Simple ways to fix mishaps and blunders in the kitchen.
Kitchen blunders: They happen to the best chefs in town and to the newbie home cook. While they may take the wind right out of your sails, the occasional goof doesn’t have to be a complete disaster. Whether it’s a burned cake bottom, too much spice in the sauce, or a charcoal-like layer of gook stuck to the frying pan, local professionals have had their share of kitchen dilemmas, which they’ve overcome thanks to some simple techniques learned along the way. Fortunately, they’ve shared their wisdom with us.
Charred Baked Goods
There’s nothing quite like the smell of a cake baking in the oven. That is, until it’s been in too long and the scent of it burning wafts through the air like a gut punch to the nostrils. Luckily, chef Lara Ritchie of Nothing To It! Culinary Center in Reno has great advice for cake baking gone wrong.
“Once the cake has cooled, put it in the fridge to firm up. Then cut the burnt part off,” she says.
Then comes the hard part: frosting the darn thing. Ritchie suggests spreading a thin layer of frosting over the area of cake that has been removed and placing it in the freezer to harden.
“That thin layer of frozen frosting will keep you from getting cake crumbs in the frosting. Or cut the cake into cubes and make a parfait with it,” she says.
Too Much Spice, Not So Nice
A heavy hand in the salt or spice department can be combatted, most of the time. Ritchie notes that it really depends on the dish.
“If it’s a sauce, try to add a bit of acid with citrus. If it’s a piece of protein, like chicken breast, add a sauce to it,” she says. “If it’s overly spicy and it’s a sauce consistency, you will end up changing the texture of the sauce if you add more liquid. Your best bet is to add a little coconut milk or heavy cream to tone down the heat.”
Scorched Cookware
Cynthia Ferris-Bennett, owner of Sierra Chef in Genoa, has remedied her fair share of blackened pans.
“I don’t know what it is with me and rice, but I end up burning the pan every time I cook it!” she exclaims.
Ferris-Bennett’s remedy is to add enough water to the pan to cover the burned area with a squirt of dish soap and a sprinkle of baking soda into the pan, then bring it to a boil. Let it boil for one minute, then remove from the heat and pour the water down the sink. At that point, the burned remnants should wipe off easily.
Safety and Tasting Are Key
Many mistakes in the kitchen come from unsafe cooking practices. In her cooking school, Ferris-Bennett urges safety above all else.
“One of the biggest blunders is getting injured,” she says. “It’s really about being aware and paying attention. Knowing how to use your tools properly. Kitchen Aide mixers can catch your hair in a second. Or a dull knife will almost always lead to a cut finger. Nobody wants a meal ruined because the cook got hurt.”
Aside from safety, she urges home chefs to know the recipes they intend to make and taste dishes as they are cooking.
“One of the biggest mistakes people make is not tasting what they are making,” Ferris-Bennett says. “If you catch mistakes early on, you can take the steps to make them better, and serve a delicious dish that you’re proud of.”
The first Thanksgiving she hosted for her in-laws and grandparents, writer Heidi Bethel completely burned the bread. Scorched. That day her grandmother taught her the scrape-and-serve-with-extra-butter technique. No one was any the wiser.
