Cooking

COOKING

A) INTRODUCTION TO FOOD AND COOKING

Cooking or cookery is the art and science in nature. It involves using heat to prepare food for consumption. Cooking techniques vary widely across the world, from grilling food in an open fire to using electric stoves. The ingredients used to cook in various types of kilns, reflect unique environmental, economic and cultural, traditions and trends. I’m sharing my views about the cooking process, essentials and methods of cooking habits.

B) HOME COOKING FOR FOOD

Home cooking has occasionally been a process in a home. This makes all members of the family unity and happy. Home-cooked meals are likely to be enriched in fiber, calcium and iron. This has saturated amount of sodium, fat and cholesterol on a per calorie basis. Many new ingredients of cooked product are due to the expansion of agriculture, commerce, trade and transportation between civilizations in different regions. New inventions have expanded cooking techniques.

i) Essential Ingredients of cooking

Receiving the ingredients directly from the farmers, satisfy authenticity, nutrition contents and taste. Eating home made cooked food prevents chronic disease. Speaking about the ingredients, rice plays a vital role in the South Indian food culture. There are varieties of rice available based on the process of polishing.

Rice

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Some common types of rice in local include Ponni, IR series, Rajabogham, Sammba. Based on the structure of grains it is classified as long, medium and short grain rice. I would like to add some values on rice by considering the following aspects. Based on texture as sticky, parboiled rice, on color it is divided as polished, brown, forbidden and wild rice respectively. However, aroma based rice varieties like basmati and jasmine add some good flavor to the meal.

Dal types

https://food.ndtv.com/food-drinks/the-dal-glossary-8-types-of-lentils-and-their-benefits-1625287

Next comes the important ingredient are the varieties of dal. Some of them are Masor dal, green dal (pachaipayiru), urad dal(ulunthu), toor or ardhar dal, lobia, matar dal, chick pea, horsegram, vada dal. Each of these have its own flavor and delicious taste. Some of the vegetables are also included in dal to add taste.

Grocery items

The essential grocery items for cooking process are listed with its uses. Tamarind, red chillies, Salt (Granule and big) are the next level of important items added in the grocery list. Apart from this, flavoring agents are needed to take care of health and smell of the food. They include dry Dhaniya coriander seeds, cumin. These two are used for making paste to add to the dish. Another agent for frying is mustard. Onions(big and small) are the basic item for frying purpose and to cure the cold.

Spicy agents

I would like to add some of these materials like black pepper, green cardamom, cinnamon, asafetida, poppy seed, cloves, fennel seed, and bay leaf. These are used for adding smell and flavor to the cooked foods. In addition to the above mentioned items, Biryani flavoring agents include star anise, Nutmeg, Mace, bay leaf, screwpine leaf, carom seeds, ginger, garlic or white onion. Besides these items turmeric powder, coriander powder, chili powder and other powder for sambar, rasam, mutton masala, chicken masala, fish masala are the ready mixtures. This is available for the usage to save time in cooking process.

Oil items

Though we have all the grocery items, oil plays a key role in all methods of cooking process. They include groundnut oil for all the process, coconut oil for frying purpose. It acts as good relief of disease like obesity, cholesterol. Castor oil is helps milking and for cooking dal varieties. Sometimes gingelly oil provide cooking process and also for lighting process. Ghee is also an essential item which could add taste to the snacks items.

C) VARIETIES OF COOKING

Cooking makes me more enthusiastic and is a great stress burster. I help my mother in making arrangements for cooking process. Some of the activities are cutting vegetables and cleaning vessels. I can make the complete and basic cooking recipes with good taste. We have a habit of structuring the cooking process. Morning breakfast is with idly and some paste of groundnut for recipes. Additionally dal and the kuzhambu with multiple flavors help paste recipe to the breakfast.

Food for the lunch and dinner

For  lunch, the menu includes the cooked rice, cooked vegetables, dal or kuzhambu, rasam, buttermilk or curd. The vegetables like beetroot, cabbage, greens, carrot, snake guard, ridge guard, bitter guard, cauliflower  give the essential vitamins. Tamarind or tomatoes, along with medical greens make the rasam recipe. This acts as good digestion product along with the butter milk. Taking right vitamin will make the body fit and free from diseases.

Recipes of Wheat flour agents help us a good dinner. Some of the cooked foods for dinner are wheat dosa, chappathi, Poori, rava items.

Some special recipes for food

Aforesaid cooked foods are for regular menu. It is a rare practice of habits like taking non vegetarian foods of home grown chicken, eggs, mutton. Tamarind rice, lemon rice and coconut rice are some other ready-made recipes. Pearl millet is a good energy booster. Sometimes it is taken as afternoon lunch with curd, onions and dry snacks.

Other snacks  include Bengal gram, bajji, bonda. Similarly, Kheer or Payasam is a type of dessert with any of the items such as broken wheat, rice, millet, vermicelli, tapioca and sweet corn along with boiling milk and sugar. However the papad is the side dish for this menu.

D) METHODS OF FOOD COOKING PROCESS

The following methods involve in cooking process.

• Roasting – Searing – Barbecuing – Rotisserie – Grilling – Broiling
• Baking – Baking Blind – Flash baking
• Boiling – Blanching – Braising – Coddling – Double steaming – Infusion – Poaching – Pressure cooking – Simmering – Smothering – Steaming – Vacuum flask cooking – Steeping – Stone boiling – Stewing
• Frying – Air frying – Deep frying – Gentle frying – Hot salt frying – Hot sand frying – Pan frying – Pressure frying – Sautéing – Shallow frying – Stir frying – Vacuum frying
• Steaming
• Smoking – process of flavoring

• E) Conclusion

I conclude saying about the process, essential items in the cooking process. Cooking resembles the quote “Eat right food at right time” to maintain healthy life cycle and free from diseases. This may help to increase our life span. In conclusion, Eating properly cooked foods will enhance the bright future and also the hassle free environment in work.