As a first good cooking habit, learning to read recipes through. Think about what you’re supposed to be doing and why. Consider the time it will take and give yourself leeway so you don’t get flustered.

Taste

The only way to get the most from a recipe is to taste while you are making a dish _ that is, taste critically and taste often, at different stages of cooking. Recipe instructions frequently say “correct seasonings,” a most important piece of advice that is usually ignored. What you want to achieve is a balance of flavors. Actually there are only four possible tastes: sweet, sour, salty, and bitter (coffee, for example, is bitter), and you won’t encounter all of them necessarily at once. To understand, think of making a glass of lemonade, where the balance between sour (acid lemon juice) and sweet (sugar) is critical. If the balances are right, the drink is pleasing. Of course, other factors are also important: the use of good, fresh lemon juice, a clean glass, and just the right amount of ice so the lemonade is chilled but not diluted.

When you are first learning to cook it is hard to know what ingredients integrate harmoniously and how to balance taste. You learn by doing; practice is the only way to develop that taste judgment. A fledgling artist expects to ruin some canvases in the learning process and knows that not every picture will be a museum piece. The same applies to cooking, so be prepared to have less than perfect results at the first. And never stop tasting, no matter how experienced you think you have become. When tasting food, move it around your mouth rather than just tasting with the tip of your tongue so that all your taste buds are working to make the proper evaluation.

Start their preparation. If there are unfamiliar techniques involved in a recipe that is new to you, immerse yourself in the entire general introductory material first so that you’ll understand the principles underlying what you’re about to attempt.

A second and almost equally important habit – one that develops with experience – is to start thinking in the market, especially when you’re planning dishes that depend on specific fresh produce, like particular cut of meat, or a kind of fish, clams, certain vegetables and fruits.

You will not only cook more economically if you look for what’s “on special” or what’s in season, but the end result will taste much better when you use ingredients that are at their peak of flavor. Try not to have your heart set on certain items and then pay an exorbitant price for hothouse versions that lack the quality of the real thing. Be flexible in choosing recipes, and be open to alternatives.

It’s intelligent and creative to think ahead, both when you’re in the market and your own kitchen. Shop for several interrelated meals at a time and do the more time – consuming preparation when you know you’re going to be around the house. For working people, as well as other cooks, it may be easiest to cook a big roast and a large stew on the weekend and then use the cooked meat in various ways on week nights when time is more limited. If you know you are having people for the weekend, pick a few hours earlier in the week to do a lot of the initial cooking so you’ll be free when your guests are around.

If you have a well – stocked freezer there is no need to buy a lot of “convenience” foods, which are expensive and usually not very satisfying. What you’re doing is furnishing your own kinds of convenience supplies. If in addition, you keep a well – stocked pantry and freezer, you’ll feel a great sense of well- being with everything at your finger tips.

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Although one is certainly able to make fish without any special equipment, there are a few that make the job much easier.

Knives

Chef’s knife: a large heavy knife with a 20 – 25 cm ( 8 – 10 in) blade, it is essential for cutting fish and steaks, as well s splitting open crustaceans.

Filleting knife: for filleting and skinning fish, this knife has a flexible blade. The blade is at least 15 cm long.

Kitchen scissors: a pair of sharp and sturdy scissors is great for cutting of tails and fins.

Fish scalar: this resembles a rough grater, and is great to have around.

Pans

Fish kettle: A fish kettle is long and deep, and has rounded edges. There is a handle at each end and a tightly fitting lid. Inside is a rack to lay the fish on. This is an invaluable pan for the cooking of whole fish. They can also be used to steam other foods.

Oval frying pan: odds are you already have one in your house. This is a very practical tool. This pan will enable you to cook whole fish instead of bending them to fit a round pan.

Griddle pan: this is a rib cast iron girdle pan that is ideal for searing and grilling fish. They may be round oval or rectangular.

Steamer: If you love to steam food, a stainless steel steamer may be perfect for you. They have a lidded deep outer pan and an inner basket. The best thing to do is to choose the widest pan you can find. You may also opt for a bamboo steaming basket that is an economical alternative. They come in a great variety of sizes. These baskets may also be stacked on top of one another so that food may be cooked at one time.

