How Tos
What to Do with Hard Parmesan Cheese (and How to Prevent It From Drying Out in the First Place)
Is there a good way to revive Parmesan cheese that has dried out in the fridge?
Preshredded Cheese
Why does preshredded store-bought Parmesan seem to work better for coating food for baking or frying than freshly grated?
What Causes Metallic-Tasting Cheese
Why does cheese begin tasting metallic if wrapped and stored in aluminum foil?
Substituting Greek Yogurt for Sour Cream in Recipes
Can Greek yogurt be substituted for sour cream in recipes?
Substituting Almond Milk for Dairy Milk in Recipes
I am lactose intolerant, and I’ve come to love almond milk in my coffee. Will it work as a milk replacement in desserts?
Does Pricking Eggs Before Cooking Make Them Easier to Peel?
Does pricking eggs before cooking result in hard-cooked eggs that are easier to peel?
Freezing Leftover Sour Cream
We were curious if frozen, then thawed, sour cream could work as well in recipes as never-frozen sour cream.
Does Hard-Cooking Eggs with Vinegar Make them Easier to Peel?
Some say that adding 2 tablespoons of vinegar per quart of water before hard-cooking eggs will make peeling easier. Is that true?
Getting to Know: Cooking Cheeses
Whether crystalline or creamy, sharp or mild, blue or orange, cheese shows up in too many recipes to count here in the test kitchen. We’re profiling a dozen that we reach for often.
British vs. American Cheddar: It's a Tie
How do our favorite domestic cheddars stack up against the best of the old country?
Demystifying Egg Yolk Color
The eggs I buy from the farmers’ market have really bright orange yolks. Do brighter yolks mean fresher eggs?
How to Substitute Yogurt for Buttermilk
Is there any way to substitute yogurt for buttermilk in recipes for pancakes and biscuits?
Adding Liquid to Scrambled Eggs
Some recipes for scrambled eggs call for water or milk. Does this do anything for the eggs?
Substituting Powdered Buttermilk for Liquid
When a recipe calls for just a cup or so of buttermilk, many cooks resist buying a whole quart. Can powdered buttermilk, which is shelf-stable, pinch hit for the liquid version?
Sour Milk
Although some old cake recipes call for “sour milk, ” this doesn’t mean that you can use milk that has gone bad.
Stabilizing Whipped Cream
What’s the best way to stabilize whipped cream?
Substituting Evaporated Milk for Half-and-Half
When a recipe calls for half-and-half, can you use evaporated milk as a substitute?
All About Cultured Dairy
Cultured dairy is cream or milk with friendly live bacteria (cultures) added. The bacteria convert lactose, or milk sugar, into lactic acid, making these products thick and tangy.
Chill the Cheese, Then Grate
For easier grating, start by giving cheese the freeze.
Preventing Sour Cream from Curdling
What’s the best way to reheat sour cream-heavy recipes while preventing curdling?
Interchanging "Sharp" and "Extra Sharp" Cheddar
In cooked recipes, can sharp and extra-sharp cheddar be substituted for each other?
Getting to Know: Supermarket Italian Cheeses
Italy is second only to France in the variety of cheeses it produces, but many of the “Italian” cheeses sold in American supermarkets are produced here.
Freezing Leftover Egg Whites
Can leftover egg whites be whipped after defrosting?
Evaporated Milk as Milk Substitution
Can I reconstitute evaporated milk and use it in place of ordinary milk in recipes?
Easy Egg Separation
Follow these simple steps for separating whites and yolks.
