Dinner ideas
How to keep corn sweet until dinner
Sweetcorn keeps its best flavour when it gets cold quickly. Leave the husk on, refrigerate the ears and cook them within a few days instead of storing them on the counter.
Guides
Comparisons, buying guides and the answers to "which one is actually better".
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Buying guides
How to choose green beans that still snap
Fresh green beans are smooth, bright and firm, with a clean snap and no swollen seed bumps. A flexible limp pod is usually a thirsty older pod, not a tender one.
Buying guides
How to choose a cabbage that will stay crisp
A crisp cabbage feels dense, has tightly packed leaves and a dry cut base. The shop test takes less time than rescuing a wilted half later.
Storage and keeping
How to keep leeks fresh after trimming
Trimmed leeks last better when they are dry on the surface, loosely wrapped and kept cold without sitting in trapped water.
Buying guides
Tomato paste in a tube vs a tin: which is worth buying?
Buy a tube when you use tomato paste a little at a time. Buy a tin when you cook for a crowd or want the lowest cost per spoon.
Cooking technique
Why tofu sticks to the pan and how to stop it
Sticking usually comes from wet tofu, a cool pan, early turning or a thin pan surface. Fix the sequence and the crust releases on its own.
Dinner ideas
5 dinners that make kale taste good
Kale tastes better when the pan gives it enough time and a clear partner. Try creamy beans, lemon pasta, eggs, potatoes or a tomato lentil soup.
Cooking technique
Why some supermarket tomatoes never soften properly
Some tomatoes are picked for transport rather than immediate flavour. Their skin may colour while the flesh stays firm, pale and watery.
Storage and keeping
How to store passata after opening
Refrigerate opened passata as the label directs, freeze the amount you will use and write the date on the container. Smooth tomato is easy to save when it has a destination.
Buying guides
How to choose small courgettes with better texture
Small courgettes usually have finer seeds and firmer flesh, but size alone is not a guarantee. Weight, stem freshness and skin tension are better checks.
Buying guides
Sweet potatoes vs white potatoes: which is better for roasting?
Sweet potatoes give you a soft, sweet centre and dark edges. White potatoes give you a drier middle and a firmer crust when the tray has room.
Cooking technique
Why a whole bag of spinach disappears in one pan
Heat collapses the air between spinach leaves and drives out water, so a large bag becomes a small cooked handful. Add by cooked volume, not raw appearance.