Wok: a 35 cm wok with a lid will be large enough to deal with most types of fish. This wok will also prove to be invaluable as a kitchen source for a variety of food items.

Specialty items

Barbecue grilling rack: a hinged rack as such makes cooking and turning a large fish very easy. These may be rectangular or round. They also have large handles. Some are made in the shape of a fish, and some are made to fit several sardines. Make sure you il the grilling pan beforehand so that the fish do not stick.
Smoker: this may be as simple as a lidded metal box with a rack to hold the fish. The smoke produced by placing damp aromatic wood chippings and herbs give the fish extra flavor. One may also buy an electric smoker.

Fish lifter: this represents an elongated fish slice and is curved and useful for flipping over whole fish during cooking without breaking them.

Tweezers: use these to extract small bones from fish fillets.

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1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon pure chili powder, preferably medium-hot

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 teaspoons dark brown sugar

2 1/2 teaspoons paprika

6 catfish fillets (fillets are easier to use, here I used a whole fish, it can be done either way)

Okay, get a big Ziploc bag and dump your salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, brown sugar, and paprika (if you really feel like having little tasteless red things in your fish), Seal the bag and shake it up real good.

Congratulations you just saved yourself from having to clean a bowl later. Place your fish in the bag and roll it around a bit to get the fish good and covered. Stick that in the fridge over night.

Ok if you have a gas grill set one burner on hot and the other on medium to low. If you have a charcoal grill, well emulate that as much as possible. Baste your fishies in olive oil and place on the hottest part of the grill, wait thirty seconds and turn over for another thirty seconds. Now move the fishies over to the cooler part of the grill and cook for about two minutes, flip and cook for about three more minutes.

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1 lb shrimp, cleaned and shelled leaving tail on only

1/2 lb large sea scallops

About 8 slices bacon

1 small can 7 oz chipotle chilies in adobo sauce

1 each red and green bell pepper

2 medium sweet onions

Small container of fresh mushrooms, washed and sliced thickly

1 tablespoon lime juice

Sea salt

Freshly ground pepper

Wooden skewers soak in water at least 30 minutes

Cut the bell peppers and onion into one inch squares, but leave enough there for you to be able to dice 2 teaspoons onion. Remove chipotle chilies from their sauce stuff. Pour adobo sauce into a bowl and add lime juice. Marinate seafood, bell peppers, onion and mushrooms in the adobo sauce for at least 20 minutes. Slice the chipotle chilies in half and remove seeds unless of course you’re strange and like the seeds… if that’s the case then knock yourself out. Cut bacon into pieces small enough to wrap once around a scallop, or if you’re like me… don’t cut the bacon and just make use of it all. Can’t go wrong with bacon, wrap all scallops in bacon. Skewer alternating pieces of vegetables and seafood until
skewer is 3/4 full, leaving several inches on one end for easy handling. When all skewers are made, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill using Mesquite Wood for about 10 minutes or until seafood is opaque. Serve over Fiesta Rice.

To make Fiesta Rice,
boil rice and throw in the 1 tablespoon of diced pepper and 2 teaspoons diced
onion with a few dashes of salt and pepper and a
1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder.

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8 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley

2 tablespoons minced sun-dried tomatoes

1/4 cup olive oil

1 and 1/2 pounds salmon fillet, boned
Get something bowl-like from wherever you keep the bowl-like things and mash up the garlic in it, mix with the salt, parsley, tomatoes, and oil and mix well. You can’t use the stuff now so put it in the fridge and wait til tomorrow.

Heat up your grill and use some mesquite wood… otherwise you just have bbq salmon and then whats the point? Ok now with the skin side down make two cuts down the length of the fish, make them deep cuts but not all the way through. Dump about half of the stuff you put in the fridge last night over the side with the cuts. Now put the salmon skin side down on the grill. If you haven’t made the grill non stick yet you’ll be sorry. Cook for about 5 to 10 minutes and turn the salmon over. Dump the rest of the stuff on the salmon and try not to put the fire out. Cook another 5 to 10 minutes and eat.

