluminium and place it just inside a warm oven. This allows the blood
drawn toward the outside during cooking to return to the heart and moisten
the roast.
Use earthenware roasting dishes: glass promotes grease splattering. Do not
cook in the enamelled drip tray.
Avoid sticking garlic cloves into the leg of lamb, or else it will lose its blood;
rather slip the garlic between the meat and the bone or cook unpeeled
cloves alongside the lamb and crush them when cooking is complete to
season the sauce; strain it and serve it piping hot in a gravy boat.
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How does your oven work?
