Hi, I am Ben Kurtzman with About.com Food. Today we are going to be marinating meat. Want to take your sirloin from so-so to sizzling? Learn the basics of marinating meat, plus see how to make a tangy teriyaki marinade. Marinades are simple, really. Most involve some kind of oil, some kind of acid, and then your choice of spices. So you can get as creative as you want, or if you are in a hurry you can just use salad dressing, and that will turn out great.

INGREDIENTS
Today we are going to be making a teriyaki-style Asian marinade. The liquid base is soy sauce and rice wine vinegar. If you do not have rice wine vinegar at home, you can find it in the Asian section of most major grocery stores. To add some more flavor we are going to add ginger, garlic, and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

PROCESSING METHOD

Marinade Proportions
* When you are making a marinade, the general rule is one-half cup of marinade for every pound of meat. So you want to adjust your recipe accordingly and watch your ratios so you do not waste ingredients. This New York strip steak is almost a pound, so we are going to make 1/2 cup of marinade.

Mix Marinade Ingredients
* Let us begin with one third of a cup of soy sauce. That should do it. Now I am going to add the rice wine vinegar until we get to half a cup. That should just about get us there.
* The next thing we are going to do is take a teaspoon of garlic and a teaspoon of ginger, which we have chopped up very finely, and we are going to add them to the mixture.
* Stir it up. Get it mixed up really nicely. Take a little taste. All good cooks taste. And you know what? This could actually use a little bit of lemon juice. There we go. That is perfect, and it is ready to go on our steak.

Salt the Meat
* So now we are salting our meat. And what this does, is it ensures that the salt, which is going to flavor your meat, is evenly distributed before the marinade comes on. It also works to tenderize the meat so that it is going to melt in your mouth when it comes out of the oven.

Marinate the Meat
* When we are selecting a vessel in which to marinate our meat we want something that is going to leave not too much room around the edges for the marinade to swirl around in. We want to keep it tight. This glass bread pan should do the trick for our steak.
* Let us start by pouring a little bit of the marinade into the bottom of the pan so that it gets the underside of the meat. Now what I am doing is taking our steak and placing it on top of the thin layer of marinade on the bottom of our pan.
* The next thing we are going to do is take the rest of our marinade mixture, pour it on top of the steak, and then we are going to put it in the fridge. * We are going to cover it well, make sure we get all of the garlic and ginger out of there. I am going to spread it out a little bit.

Refrigerate the Marinated Meat
* One thing you want to look out for when marinating is leaving your meat in too long. I am going to marinate this piece of meat for about three, maybe four hours. If you leave it in too long your meat can get a little bit stringy - the acid really does go to work on it. So you really want to be sure, especially with a smaller piece of meat, you do not leave it in too long.

Hi, I am Gretchen Siegchrist for About.com Food, and I am going to show you how to make bolognese sauce. This is a delicious, hearty sauce that is great on all types of pasta. Transform a big bowl of pasta into a hearty and delicious meal with this easy recipe for Italian Bolognese sauce.

INGREDIENTS
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
3/4 cup finely chopped carrots
3/4 cup finely chopped celery
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 pound ground meat (A mix of one third beef, one third pork and one third veal is best, but you can also use all ground beef)
1 cup of whole milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup of dry white wine
1 twenty-eight-ounce can of whole tomatoes

PROCESSING METHOD

Cook Liquid Bolognese Ingredients
* Heat the oil in a large stockpot over medium high heat.
* Add the onion, garlic, carrots and celery and cook them for about two minutes, stirring constantly.
* Add the tomato paste, mix it in, and cook the ingredients for another minute or so.

Add Meat & Milk to Bolognese Mixture
* Now we will add the meat and cook it, stirring constantly, for about five minutes or so until it browns.
* Add the milk, salt, pepper and nutmeg to the mixture and cook it, stirring constantly, until most of the milk is evaporated. This should take about ten minutes or so.

