These mistakes are easily avoidable, so here’s a few tips to help you make the perfect stir–fry every single time!

Your Wok Should Be Smoking Hot

In order to make a good stir-fry, you really need an extremely hot wok.

Don’t Cook Ice–Cold Meat

If you add cold meat it will instantly cool off your wok, so in order to avoid this, let the meat sit out at room temperature for 20 mins before you cook it. Use those 20 mins to marinate the meat with soy sauce and a little bit of wine.

Cook the Vegetables Next

After you finish cooking the meat, heat up the wok again and prepare it for vegetables by adding some fresh oil and seasonings. Some ingredients like green beans, carrots, and broccoli need extra cooking time, so you should give them that in order to cook everything perfectly.

The post Tips for Cooking the Perfect Stir–Fry appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

Choose the Marinade

To get the most flavorful chicken, it’s best to marinate your chicken the night before you plan to grill it. A basic marinade would contain an acid, a key seasoning, a fat, a sweet element, and, of course, salt.

Make Sure Your Grill is Hot

Grills work best when they’re really, really hot. So crank the heat up and, just as you would with a skillet, heat the grill up before adding the chicken.

Make Sure the Chicken is at Room Temperature

Cold chicken breasts will end up chewy and tough when you place them on the hot grill. So it’s better to take the chicken out of the refrigerator while you heat your grill up.

Finally, Don’t Fuss With the Chicken!

When it’s time to start, just take the chicken out of the marinade and place it on your grill. Grill for about 10 minutes each side and only flip it once to make sure it comes out juicy.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bj3YSzhHGMi/?tagged=grillingchicken

The post Here’s How to Grill Chicken Perfectly appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BlYdsAJhXcj/?tagged=melons

 Cut off watermelon ends

There’s nothing wrong with cutting off the watermelon ends. You can use those ends later, but now you are able to start peeling the watermelon. A large knife is key because you need a certain amount of help to make it through the heavy peel on most watermelons.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Blk-tbFl3LL/?tagged=melons

Stand the watermelon on its end to peel

Now you need to put the watermelon on its end and then you can start peeling it. This step achieves two goals: first, the once–round watermelon is not unstable anymore; second, you can easily see where the tough peel ends.

Cut off all of the peel

Now you are ready to cut off all of the peel and get to the sweet, juicy part of the watermelon that you’ll enjoy eating later. If you missed any bits of peel or white rind anywhere trim it off.

Peeled watermelon to slice or chop

And in the end, you have a fully peeled watermelon. Some people will eat as it is, and some will use it to make some other more complex meal. You can do as you wish and it’s the most important that you enjoy eating.

The post The Most Simple Way To Peel Watermelons appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

You only make use of the highest power setting

Only using the highest power setting to cook or heat up your food more often than not leads to uneven cooking/heating. Many think that using the highest setting means a speedy heating/cooking process but that’s simply not true. It’s actually important to change the power setting of your microwave the same way you would change your oven’s temperature. Try using a mid-heat setting and keep the food in the microwave for longer so it will cook at an even pace. This is are to bring you better results.

You only use square containers

Although most microwave-safe containers are square-shaped, it’s better to use round containers when heating food in the microwave. This will ensure that you heat or cook your food evenly. In general you should avoid heating food in plastic containers as the high temperatures can make the plastic melt and emit chemicals. Try using glass containers instead. If you still opt for plastic, make sure the containers are microwave-safe.

You add salt to the food too early

Apparently, when you do this, the salt attracts the heat generated by the microwave. This, in turn, would make the surface of your food dry.

You cover the food with plastic wrap

Just like non-microwave-safe plastic containers, plastic wrap contains harmful chemicals. If you want to cover the food to prevent a mess, use the container’s top or a moist paper towel.

The post Are You Using Your Microwave Right? appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

Ingredients

To make your meatloaf you’ll need a cup of dry bread crumbs, 2 tablespoons of brown sugar and ketchup that will be 1/3 of a cup. You should also get a cup of milk, 2 tablespoons of mustard, one egg, half a pound of ground beef and a chopped onion.

Preparation

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F, then in a big bowl mix your ground beef with the bread crumbs, chopped onion, egg, and milk. After adding a little salt and pepper to the mix, lightly grease a loaf pan and pour the mixture the inside.

You can now get a different bowl to mix together the mustard, ketchup, and sugar. Once it’s well mixed pour it on the meatloaf mixture and let it bake for an hour.

Let it cool but make sure to god in while its still hot. Enjoy!

