How to cook like a pro
From shucking oysters and de-pipping pomegranates to sharpening a knife faster than
Gordon Ramsay can say the F-word, the Taste team will show you how to master the
finer tricks of the chef's trade. Want to know how to do something?
Email us and we'll answer it here.
Coffee with a conscience
The next time you're ordering your favourite morning cappuccino, spare a thought for the planet. Here's why.
Use verjuice
Verjuice is the juice of unripe grapes. Its gentle tartness was used for flavouring as early as the Middle Ages. It was first made from other unripe fruits such as sour plums, gooseberries, sour crab apples and even sorrel and cress before grapes were used.
It was Maggie Beer, the respected Australian cook and food writer who brought verjuice to the modern table.
A glut of unsold grapes in 1984 prompted the idea. She used it at her restaurant in Barossa Valley, but by 1996 the product was sold internationally. Today there are excellent local labels available.
- Use verjuice instead of lemon juice or vinegar
- In salad dressings
- In marinades
- To deglaze a pan of sauteed seafood
- Pour over a roasted chicken towards the end of cooking
- Spoon over roated beetroot
- Moisten grilled tomatoes
- Dress grilled fish
conversion table
½ t = 2 ml
1 t = 5 ml
1 T = 15 ml
½ cup = 125 ml
1 cup = 250 ml
Fahrenheit - Celsius
Subtract 32, then multiply by 0.56
Celsius - Fahrenheit
Multiply by 1.8, then add 32