Last Steps- Tomatoes and Wine
* Now add the wine and stir it in. Cook this for another ten minutes or so, stirring occasionally, until all of the liquid is evaporated.
* Meanwhile, pour the tomatoes into a blender and puree them for just five or ten seconds until they are coarsely chopped.
* Add the tomatoes to the sauce and bring it to a simmer.
* Turn down the heat down to low and let the sauce cook for about an hour and a half uncovered.
* Then you can toss it with your favorite pasta and enjoy.

Hi, I'm Rachel Edelman for About.com Food. Today I'm going to show you how to make your own ranch dressing. If you love topping your salads with ranch dressing, then try making it at home! This make-ahead seasoning mixture allows you to stir some together in a snap.

INGREDIENTS
7 saltine crackers
2 tablespoons garlic salt
2 tablespoons onion powder
3/4 cup dry minced parsley flakes
1/4 cup dry minced onion
1 tablespoon dry dillweed
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup buttermilk

PROCESSING METHOD

Combine Dry Ranch Mix
* I'm going to make a dry ranch mix that you can use to make dressing or use in other kinds of recipes.
* First, blend crackers in an electric blender on high speed until powdered.
* Now add the parsley, the minced onion, and the dill weed. Blend again until it is powdered.
* Then, pour the mixture into a bowl. Next, stir in the garlic salt, onion powder, and garlic powder.
* Store this dry mix in a container with a tight-fitting lid at room temperature for up to 1 year.

Blend Wet Ingredients
* To make the dressing, combine the mayonnaise, buttermilk, and 1 tablespoon of mix. Blend well and serve over your favorite salad.

Hi, I'm Rachel Edelman for About.com Food. Today I'm going to show you how to make a Thai cucumber salad. If you like cucumbers, then you'll love this unique salad tossed in a tangy Thai dressing. Learn to make Thai cucumber salad at home.

INGREDIENTS
handful of fresh basil leaves and fresh coriander leaves
1 lime
1 shallot
1 small red chili pepper
2 cucumbers
2 green onions
fish sauce
shrimp paste or sauce
soy or tamari sauce

a grater
a food chopper
and a chef's knife

PROCESSING METHOD

Prepare the Cucumbers
* First wash and peel the cucumbers. Cut each cucumber in half and remove the seeds. Use the largest grater you have to grate the cucumber into a mixing bowl. If the grater seems too small and the cucumber in the bowl looks very watery, cut the cucumber by hand.
* Use your knife to slice the cucumber into 1 to 2 inch pieces. Then cut thin slices so you have small matchstick pieces.
* If the pieces still seem too thick, cut them in half again.

Chop Ingredients
* Next peel a shallot. You can mince it by hand or with a food chopper.
* Add it to the cucumbers.
* Now wash and slice a green onion. Add it to the mixture.
* Then take a handful of basil leaves and with your hands, rip small pieces and add them to the bowl.
* With the basil, you can also add handful of chopped fresh coriander leaves.

Cut the Chili Pepper
* To prepare the chili pepper, cut off the top, slice it in half and remove the seeds. This will keep the flavor of the chili but remove most of the hot and spicy components. Wear gloves or use a plastic liner to prevent the hot oils from touching your fingers. Mince the pepper and add it to the mix.

Mix Well
* Toss all of the ingredients in the bowl so they are well combined.

Prepare the Dressing
* In a separate bowl, prepare the dressing. Pour 2 tablespoons of fish sauce.
* Roll and cut a lime, then squeeze half of the lime into the bowl.
* Next add a half a teaspoon of shrimp paste and 1 tablespoon of soy sauce. Mix well and pour over the salad.
* Gently toss the salad. Serve immediately and enjoy!

 
Main Dish : How To Make Duck In Orange Sauce

Rich duck in orange sauce accompanied by colourful seasonal vegetables.