The post This Meatloaf Recipe Will Have You Missing Home appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

Bread doesn’t belong in the fridge

Don’t keep your bread in the fridge unless there are clear instructions on the packaging saying that you should refrigerate your bread.

Bread belongs in a breadbox

Bread-boxes are designed to allow a certain amount of air to enter the bread that will keep it soft on the inside and crusty on the exterior. Storing your bread in a breadbox is an efficient way to keep it fresh but only if you’re planning on eating it in a short time-frame.

Wrap it up

Keeping your bread at room temperature in foil wrapping can be a good idea too. However, you shouldn’t let it stay for too long unless you like your bread with a soggy crust.

Freeze it

Freezing your bread is the best way to keep it fresh for a long time, for up to 2 months in fact. All you need to do is slice it, pack it in air-tight freezer bags and put it in the freezer. If your bread is homemade you must let it cool first before freezing it.

The post Here’s How to Keep Bread Fresh For Longer appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

Start with fresh ears

First you should look for ears of corn with firm, fresh husks that are tightly attached to the corn and shuck them first.

Check the kernels

If it’s possible, you should see if the kernels look bright, smooth and plump.

Separate the husks at the top

You need to go to the top of the ear, and then you need to separate the silk in half and start pulling.

Pull husks down

In order to reveal the cob full of kernels, pull the hunk of husks all the way down. Starting back at the top where the silk tassels are, pull down another section of husks.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BlixN5XAHYk/?tagged=cornsilk

Rip off husks

Once all the husks are pulled back to reveal the ear of corn kernels underneath, just rip off the husks from the cob.

Remove any silk

There may be some strands of silk on the kernels and you don’t want to eat them so just remove them.

Now you are ready to enjoy your corn in any way you like!

The post 7 Easy Steps To Shuck Corns appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

Tomato and garlic chicken casserole

Ingredients

• 8 chicken thighs, skin on
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 20 oz. can chopped tomatoes
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 2 sprigs thyme

Method

• Dry thighs and season well. Brown them on both sides in a large pan. Set aside.
• Cook garlic on medium heat for one minute. Add tomatoes, stock and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, add thyme, stir well, and simmer for 30 minutes until chicken is tender.
• Serve over rice or orzo.

Really crispy lemony chicken

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 8 chicken thighs, seasoned with salt & pepper
• Rind of half a preserved lemon, finely chopped
• Lemon wedges for serving

Method

1. Add oil to a large, heavy skillet on medium heat.
2. Place the oil into a large, heavy skillet over medium heat.
3. Add thighs, skin down.
4. Cook without moving them for 15 to 30 minutes until skin is deep golden and fat is rendered.
5. Turn thighs and stir lemon rind into the surrounding fat.
6. Cook about 15 minutes more. Serve thighs and pan drippings with lemon wedges

The post 2 Wonderful Recipes for Chicken Thighs appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BkkGFksDh9z/?hl=en&tagged=avocados

So it’s refreshing to find out that there’s a safer way of cutting an avocado that as a bonus also results in perfect slices every time. Next time you find yourself ready to deal with a ripe avocado (yes, we know finding a ripe one can be tricky), try this handy tip. Instead of cutting the avocado in half along its length, halve it crosswise using a sharp knife.

This means you’re halving it exactly where the pit is. Now if your avocado is indeed ripe, you simply need to squeeze the half that contains the pit, and the pit with drop straight out. No more using a knife to get the pit out and ending up cutting yourself.

Now for the dicing and slicing. You can either use your knife to score the avocado into squares and then scooping it out with a spoon or neat rings/slices, use your spoon to loosen skin and scoop out the avocado whole. Place flat side down on cutting board and slice into half-moons.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BmmGBkXl66p/?tagged=avocado

The post The absolute best way to slice an avocado appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

Prep your berries – rinse your strawberries gently and pat dry (make sure they are completely dry).

Melt you chocolate – roughly chop 4 ounces of semisweet chocolate. Place chocolate in a pan over low heat, stirring frequently. You can also melt your chocolate in the microwave, heating it up in 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until melted and smooth.

Dip the strawberries – hold the strawberry by the stem and dip in the melted chocolate, letting the chocolate excess drip off. Transfer the dipped strawberries onto your baking sheet lined with wax paper.

Chill the strawberries – refrigerate the strawberries until the chocolate is firm (this will take at least 30 minutes). They will keep up like that for up to 3 days, covered in the refrigerator.

And there it is, just a perfect dessert for someone you love!

The post There’s No Resisting These Chocolate Covered Strawberries appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

These mistakes are easily avoidable, so here’s a few tips to help you make the perfect stir–fry every single time!

