I'm sauteing asparagus, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, some boneless, skinless chicken breast, some halibut. That's about it; that's all I'm allowed. That's what's legal for me to saute.
Steaming offers no opportunity for either seasoning or developing the brown, crisp textures that sauteing and roasting afford.
I've always liked root vegetables because most of them have a natural sweetness. They have a high fructose content, especially when you cook them and caramelize them in a saute pan. Or you can take a turnip and cook it slowly in the oven until it's browned, and it takes on a kind of sweetness. These vegetables are pretty easy to like.
I use my Le Creuset dutch oven for everything you can think of. I even fry eggs in it.
I've never cooked. I can't do much more in the kitchen than make a cup of tea and some toast.
In certain European cuisines, vegetables are cooked a long time. I take the term 'al dente' and use it for vegetables.
Most fish require a short cooking time, but cephalopods are the exception to this fishy rule. As with some cuts of larger land beasts, the longer they're cooked, the more tender they get.
There are two proper ways to use garlic: pounding and blooming. Neither involves a press, which is little more than a torture device for a beloved ingredient, smushing it up into watery squiggles of inconsistent size that will never cook evenly or vanish into a vinaigrette. If you have one, throw it away!
I use vinegars to deglaze saute pans for sublime sauces.
I use coconut oil in my cooking and as a beauty product. It's great for sauteing and baking and makes the best moisturizer and hair treatment. I'm coconut-oil obsessed!
Cook ingredients that you are used to cooking by other techniques, such as fish, chicken, or hamburgers. In other words be comfortable with the ingredients you are using.
Brussels sprouts are really quite versatile.
When summer squash is freshly picked, all it needs is a little olive oil, salt, pepper, and maybe a hit of lemon juice.
If you're going to saute something, lightly spray olive oil in the pan or on veggies before you serve them. It adds a nice flavor. We grill a lot, so I'll use a little on my corn or my shrimp.
I like to abide by the seasons and let the natural flavor in food speak for itself. I use quick cooking techniques of high heat with very little fat, such as quick saute or wok stir-frying.
With wok cooking, you chop things up into little pieces for maximum surface area, so they can cook in minutes, if not seconds. Sauteing is energy efficient; baking is not.
I prepare my style of biriyani by sauting sliced onion, tomato, green chilli, ginger garlic and add required water and rice. If I end up adding a tad too much of salt, I used to add curd to balance it.
Brussels sprouts are misunderstood - probably because most people don't know how to cook them properly.