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4 Salmon steaks or fillets

1/4 cup peanut oil

2 tablespoons Soy sauce

2 tablespoons Balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons Chopped green onion

1 1/2 teaspoon brown sugar

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

1/8 teaspoon salt
Put your salmon steaks into something that holds liquid well, doesn’t really matter what. Mix together the peanut oil, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, green onion, brown sugar, garlic, red chili flakes, sesame oil, and the salt and then dump it in with the fish. Cover it with something and throw it in the fridge for about 6 hours, no less than 4.

Heat up your grill and make it non stick if you like your fish in one piece. Take the salmon out of the marinade and plop it on the grill. Let it cook ten minutes per inch of thickness, on each side. Turn the salmon only once, half way through the grilling.

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3 pounds whole salmon, cleaned

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 tablespoon Chile sauce

1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger root

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 lime, juice & zest

1 tablespoon brown sugar

3 green onions, chopped

First off make your grill really hot.

Then cut the tail and fins off the salmon, cut across the skin a few times… not all the way through, make them shallow cuts. Once you’ve done that put the salmon on 3 kind big overlapping sheets of aluminum foil.

Get out one of those things you mix stuff in… what are those things called again?… That’s right! A bowl. Get a bowl and stir together the soy sauce, chile sauce, ginger and garlic. Mix in the lime juice, lime zest and brown sugar and dump some on the salmon.

Fold the foil over the salmon and crimp the edges to seal it.

Okay, now go out to your grill. If you did something stupid and your grill is melting call pizza hut. If its not and you’re using a char coal grill push the coals to one side, preferably not with your hand, and put the fish on the side of the grill with no coals. If you’re using gas turn the burners off on one side and put the fish there. Close your lid and cook for about half an hour. When its done, take it out, put it on a plate and open up the aluminum foil. Drain any of the juice that’s probably there and serve.

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1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon pure chili powder, preferably medium-hot

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 teaspoons dark brown sugar

2 1/2 teaspoons paprika

6 catfish fillets (fillets are easier to use, here I used a whole fish, it can be done either way)

Okay, get a big Ziploc bag and dump your salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, brown sugar, and paprika (if you really feel like having little tasteless red things in your fish), Seal the bag and shake it up real good.

Congratulations you just saved yourself from having to clean a bowl later. Place your fish in the bag and roll it around a bit to get the fish good and covered. Stick that in the fridge over night.

Ok if you have a gas grill set one burner on hot and the other on medium to low. If you have a charcoal grill, well emulate that as much as possible. Baste your fishies in olive oil and place on the hottest part of the grill, wait thirty seconds and turn over for another thirty seconds. Now move the fishies over to the cooler part of the grill and cook for about two minutes, flip and cook for about three more minutes.

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¼ cup balsamic vinegar

¼ cup chili sauce

¼ cup packed brown sugar

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 teaspoons minced fresh parsley

1 teaspoon minced fresh gingerroot

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

4 (6 ounce) salmon steaks

In something bowl-ish combine the vinegar, chili sauce, sugar, garlic, parsley (if you really feel the need), cayenne pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes. Feel free of course to add any kind of pepper that you like, afterall you are the one that has to eat it.

Now that you have your sauce get your grill to approximately medium heat and throw the fish on it, if you really want to… throw it from across the yard and see if you can get it on the grill (not recommended). Cover the fish and cook for about five minutes on each side, baste as you flip it and for everyone elses sake, don’t overcook it

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2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 teaspoons soy sauce

½ teaspoon pepper

4 salmon steaks (1 inch thick)

Get out your handy dandy fish baste making sauce pan and put the butter, brown sugar, garlic, lemon juice, soy sauce and paper in it. Cook over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved.

Once you have that done generously apply the concoction to your fish and plop it on the grill… and I mean a good childish plop! Or it wont taste right… have the grill about medium heat. Cook that for about five minutes, turn it over, baste it, and let it set for about seven minutes or until done. Turn and baste as you see fit.

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