Your Wok Should Be Smoking Hot

In order to make a good stir-fry, you really need an extremely hot wok.

Don’t Cook Ice–Cold Meat

If you add cold meat it will instantly cool off your wok, so in order to avoid this, let the meat sit out at room temperature for 20 mins before you cook it. Use those 20 mins to marinate the meat with soy sauce and a little bit of wine.

Cook the Vegetables Next

After you finish cooking the meat, heat up the wok again and prepare it for vegetables by adding some fresh oil and seasonings. Some ingredients like green beans, carrots, and broccoli need extra cooking time, so you should give them that in order to cook everything perfectly.

The post Tips for Cooking the Perfect Stir–Fry appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

Choose the Marinade

To get the most flavorful chicken, it’s best to marinate your chicken the night before you plan to grill it. A basic marinade would contain an acid, a key seasoning, a fat, a sweet element, and, of course, salt.

Make Sure Your Grill is Hot

Grills work best when they’re really, really hot. So crank the heat up and, just as you would with a skillet, heat the grill up before adding the chicken.

Make Sure the Chicken is at Room Temperature

Cold chicken breasts will end up chewy and tough when you place them on the hot grill. So it’s better to take the chicken out of the refrigerator while you heat your grill up.

Finally, Don’t Fuss With the Chicken!

When it’s time to start, just take the chicken out of the marinade and place it on your grill. Grill for about 10 minutes each side and only flip it once to make sure it comes out juicy.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bj3YSzhHGMi/?tagged=grillingchicken

The post Here’s How to Grill Chicken Perfectly appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BlYdsAJhXcj/?tagged=melons

 Cut off watermelon ends

There’s nothing wrong with cutting off the watermelon ends. You can use those ends later, but now you are able to start peeling the watermelon. A large knife is key because you need a certain amount of help to make it through the heavy peel on most watermelons.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Blk-tbFl3LL/?tagged=melons

Stand the watermelon on its end to peel

Now you need to put the watermelon on its end and then you can start peeling it. This step achieves two goals: first, the once–round watermelon is not unstable anymore; second, you can easily see where the tough peel ends.

Cut off all of the peel

Now you are ready to cut off all of the peel and get to the sweet, juicy part of the watermelon that you’ll enjoy eating later. If you missed any bits of peel or white rind anywhere trim it off.

Peeled watermelon to slice or chop

And in the end, you have a fully peeled watermelon. Some people will eat as it is, and some will use it to make some other more complex meal. You can do as you wish and it’s the most important that you enjoy eating.

The post The Most Simple Way To Peel Watermelons appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

You only make use of the highest power setting

Only using the highest power setting to cook or heat up your food more often than not leads to uneven cooking/heating. Many think that using the highest setting means a speedy heating/cooking process but that’s simply not true. It’s actually important to change the power setting of your microwave the same way you would change your oven’s temperature. Try using a mid-heat setting and keep the food in the microwave for longer so it will cook at an even pace. This is are to bring you better results.

You only use square containers

Although most microwave-safe containers are square-shaped, it’s better to use round containers when heating food in the microwave. This will ensure that you heat or cook your food evenly. In general you should avoid heating food in plastic containers as the high temperatures can make the plastic melt and emit chemicals. Try using glass containers instead. If you still opt for plastic, make sure the containers are microwave-safe.

You add salt to the food too early

Apparently, when you do this, the salt attracts the heat generated by the microwave. This, in turn, would make the surface of your food dry.

You cover the food with plastic wrap

Just like non-microwave-safe plastic containers, plastic wrap contains harmful chemicals. If you want to cover the food to prevent a mess, use the container’s top or a moist paper towel.

The post Are You Using Your Microwave Right? appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

Ingredients

To make your meatloaf you’ll need a cup of dry bread crumbs, 2 tablespoons of brown sugar and ketchup that will be 1/3 of a cup. You should also get a cup of milk, 2 tablespoons of mustard, one egg, half a pound of ground beef and a chopped onion.

Preparation

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F, then in a big bowl mix your ground beef with the bread crumbs, chopped onion, egg, and milk. After adding a little salt and pepper to the mix, lightly grease a loaf pan and pour the mixture the inside.

You can now get a different bowl to mix together the mustard, ketchup, and sugar. Once it’s well mixed pour it on the meatloaf mixture and let it bake for an hour.

Let it cool but make sure to god in while its still hot. Enjoy!

