The Cooking Dish

December Giveaway: Cookie Cutters (Closed)

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Now that I’ve completed The Ultimate Kitchen Gifts List, I figured I would give away one item from it. One of my favorite Christmas activities is making sugar cookies, so in honor of my favorite activity, I’m giving away Fred’s ABC (Already Been Chewed) Cookie Cutters. These cookie cutters are supposed to help people stay away from your cookies… but to me, a broken or ABC cookie is an invitation to snitch. To each their own, I suppose. However, if you looove cookies and your kids absolutely demand you leave some for Santa, making Santa’s cookies with these will almost guarantee there’ll be some left for you on Christmas morning.

This contest will run through Friday sometime (December 11th), and then I’ll ship them a.s.a.p to the random lucky winner.
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The Ultimate Kitchen Gift Ideas List

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gifts

*Phew!* This gift ideas list is exhaustive (and was exhausting to make), but it will be an excellent holiday (and non-holiday) shopping guide for you; it’s also great for birthdays, Groundhog Days (because who doesn’t like a random present for a random holiday), national Be Nice to a Cook days (is there such a thing?), etc. etc. etc. Most of the kitchen items on this list I have used personally, and the ones that I haven’t, are ones that I feel confident are still good quality.

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November Giveaway: Win Bhut Jolokia Peppers (Closed)

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By now I imagine you’ve heard of a bhut jolokia chili pepper, also known as a ghost pepper or naga jolokia–the world’s hottest chili pepper.  These peppers are hotter than Beelzebub’s spit.  From what I understand, the bhut jolokia is native to Eastern India, which doesn’t surprise me.  Those Indians can eat some crazy hot curry foods without batting an eye.  I, on the other hand, cannot. Just the thought of eating a jalapeño makes my eyes water.  In short, I’m a wuss.  Okay, I said it.

I admit that it’s a little strange to be giving away a bag of dried bhut jolokia peppers, and in the future, my giveaways will be a little more useful, but I couldn’t help myself. Just the thought of having a bag full of the world’s hottest peppers and playing with the idea of actually trying it out gives me a foodie high–sort of like going over Niagara Falls in a barrel. I’m not sure I’d survive either scenario. For some of you pepper heads out there, this ought to be the ultimate challenge.
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Man vs. Wild – Eating Rhino Beetle Larva

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I’ve debated including videos and posts like this on The Cooking Dish for some time now, but I finally decided I’d create a special “NOT FOR THE SQUEAMISH” categories for them; after all, I can’t deny my inner boyish interest in the grotesque. I love stuff like this, though I’m sure most of the world’s cooks find it less than appealing. But if you think about, as is mentioned in the video, somewhere out there, for someone, this is normal food…
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Cooking Conversions @ The Cooking Dish

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I’m one of those guys who finds conversion charts really handy–mainly because I haven’t taken the time to memorize them for easy reference. I’ve had the Cooking Conversions page posted for about a week now and I’ve gotten numerous requests to make a printable PDF version of it, so for your convenience, I’ve done that too. You can find it at the bottom of this post or on the Cooking Conversions page just under the Cooking References link in the top navigation.
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Your New Cooking Mantra: Bork Bork

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To my readers and fellow cooks who are scared to cook and spice, behold your new cooking mantra: bork bork. There’s a famous Swedish chef who’s not afraid to try anything, and who I love to watch cook. He’s had cameos in numerous films and is well known for his “throw caution into the wind” cooking style. If you don’t know who I’m talking about, take a quick gander at the guy staring back at you in the photo on the left, and meet… actually, he just goes by Swedish Chef.
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The Difference between Yellow, White, and Red Onions

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Welcome to The Cooking Dish blog! This is quickly becoming one of the highest read articles online about onions, and I hope you find the answer you’re looking for. If not, please leave a comment below and I’m more than happy to answer your question.

If you’ve ever been in the grocery store buying onions and couldn’t figure out which color of onion to buy, you’re not alone. Or perhaps you’re cooking and realize your recipe calls for a white onion and all you have are yellow onions… dont’ worry. There are many onions out there, each with their different purposes, but typically they fit into two categories, green and dry onions. This post discusses the dry onions (red onions, yellow onions, and white onions). Although there are many types of each of these dry onions, the general rules for them are as follows.
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All about Watercress

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My first memories of watercress are at my grandma’s house. I was spending the evening with her after elementary school and she gave me a sandwich with a stringy, small-leaf herb packed between the sandwich meat and bread. I didn’t know my herbs back then and thought she had packed it full of sprouts. It was quite a shock when I took a hefty bite full of fresh watercress and its vibrant flavor filled my mouth.
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What is Kosher Salt, and What is It Used For?

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The other day I posted a short article regarding the differences between Sea Salt and regular Table Salt, but I didn’t mention Kosher salt. And why didn’t I mention kosher salt? There’s a deep physiological reason behind this, so think deeply. Have you figured it out yet? The truth is, I just didn’t feel like writing any more about salt, so I stopped after sea salt and table salt. But, one of my co-workers caught me on it… so now here’s a post dedicated especially to my coworker (you know who you are). So, what is kosher salt and what is it used for?
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Fun St. Patrick’s Day Green Food Ideas

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Whenver St. Patrick’s day rolls around, inevitably I start thinking of Dr. Seuss’s book, “Green Eggs and Ham.” I’ve always loved that book; Sam-I-am is hilarious trying to get the other guy to eat the colored food. I’m sure Dr. Seuss had feeding kids in mind when writing it. But just taste it! Okay, back to food coloring…I always start experimenting with food coloring around the holidays, and sometimes end up with some pretty weird stuff, luckily though, it’s always edible and the kids still eat it.

Seeing how today is Saint Patrick’s Day, I decided I’d write down some ideas for you to mix up your food routine. Keep in mind that the possibilities are endless. I’ve taken the time to just write out a few. Think GREEN with everything you make and you’re well on your way to a festive St. Patrick’s Day meal.
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