Holiday Cooking Tips

Holiday is similar with eating with family, enjoy dinner together and share joyful time with all friends, family, and relations. Cooking is one thing that can be shared with love with others at holiday. These are a couple tips of cooking tips for holiday :

Prepare for your ingredients
When you want to cook for a special day, make sure to prepare all of your ingredients ( chopped, sliced, measured ) according to the recipe. So on the day you can concentrate on preparing the recipe.

Saving Time

1. Bake desserts, cookies and dinner rolls a few weeks ahead and freeze.
2. Look for ready-to-serve salad mixes that include baby lettuce and other greens—great not just for salads but also as a multi-colored garnish.
3. Set the table the night before.

Bit and Bobs About Turkey

• When choosing a turkey, buy 1-1/2 pounds of turkey per person. It's enough for the meal, plus a little left over for the prized turkey sandwich the day after.
• When thawing, Allow yourself about 24 hours per five pounds of turkey when thawing in the fridge.
• Be sure to use cold water to submerge and change it every 30 minutes. Allow about 30 minutes per pound to thaw.
• When storing turkey leftovers, remove all turkey from breast, legs and thighs, discard bones. Wrap well and refrigerate for up to four days.

Bit and Bobs About Ham

• When choosing a ham, buy about 3/4 pound of ham per person for a bone-in ham, and 1/2 pound per person for a boneless ham.
• If desired, apply a sugar-based glaze during the last 20-30 minutes that the ham is in the oven to avoid burning. A jar of your favorite jelly (apple, jalapeño, currant) makes an easy and delicious glaze.
• If you're cooking a bone-in, skin-on ham, score the thick fat layer before roasting. The scored surface will brown beautifully in the oven, and the fat adds extra flavor.

Handling Leftovers

• Clear the table immediately after dinner and refrigerate all perishable leftovers promptly.
• Turkey and stuffing should not be stored together. Completely remove all stuffing from turkey and wrap and refrigerate separately.
• Put leftover stuffing in smaller container, cover and refrigerate immediately. Use within 2 days.