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What’s Cookin’?
Over the course of human history, people throughout the world have developed many methods for cooking the same ingredients to create varying textures and flavors. Here are ten techniques that have been passed down through generations of cooks, making food preparation today an edible history of art and science.

BASTE:
When you baste something, you spoon or brush it with melted fat, wine, broth or its own cooking juices while it cooks. Basting prevents the dish from drying out and adds color and flavor.

BRAISE:
When you braise something – usually meat – you cover it tightly and cook it in a small amount of liquid at low heat over a long time. The long, slow heating breaks down meat fibers, making the meat very tender. The liquid keeps the meat moist and can be used as a sauce.

BROIL:
Broiling food means putting it directly above or below a heat source. Food can be broiled in an oven, on a grill or on a rotisserie or spit. Broiling allows fat to drip off foods as they cook, and often “browns” the foods’ surfaces.

CARAMELIZE:
Caramelizing is the process of heating sugar until it liquefies and becomes a syrup. Fruits and vegetables containing natural sugars caramelize when sautéed, roasted or grilled. Caramelizing gives food a golden glaze.

DREDGE:
To dredge food is to lightly coat it with flour or breadcrumbs before frying. After cooking, the coating gives food a brown color and crunchy outer texture. For instance, fried chicken is dredged before it is submerged in boiling oil.

EMULSIFY:
Emulsification results from pouring two ingredients together slowly while whisking them rapidly so they combine into one smooth substance. An example of an emulsified food is mayonnaise – a combination of oil and eggs.

KNEAD:
Kneading is mixing and working dough into a smooth, elastic consistency. The main purpose of kneading is to distribute gas bubbles, formed by an ingredient called a leavener – like yeast – so the dough will rise while baking.

MARINATE:
When you marinate a food, you soak it in a seasoned liquid before you cook it. This process tenderizes meat and flavors both meat and vegetables. When fruits processed this way, it’s called “macerating.”

POACH:
To poach a food means to simmer it in a liquid just below the boiling point. The amount of time and liquid needed to poach depends upon the type of food.

SAUTÉ:
To sauté a food, you heat fat, butter or oil in a pan over high heat, then add and cook food, usually stirring it until it is browned.

Recipe for Success

• Help out! When your parents are cooking, ask to assist. Or, if you know someone who cooks a lot, or cooks something you especially like to eat, ask to help out the next time he or she prepares a meal. Watch the cook’s tricks and techniques. Ask questions and take notes.
• Be careful. Following directions is especially important when you’re just starting out, and you must be careful in a kitchen so that you don’t risk burning or cutting yourself – or anyone else!
• Ask a trusted adult to help pick a recipe that you can prepare together. Ask your teacher to design a cooking activity for your classroom. Organize a bake sale to raise money for your school, club or band.
• Be adventurous! Try new foods, herbs and spices. This will help prepare you to mix flavors and textures and to invent new dishes.
  Read and research different types of food and styles of cooking.
• There are hundreds of cookbooks and websites dealing with foods from foreign countries or from your own backyard. Learn everything you can about ingredients, recipes and menus from your local farmer or from halfway around the world.
• Search on the Internet under keywords COOKING FOR KIDS, RECIPES FOR KIDS, COOKING CONTESTS FOR KIDS, COOKING TIPS FOR KIDS, COOKING CLASSES FOR KIDS.
• If you have a television, look for cooking programs on public broadcasting or cable networks – you can learn from famous chefs in the comfort of your own home.
• Eat at restaurants whenever you can!

Eggcellent
With an adult to help, head into the kitchen and get ready to cook. You are going to cook three eggs in three different ways.

Hard Boiled Egg:

1. Put enough water in a pot so that an egg could be completely submerged without hitting the bottom.
2. Place the pot on a stovetop burner on high heat until the water boils.
3. Turn down the temperature to medium and carefully place an egg in the boiling water.
4. Let it cook on medium heat for 15 minutes.
5. Turn off the stovetop.
6. Drain the water and run the egg under cold water until it’s cool.
7. Crack and peel off the shell until it is completely removed.
8. Put the egg aside and move on to your next style of egg preparation.

Scrambled Egg:

1. Crack an egg into a bowl.
2. With a fork, break the yolk and whisk the white and the yolk together until they are completely mixed and frothy.
3. Place a pat of butter in a small pan and place the pan on the stovetop burner on medium heat.
4. Spread the melting butter until it covers the cooking surface of the pan.
5. Pour the mixed egg into the pan.
6. Stir the egg in the pan as it’s cooking.
7. When the egg is no longer runny, turn off the burner.
8. Remove the egg from the pan onto a plate.
9. Move on to your next style of egg preparation.

Sunny-Side-Up Egg:

1. Place a pat of butter in a small pan and place the pan on the stovetop burner on low heat.
2. Spread the melting butter until it covers the cooking surface of the pan.
3. Crack an egg over the cooking surface, being careful not to break the yolk.
4. Let the egg fry in the pan until the white of the egg is solid on top.
5. Turn off the burner.
6. Remove the egg from the pan with a spatula, being careful not to break the yolk, and place the egg on a plate.

You now have three different dishes made from the same basic ingredient. Take one bite of each and – using a notepad and pen – describe how they look on the plate, taste and feel in your mouth.

What’s the same about them? What’s different? Do you know what function the butter served? Do you like the eggs? Which is your favorite of the three styles of preparation? Describe as many details as you can about both the cooking process and the finished product. Draw pictures of the three different eggs.

Use this notepad to start your own food journal. You can use your food journal to keep track of dishes you enjoy at restaurants, recipes you create, ingredients you want to try and more. 

Q. What’s challenging about creating a menu?

Helen B. was a chef de cuisine, kitchen manager and pastry chef in San Francisco for more than 5 years. She says:

Creating a menu is a balancing act. Rather like an actor or a musician, a chef is a performer who is cooking for an audience; chefs need to keep in mind the audience, or patrons, they are cooking for. Customers have varied tastes and desires, so a menu must offer a variety of dishes to accommodate their needs. The menu needs to offer options for vegetarians, for people who are watching their fat intake, as well as people who love meat and rich sauces.

Another challenge to creating a menu is working with the seasons. Different types of fresh produce are available – depending on the season. Cooking with seasonal ingredients at their peak ensures quality and freshness.

Also, some dishes are more appealing in warm weather, while others taste better when it’s cold. Not many people would want to eat a hearty dish of braised lamb, mashed potatoes and roasted root vegetables on a ninety-degree summer day, even if the air-conditioning was on full blast. In the winter, that’d be a great, filling meal of “comfort” foods.