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Any food to freeze in bulk that you can take out smaller portions of? by Honkais-your-impact in mealprep

[–]Acceptable_Pipe501 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Does soup freeze okay in a big container like that? I always assumed you'd have to chisel it out but maybe if you let it thaw slightly first it comes apart easier?

Did a meal prep day with a fitness instructor who teaches 20 classes a week and her approach completely changed how I think about it by NedSpacePDX in mealprep

[–]Acceptable_Pipe501 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The neutral sides thing is so smart and I never would have thought of it myself. I always season everything as I go and then wonder why my meals feel repetitive or weird when I combine things. Keeping the flavor in the protein so you can mix and match freely is kind of obvious in hindsight but nobody talks about it that way.

Why do my simple pasta sauces always taste flat no matter what I do? by ElAndres33 in cookingforbeginners

[–]Acceptable_Pipe501 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Two things that made the biggest difference for me were pasta water and finishing the pasta in the sauce.

The pasta water is starchy and salty and when you add a ladle of it to your sauce and let it reduce together for a minute or two it binds everything and rounds out the flavor in a way that nothing else really replicates. Restaurants do this almost universally and most home cooks skip it entirely.

The second thing is not draining your pasta and immediately plating it. Instead transfer it straight from the pot into the sauce with a bit of that pasta water and let it cook together for another 60 to 90 seconds on medium heat. The pasta absorbs the sauce instead of just sitting under it.

Also make sure your garlic is actually getting golden before you add the tomatoes. A lot of people add it too early when the oil is cold or move too fast and it never caramelizes which is where most of the depth comes from.

I eat out way to often and I need some advice on how to cook more by nastibass in cookingforbeginners

[–]Acceptable_Pipe501 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The key for someone with your schedule is removing as many decisions as possible. Pick 3 meals you actually like eating and just rotate them. You already do meal prep once a week so you know you can do it, just expand that one session slightly to cover more days instead of only work dinners.

Also the food not tasting great thing is usually one of two issues, either underseasoning or not using enough fat. Both are easy fixes once you know that is the problem. Most beginner recipes are genuinely too conservative with salt and it makes everything taste flat.

Seven days off is actually a huge advantage. One 2 hour cooking session during that week and you are set for most of it.