Cooking fails and how to fix them
Let’s face it- if you have cooked or baked before, there has likely been a “fail” or time when things didn’t go according to plan. We’ve outline five common cooking and baking fails when using Ontario grains, and ways to fix them. Bonus: be sure to read through to check out some of our favourite good grain recipes.
Fail #1: flat cookies
The BEST part about baking cookies is eating delicious, fluffy cookies. There is always a debate over what is better: chewy or crunchy cookies, but most people can probably agree – flat cookies are not the way to go.
To make sure your cookies don’t fall flat, chill your cookie dough in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before baking. This allows the butter to harden again so when baking, the butter doesn’t dispense too quickly.
Use this trick while making our Homemade chocolate chip cookies! (include this recipe image below before next fail).
Fail #2: wrong tofu
Tofu can be tricky, and its can be pretty easy to fail when using this protein in your meals! For success make sure you are using the right kind of tofu: there is silken and regular. Silken tends to undrained and has more water in the packaging and best used for blended foods like our Berry fresh smoothie. Regular tofu is pressed with less water and a spongy texture. Use this type of tofu when your making dishes like Tofu soba noodles or a Charred tofu and barley bowl. For more common mistakes when cooking tofu, and solutions click here!
Fail #3: texture oatmeal
An oat-based breakfast is an oat-standing way to start your day! Oatmeal can be incredibly filling and is full of fibre, but with these tips you can make sure you’re having the best oatmeal.
Oatmeal can have either a creamy or a ticker texture- and the way you cook oatmeal while impact the oatmeal texture you get. If you prefer creamy oatmeal, be sure to add your oats after your liquid (milk or water) has come to a boil. If you prefer a ticker consistency, add the oats into the liquid before placing on heat.
Stirring oats as they cook can also impact your oatmeal texture- stirring frequently to help the oats release their starches to add to your creamy texture or stirring every so often to help them keep their shape and stay thick. Try these tips out the next time you make Pumpkin spice oatmeal. (include this recipe image below before next fail).
Fail #4: crumbly cornbread
Cornbread is delicious – its great as a muffin, baked in a skillet and even makes a savoury stuffing for holiday meals! But, sometimes our best cornbread recipes could turn out crumbling or falling apart as we try to eat it. The most common reason for this, is your cornbread is too dry – you either using too much corn flour in your recipe or not enough oil or butter. Try adding one tablespoon of extra butter or vegetable to your recipe to help keep your cornbread moist and help it stay together.
Fail #5: mushy barley
Soups are so versatile for many families. They can be made and frozen ahead of time, can easily cook in a slow cooker all day, and use up many ingredeitns in your fridge and pantry! A Beef abrley soup is a great meal idea that is high in fibre and taste delicious. Some folks have meniotend that when cooking their barley soups- they barley grains end up mushy.
To overcome this, first check which barley you are using, and if you presoak them. Pearl barley normally does not need to be presoak, whereas pot barley does. Make sure you choose pearl barley for your soup recipes – it will cook as the soup simmers and doesn’t require extra liquid to soften the grains. Some people have also said they precook their barley and then once the soup is cooked, they then add the barley as they go to enjoy it. This prevents the barley from absorbing too much liquid ahead of time, and becoming mushy.
These are just five cooking fails using grains with some easy-to-follow solutions. What’s your favourite hack to making the best grain foods?
