CPA Richard Belott serves as the owner of Belott & Company in Chatham, New Jersey. For more than three decades, he has provided professionals with accounting, retirement, and tax services. Outside of work, Richard Belott maintains a fondness for cooking.
Regardless of age, there are basic cooking skills everyone should master so they are safe and enjoy their time in the kitchen. One of these skills is making stocks or broths. While store-made stocks and broths are readily available, homemade ones give cooks total control over sodium and fat amounts.
Another essential skill for cooks is chopping an onion. Recipes of varying complexity include the use of onions, so knowing how to cut one properly is a must. The process begins by chopping off the top of the onion and cutting the onion in half. The root end must remain on. After the skin is fully peeled off the onion, make three horizontal cuts, followed by several vertical cuts that do not cross through the root. Next, chop downward through the length of the onion half.
Making homemade salad dressings can seem complicated, but it’s not. A simple vinaigrette lets cooks dress their salad without relying on store-bought bottles. It’s healthier and grants cooks more control over how their salads turn out.
Cooks should also know about cooking pasta properly. Great pasta requires the water to be boiled before the pasta is added. It also requires a hefty amount of salt. Before adding the pasta, place a large amount of salt in the water to guarantee good flavor. After this, the water must return to a rolling boil before the pasta is added and cooked according to the package.
Richard Belott 