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Kitchen Myths
Facts and fiction about food and cooking
Category Archives: Uncategorized
Cold egg/hot water is why boiled eggs crack
Posted by on September 16, 2023
Many people hard-cook eggs by putting them in already-boiling water. The temperature shock, it is claimed, causes the shell to expand quickly and crack, with stringy egg white leaking out. But while this seems to make sense, it is not true.
First of all, an expanding shell in not likely to crack–a shrinking shell is. In this case, an egg might crack when it is done cooking and is transferred from the boiling water to the cold. Of course, by this time, cracks do not matter.
iI one saw Julia Child, on her show, demonstrate this. She took a bunch of raw eggs from an ice water bath directly into boiling water, and not one of them cracked. Pretty convincing!
So, why do some eggs crack? It seems to be two things. Some eggs already have invisible cracks in them from rough handling during production and shipping. These will indeed open up in hot water and release egg white. Also, rapidly boiling water will bounce the eggs around and cause new cracks. Thus, if you must boil eggs, use gently simmering water.
But the best way to cook “hard-boiled” eggs is, in my and many other cooks’ opinions, steaming. Please refer to this post.
Ripen tomatoes on a sunny windowsill
Posted by on April 3, 2021
This is a common belief but it is untrue–that not-yet-ripe tomatoes can be hurried to juicy perfection by a few days in the sun. Sunlight does not help and can in fact be harmful if the tomato gets too warm or suffers from sun scald. Sure, those pretty tomatoes look nice sitting on a windowsill, but there is a way to hurry ripening that actually works. Put the ‘maters in a sealed paper bag for a few days, ideally with a ripe banana.
Say what? You see, fruit (tomato is, technically, a fruit) naturally gives off ethylene gas as part of the ripening process. It’s completely natural and perfectly harmless and by keeping the tomatoes in a bag you concentrate the ethylene and hasten the ripening. And further, bananas are the champs at giving off ethylene so including one speeds things up even more.
Sushi requires a special kind of rice
Posted by on May 20, 2016
At the heart of sushi is the rice – not raw fish as some people mistakenly believe (see my related post here). In a nutshell, medium-grained rice is cooked and, while hot, mixed with a vinegar/sugar/salt mixture. After cooling, the sushi rice is used to make the sushi.
Some unscrupulous companies have perpetuated the myth that you need a special kind of rice to make sushi, and I have seen small bags of “sushi rice” for sale at outrageous prices. Fact is, the rice use for sushi is the same medium grained rice used for many other purposes in Japanese cuisine. You do not need to pay extra for “sushi” rice. Our favorite is Kokuho Rose brand, closely followed by Nishiki. These are California-grown and are every bit as good as the much more expensive Japanese imports. They are widely available, you can even get the Nishiki through Walmart! So, don’t waste your money on overpriced rice!
On a related note, short-grained rice is not used for sushi–it’s actually medium grained that is used. Many people call it short as it is indeed shorter than many other rices, such as jasmine and basmatti. Real short grained rice is shorter still with grains that are almost round. Short grained rice is sold as sweet or sticky rice, although it is not sweet–but it is sticky!
Avoid cured meats because of nitrates/nitrites
Posted by on April 7, 2016
Nitrates and nitrites have been used for centuries as part of the meat curing process (bacon, corned beef, sausages, etc.). They inhibit bacterial growth (particularly the deadly botulism bacterium), improve taste, and give the meat a nice color. But there’s been this “anti-nitrate” movement for a couple of decades now, claiming that nitrates cause cancer and all sorts of nasty stuff. They even pressured Whole Foods into not selling any nitrate-containing meats. The evidence for this health danger? None. A huge number of studies have been done, and while a few suggest a possible problem the large majority have found no negative effects of nitrates on health. But of course the “anti-nitrate” folks always focus on the few studies that support their preconceived ideas and ignore those that don’t.
And think about this: many vegetables contain nitrates, as does much drinking water. Fact is, the Centers for Disease Control has estimated that 90% of the nitrates we consume come from these sources and not from cured meat. Eat a few meals with arugula, butter lettuce, celery, or beets and you’ll get more nitrates than from several hundred hot dogs. But I don’t see Whole Foods removing those vegetables from their shelves.
