How to Buy Ingredients & Cooking Tips

There are a few things to look for when buying fresh shrimp or prawns. Like any seafood, it should be as fresh as possible.

Coconut milk is derived from the meat of a mature coconut. Coconut milk is a common ingredient in many tropical cuisines, most notably those of Southeast Asia and is often used when making Thai curry.

All canned tomatoes are not created equal. Many cans contain preservatives and a lot of salt. Here we will show you how to choose the best canned tomatoes so you can enjoy the best tomato flavor.

Fresh garlic makes a difference, so don't just grab the first head of garlic you see at the supermarket. Here's what to look for when buying and prepping garlic for your favorite recipe.

Many gourmet salts are on the market these days. Kosher salt, sea salt, fleure de sel or grey salt, whether mined from the earth or harvested from the sea, can enhance the flavor of any dish. While table salt can bring out and accent the flavor of food, it's worth it to try a few others as they all have different qualities.

When homemade just isn't an option, there are plenty of things to consider when purchasing a commercial panang paste. You can still make a great curry recipe, but you'll just need to watch the heat.

Cornmeal is made from ground corn and is commonly known as polenta. Cornmeal comes in a variety of different grinds from fine to coarse. Finer cornmeal is typically used in recipes such as cornbread or corn muffins.

Buying and cutting up a whole beef tenderloin is a great way to save money. You can cut a steak to any thickness and also use the smaller, leftover pieces of beef to use in a stir fry.

When selecting a cut of steak such as beef tenderloin, the marbling is what you should be looking for. Marbling, as well as some fat, is what makes the cut of steak incredibly juicy.

Thai chili refers to any chili pepper commonly found in Thailand; however, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines all produce the same hot chilies.

This instructional cooking video on Choosing Premium Cuts of Steak, is part of the Rouxbe Cooking School.

This cooking video is taken from the lesson on
Beef | Premium Cuts of Steak.

This instructional cooking video on Choosing Salad Greens, is part of the Rouxbe Cooking School.

This cooking video is taken from the lesson on
Salad Greens | Selecting & Preparing.

This instructional cooking video on Choosing Tomatoes for Tomato Sauce, is part of the Rouxbe Cooking School.

This cooking video is taken from the lesson on
How to Make Tomato Sauce.

This instructional cooking video on Common Types of Rice, is part of the Rouxbe Cooking School.

This cooking video is taken from the lesson on
Rice Basics.

This instructional cooking video on The Quality of Extruded, Dried Pasta , is part of the Rouxbe Cooking School.

This cooking video is taken from the lesson on
How to Select Pasta.

Cauliflower is a member of the same family as cabbage and broccoli and is grown in quite a few colors. Here we show you how to buy and prepare cauliflower. It can be enjoyed raw or cooked in a variety of ways.

This video will show you how to buy and prepare one of the most delicious tropical fruits.

Many gourmet salts are on the market these days. Kosher salt, sea salt, fleure de sel or grey salt, whether mined from the earth or harvested from the sea, can enhance the flavor of any dish. While table salt can bring out and accent the flavor of food, it's worth it to try a few others as they all have different qualities.

Flanken or English cut beef ribs are both the same product. They are just cut differently by your butcher. Any rib recipe you cook will benefit from either cut of meat.

Bok choy is loaded with vitamins and adds flavor and a crunchy texture to a variety of dishes. Popular in Chinese food, it can be added to almost any stir fry.

Chorizo often refers to fresh pork sausage that needs to be cooked; however, in Europe it is more frequently known as a fermented cured smoked sausage. Spanish chorizo and Portuguese chorizo get their distinctive smokiness and deep red color from dried smoked red peppers.

Eggs are extremely versatile and an indispensible ingredient in both culinary and pastry kitchens. Despite their importance in cooking, many people don’t know a lot about eggs.

In this lesson, you will learn about the anatomy of an egg. You will learn how to buy and properly store eggs and how to determine the freshness of eggs. You will also learn two basic ways to cook eggs: boiling and scrambling. Here you will learn how to properly cook eggs in water to achieve either a soft, medium or hard yolk. You will learn how to peel eggs and how to identify if an egg in its shell has been cooked or not. You will learn how to scramble eggs to achieve either small and creamy curds or large and fluffy curds. You will also learn how to season and finish eggs.

Whether you use eggs to make breakfast, a mid-day treat or dinner, with this lesson, you will not only know how to choose the best eggs for the foods you make, you will also be able to serve perfectly-cooked boiled and scrambled eggs every time.

Rice is the staple food for more than half of the world's population and is one of the oldest cultivated grains.

In this lesson, we will help you understand the basic anatomy of rice and how it is processed. You will also know how to identify different varieties of rice and how to store rice properly.