SERVINGS : 4

Preparation Time : 30 minutes
Cooking Time : 1 hour

INGREDIENTS
2 duck breasts
salt
freshly ground pepper
8 tbsp soy sauce

Orange Sauce
4 oranges - to produce the juice from 4 and zest from 2
180 ml white wine
180 ml chicken stock

1 sharp knife
1 cutting board
1 tray or plate
2 large frying pans
1 wooden spoon
1 spoon
1 fork

PROCESSING METHOD

Prepare the duck
* Season the duck breasts with salt and pepper and set aside on a tray or plate.

Make the orange sauce
* In one of the pans, mix the orange juice, stock, wine and orange zest. Bring to the boil and reduce.
* If you like a sweeter taste add 3 tbsp of sugar now.

Cook the duck
* In the other frying pan, cook the duck for 12 minutes, skin-side down. At this point, the duck will be medium cooked. If you prefer well done, leave for longer.
* Remove the fat and add the soy sauce. Now turn the duck to the other side and let it sit in the pan for 10 minutes on the stove without any heat. Spoon the soy sauce over the duck.

Put it all together
* After this resting period, cut the duck breasts into half, lengthwise.
* Place the 4 pieces into the frying pan with the reduced orange sauce. Heat gently on low heat till thoroughly warmed.
* When the sauce is reduced check the consistency.

Garnish the meal
* Place the breasts on a plate and pour some of the sauce over each one.

Serving Suggestions
* The duck with orange sauce needs to be served as soon as it is cooked.
* It is very rich and only needs steamed vegetables to complete it.
* Garnish with a spring of parsley to add to its brown and orange colour.

   
Salad : How To Make Mango And Chicken Salad

A light, flavourful mango and chicken salad perfect for a summer day. The vinaigrette dressing makes a refreshingly tart complement to the sweet mango.

SERVING : 4

Preparation Time : 10 minutes
Cooking Time : 35 minutes

INGREDIENTS

For The Salad
3 chicken breasts, cut in half
4 avocados, peeled and sliced (reserved in lemon juice)
2 mangos, peeled and sliced into cubes
1 small bunch of mint leaf, chopped, with a few reserved whole for garnish
1 ltr chicken stock
salt and pepper

For The Vinaigrette
750 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp lime juice
1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
1 inch of ginger, peeled and chopped
baby gem lettuce leaves, washed & dried for garnish

1 chopping board
1 medium pan with lid
1 colander
1 small bowl
1 large bowl
1 whisk
1 wooden spoon
1 large knife

PROCESSING METHOD

Poach the chicken
* Place the medium pan on a medium heat. Add the chicken fillets and enough chicken stock to cover. Stir, cover, and bring to the boil.
* Once boiling turn down to a simmer and allow the chicken to poach for twenty minutes.

Drain the chicken
* Pour the chicken and stock into a colander and drain.
* Transfer the chicken fillets back to the pan and allow to cool for ten minutes.

Make the vinaigrette
* Put the lime juice into a small bowl. Follow with the ginger, garlic and season with salt and pepper. Add the oil and whisk well to combine.

Slice the chicken
* Using the large knife slice the cooled chicken into large chunks and transfer into a large bowl.

Assemble the dish
* Add the mint to the large bowl, then the avocados, mango, and dressing, reserving a tiny amount for later. Combine well, using your hands for best results.

Garnish and serve
* Arrange a few lettuce leaves onto a serving plate.
* Heap a generous serving of the salad on top and drizzle with the remaining dressing.
* Crown with a sprig of mint and serve.

 
Italian Food : How To Make Basic Tomato Pizza Sauce

Basic Tomato Pizza Sauce is ideal for pizza toppings or for pasta dishes, this classic tomato sauce is quick and easy to make and simply delicious.