For hard-cooked eggs it is best to start with cold water
Posted by on February 23, 2016
For years I have made hard-cooked eggs by putting them in a pan covered with cold water, bringing to the boil, then covering and letting sit off the heat for 20 minutes. The eggs cooked fine but they were sometimes very difficult to peel, particularly as I always use very fresh eggs from the farmers market. The problem was that the thin membrane just under the shall would sometimes stick to the egg white like glue. I recently found out that the problem with this technique is the relatively slow heating of the egg, which encourages that membrane to stick to the white. In contrast, rapid heating lessens the sticking, so putting the eggs into already boiling water is better from the peeling standpoint. But boiling like that can cause cracking because the eggs bounce around, so better yet is to steam the eggs.
Bring 1 inch of water to a boil in a saucepan. Put the eggs in a steamer basket and lower into the pan, then cover. Steam for 13 minutes then cool as peel as usual. I think you’ll appreciate the difference!
Removing bones is called “deboning”
Posted by on December 31, 2015
I wince to hear some people, including a lot of people who should know better, use the term “deboning” to refer to removing the bones from a fish, chicken, or whatever. Do you “depeel” a banana, “descale” a fish, or “dehusk” a coconut? No, duh. The correct term is simply “boning” – the “de” prefix is an unneeded and incorrect prefix. This may sound like “grammar nanny” crap, but why speak like an ignoramus if you don’t have to?
You shouldn’t use cold eggs in baking
Posted by on September 5, 2015
For most items, such as cakes and muffins, using cold as opposed to room temperature eggs makes no difference in the results other than requiring a slightly longer cooking time. For cakes that use beaten egg whites as a leavening ingredient, however, cold eggs don’t whip up as well and the resulting cake does not rise as well.
It’s better to keep fresh fish in the fridge rather than on ice
Posted by on August 14, 2015
We all know that fish must be kept cold at all times before it is cooked or it will deteriorate quickly. Some people think the fridge is the best place for this, but in fact it’s better to keep the fish on ice. Why? Ice melts at 32 degrees, so a pile of crushed ice that is slowly melting is at that temperature. In contrast, a fridge is typically kept at 35 to 40 degrees. This may seem like a minor difference, but with high quality fresh fish – which is always pretty expensive – it can make a difference. The fish must never directly contact the ice, so in a plastic bag and covered with ice is best. The same goes for other seafood such as shrimp and scallops.
Pasta was brought back from China to Italy by Marco Polo
Posted by on April 17, 2015
Nice story, but false. Marco Polo’s journeys to the far east occurred in the late 13th century, while the the earliest known written reference to pasta in Italy – Sicily specifically – dates from the year 1154, over 100 years earlier. There’s no reason to doubt that the Chinese had their own noodles, but the folks in Italy were making and eating noodles long before Marco Polo.
Heavy cream and whipping cream are the same
Posted by on July 28, 2013
I was quite interested to find out that this is not only false, but it is defined by US Government regulations. Whipping cream must contain at least 31% butterfat but no more than 36%, while heavy cream must contain at least 36% butterfat. What does this mean to you, the cook?
When making whipped cream, heavy cream takes longer to whip but lasts longer once prepared (losing its peaks and becoming watery). In contrast, whipping cream whips faster but does not last as long.
A more important difference may be between creams that are pasteurized vs. those that are ultra-pasteurized. Both treatments kill bacteria and extend the shelf life of the cream, but the ultra procedure uses a much higher temperature. The result is cream that lasts longer (in the unopened container) but does not whip as well or taste as good. Look for local, pasteurized (not ultra-pasteurized) heavy cream that is free of additives.
You can keep meat moist by cooking it in a stew or braising it
Posted by on May 2, 2012
This seems to make sense—cooking meat in a moist environment would keep it moist, right? Not necessarily. A major determinant of the final moistness of meat is how hot it got during cooking. So, how you stew or braise the meat is really important. Cook at a boil, where the meat may reach over 200 degrees, and it’s likely to be dry. Cook at a gentle simmer, keeping things at 180 degrees or so, and the results will be much better.
Different areas of your tongue are sensitive to different tastes
Posted by on April 12, 2012
I remember learning this in high school – the so-called tongue map that claimed that each of the 4 fundamental tastes were “picked up” on different parts of the tongue: bitter in the back, sweet in the front, sour on the sides toward the back, and salt on the sides near the front. This was shown to be false long ago–all areas of the tongue are sensitive to all the tastes.
And yes, there are now believed to be more than 4 basic tastes. A fifth, savory or umami is widely accepted, and some researhers argue for a sixth, piquance.
Kitchen Myths – What’s this Blog all About?
Posted by on April 24, 2011
Many widely accepted “truths” about food and cooking are just plain false—in other words, they are kitchen myths. Learn the straight skinny here! See the About page for more information about me, your friendly myth-buster, and this blog.
Remember, these are myths–the title of each entry is the myth I am busting and is not true!
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