In the next lesson, we will teach you the first basic method for cooking rice.

All chefs and seasoned cooks make their own vinaigrettes and dressings. They are extremely easy to make and most importantly, the cook is in complete control of what goes into them. Most manufactured vinaigrettes and dressings contain a long list of unnatural ingredients and preservatives. When you learn the simple technique of making your own, you have the freedom to personalize the flavor by using fresh, quality ingredients.

In this lesson you will learn the difference between unstable and stable emulsions and the difference between vinaigrettes and dressings. We will teach you how to build a basic vinaigrette, using a variety of oils and acids. Once you learn how to make a basic vinaigrette, you will learn simple ways to flavor this kitchen staple. Finally, you will learn how to match vinaigrettes to various types of greens.

Vinaigrettes are multi-functional and should not be reserved just for salads. Whether you are marinating foods, dressing fish or shellfish, or if you want to add a punch of flavor to steamed vegetables or grains, vinaigrettes are an extremely easy way to expand your culinary repertoire.

One of the main reasons why high-end steak houses serve incredible steaks is because they know how to identify premium cuts of beef.

Before the cooking even starts, the first step in duplicating that restaurant-quality steak at home is to understand what you are buying and what to look for in a premium cut. Because there are so many different steaks available, identifying a quality cut can be an overwhelming experience; however, the good news is once you learn some very basic knowledge, it will be extremely easy to go to the market and spot a quality steak.

In this lesson, you will learn how to identify the most popular premium cuts of steak that are on the market. You will also learn about the importance of marbling…and how the type of aging impacts both the quality and cost of meat. You will also learn a few tips for how to choose the most appropriate steak to suit the type of meal you are making. Although many delicious steaks come from various parts of the steer, in this lesson, we are going to focus on the premium cuts of beef.

By learning how to choose premium steaks, not only will you be spending your money wisely but you will be well on your way to creating delicious, restaurant-quality steaks at home.

While there is a big difference between fresh, laminated, pasta and dried, extruded, pasta, contrary to popular belief, one is not necessarily better than the other. Both are appreciated for their unique qualities and are used for different purposes.

Another big misconception is that all pasta is made in the same manner and is sold either fresh or dried; however, this is not the case. Although they may contain the same ingredients, the difference lies in HOW the dough is formed into pasta. How pasta is manufactured will dramatically affect your pasta experience.

In this lesson, you will learn how both extruded and laminated pasta are made, the differences between them and when you might choose one over the other. You will also learn that regardless of the brand, there are visual clues you can look for when choosing a package of dried pasta or things to be aware of when you are purchasing fresh. By understanding how pasta is made and knowing how to identify quality pasta, you are guaranteed to have the best pasta eating experiences.

Dried beans, peas and lentils, otherwise known as legumes or pulses, are the seeds of mature, fresh beans that have been dried. One of the oldest cultivated crops, dried beans are an excellent source of protein, dietary fiber and complex carbohydrates. Legumes are a vital and healthy staple in many cuisines around the world.

Regardless of which type you choose, incorporating these highly nutritious and versatile beans into your regular diet is an easy and inexpensive way to expand your cooking repertoire.

In this lesson, you will learn how to buy and store dried beans. You will learn how to prepare them for cooking and the advantages of and the various methods in which to soak them. You will also learn how to properly cook and test beans for doneness.

Once you learn how to bring them to an edible state, which is extremely easy to do, you will learn simple ways to incorporate them into an endless number of dishes. They can be transformed into hearty and luscious soups or they can simply be added to dishes for texture and flavor. Beans also make great salads, sides and can also be pureed to make many delicious dips.

Fresh and crisp salad greens are a healthy and refreshing part of a balanced diet. These days, the markets are filled with an array of vibrant greens. One can literally make a unique salad every day of the week that will vary in color, composition and flavor. By using a variety of greens, salads will not only look visually stunning, but they will taste great.

In this lesson, you will learn how to choose and identify an assortment of salad greens. You will learn how to clean and refresh greens and how to dry and store them. You will also learn how to properly dress and toss a salad and how to combine greens in order to compose different salads.

Gone are the days of boring salads. By having a supply of clean, seasonal greens in the refrigerator, you will be inspired to put together a fresh, crisp and healthy salad on a regular basis. Whether served as a whole meal or a simple side, salads are easy to work into your cooking repertoire.

Vegetables grow in an array of colors - from beautiful white to vibrant green, bright orange and deep red. This is due to the presence of certain pigments in their cells.

In this lesson, you will learn about the different pigment categories and the things you need to keep in mind during cooking to preserve the optimal color and flavor.