The post This Meatloaf Recipe Will Have You Missing Home appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

Bread doesn’t belong in the fridge

Don’t keep your bread in the fridge unless there are clear instructions on the packaging saying that you should refrigerate your bread.

Bread belongs in a breadbox

Bread-boxes are designed to allow a certain amount of air to enter the bread that will keep it soft on the inside and crusty on the exterior. Storing your bread in a breadbox is an efficient way to keep it fresh but only if you’re planning on eating it in a short time-frame.

Wrap it up

Keeping your bread at room temperature in foil wrapping can be a good idea too. However, you shouldn’t let it stay for too long unless you like your bread with a soggy crust.

Freeze it

Freezing your bread is the best way to keep it fresh for a long time, for up to 2 months in fact. All you need to do is slice it, pack it in air-tight freezer bags and put it in the freezer. If your bread is homemade you must let it cool first before freezing it.

The post Here’s How to Keep Bread Fresh For Longer appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

Start with fresh ears

First you should look for ears of corn with firm, fresh husks that are tightly attached to the corn and shuck them first.

Check the kernels

If it’s possible, you should see if the kernels look bright, smooth and plump.

Separate the husks at the top

You need to go to the top of the ear, and then you need to separate the silk in half and start pulling.

Pull husks down

In order to reveal the cob full of kernels, pull the hunk of husks all the way down. Starting back at the top where the silk tassels are, pull down another section of husks.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BlixN5XAHYk/?tagged=cornsilk

Rip off husks

Once all the husks are pulled back to reveal the ear of corn kernels underneath, just rip off the husks from the cob.

Remove any silk

There may be some strands of silk on the kernels and you don’t want to eat them so just remove them.

Now you are ready to enjoy your corn in any way you like!

The post 7 Easy Steps To Shuck Corns appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

Tomato and garlic chicken casserole

Ingredients

• 8 chicken thighs, skin on
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 20 oz. can chopped tomatoes
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 2 sprigs thyme

Method

• Dry thighs and season well. Brown them on both sides in a large pan. Set aside.
• Cook garlic on medium heat for one minute. Add tomatoes, stock and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, add thyme, stir well, and simmer for 30 minutes until chicken is tender.
• Serve over rice or orzo.

Really crispy lemony chicken

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 8 chicken thighs, seasoned with salt & pepper
• Rind of half a preserved lemon, finely chopped
• Lemon wedges for serving

Method

1. Add oil to a large, heavy skillet on medium heat.
2. Place the oil into a large, heavy skillet over medium heat.
3. Add thighs, skin down.
4. Cook without moving them for 15 to 30 minutes until skin is deep golden and fat is rendered.
5. Turn thighs and stir lemon rind into the surrounding fat.
6. Cook about 15 minutes more. Serve thighs and pan drippings with lemon wedges

The post 2 Wonderful Recipes for Chicken Thighs appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BkkGFksDh9z/?hl=en&tagged=avocados

So it’s refreshing to find out that there’s a safer way of cutting an avocado that as a bonus also results in perfect slices every time. Next time you find yourself ready to deal with a ripe avocado (yes, we know finding a ripe one can be tricky), try this handy tip. Instead of cutting the avocado in half along its length, halve it crosswise using a sharp knife.

This means you’re halving it exactly where the pit is. Now if your avocado is indeed ripe, you simply need to squeeze the half that contains the pit, and the pit with drop straight out. No more using a knife to get the pit out and ending up cutting yourself.

Now for the dicing and slicing. You can either use your knife to score the avocado into squares and then scooping it out with a spoon or neat rings/slices, use your spoon to loosen skin and scoop out the avocado whole. Place flat side down on cutting board and slice into half-moons.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BmmGBkXl66p/?tagged=avocado

The post The absolute best way to slice an avocado appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.

Prep your berries – rinse your strawberries gently and pat dry (make sure they are completely dry).

Melt you chocolate – roughly chop 4 ounces of semisweet chocolate. Place chocolate in a pan over low heat, stirring frequently. You can also melt your chocolate in the microwave, heating it up in 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until melted and smooth.

Dip the strawberries – hold the strawberry by the stem and dip in the melted chocolate, letting the chocolate excess drip off. Transfer the dipped strawberries onto your baking sheet lined with wax paper.

Chill the strawberries – refrigerate the strawberries until the chocolate is firm (this will take at least 30 minutes). They will keep up like that for up to 3 days, covered in the refrigerator.

And there it is, just a perfect dessert for someone you love!

The post There’s No Resisting These Chocolate Covered Strawberries appeared first on foodisinthehouse.com.