SERVING : makes 450g of sauce

Preparation Time : 20 minutes
Cooking Time : 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp butter
2 cloves garlic, crushed
400 g of tinned plum tomatoes
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tsp basil, chopped
1 tsp oregano
1 tbsp tomato puree
3 tbsp olive oil
salt
pepper

1 saucepan
1 wooden spoon

PROCESSING METHOD

Fry the onions
* Place the saucepan on a medium heat, add the olive oil and butter and allow it to melt.
* Now add the chopped onions and garlic and stir. Let it cook down for 3-4 minutes until the onions are soft and transparent.

Add rest of ingredients
* To the saucepan, add the tomatoes, oregano, basil and tomato puree.
* Season with a little salt and pepper and stir well.
* Bring the sauce to a boil and turn the heat down to a simmer. Allow it to cook for 20 minutes.

Cool and use
* For pizzas, allow the sauce to cool before using.
* If you're making it to accompany a pasta dish then it can be eaten straight away.
* This sauce can be stored in a container for a week in the fridge.

 
Main Dish : How To Make Barbecued Marinated Chicken

This delicious barbecued marinated chicken recipe goes perfectly with a crisp salad and crusty bread.

SERVING : 2

Preparation Time : 35 minutes
Cooking Time : 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS
2 chicken breasts
1 tbsp tarragon, roughly chopped
1 tbsp basil, roughly chopped
1 tbsp parsley, roughly chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
3 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper
3 carrots, peeled and cut into sticks
25 g butter
4 tbsp water
1/2 tbsp cumin seeds freshly ground
2 tbsp coriander, chopped
1/2 tbsp lemon juice

1 cutting board
1 knife
1 bowl
1 frying pan
1 spoon
1 pair of tongs
1 barbecue
1 bottle of water for dousing any flames

PROCESSING METHOD

Prepare the barbecue
* If you have a charcoal BBQ light it 30-45 minutes before you plan to cook. It is ready to cook on when there are no more flames and the charcoal has turned white.
* If you are using a gas BBQ, light it up and turn it to the highest setting. Leave it for 15-20 minutes to heat up.

Clean and slice the chicken breast
* Place the chicken on the cutting board, clean any excess fat and slice right through the middle horizontally. If it's a medium sized or larger sized breast, make two slices. This will give you two to four thin slices of breast.

Prepare the carrots
* Heat a frying pan on high heat. When hot, add the butter and immediately after the carrots. Toss them in the butter for a minute and add the cumin and salt and pepper, then toss again.
* Now add the water and cook with a lid half on. Reduce the heat and gently steam the carrots until almost done.
* Add the lemon juice and cook for 2 more minutes.
* Then, take the pan off the heat and keep warm.

Marinate the chicken
* Place the chicken in a bowl and add the tarragon, basil, parsley, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper, then mix well.

Grill the chicken
* Place the chicken on the grill and cook for about 3 minutes on each side. Depending on the size of the breast and the heat, it may take less time to cook; if you can see the breast has become white, take it off the heat.
* You may see fire shooting from the grill, so have some water handy in case you need to put it out.

Final preparations
* Add the chopped coriander to the carrots and stir quickly without breaking them.
* Place the carrots in the centre of the plate and put the grilled chicken on top.

Serve
* This delicious dish goes perfectly with a crisp salad and crusty bread.

   
Salad : How To Make Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing

A favorite among food connoisseurs, balsamic vinaigrette dressing can add a flavorful spice to any dish. Learn the secret to making top notch balsamic vinaigrette dressing from VideoJug's top notch chef, CJ -aka- Chris Jacobson (finalist on the hit TV show Top Chef).

INGREDIENTS
1/2 medium shallot, diced
75 ml balsamic vinegar
150 ml olive oil
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
lemon juice, to taste

PROCESSING METHOD

Dice The Shallots
* To prevent injury, keep your cutting board stable by securing it with a wet towel or dish towel underneath. This will prevent slipping.
* Cut one half of a shallot lengthwise several times, then widthwise several times to create finely diced cubes.
* Add the diced half shallot to a mixing bowl.

Add Vinegar And Oil
* Add 1/3 cup (75 ml) of balsamic vinegar and a pinch of salt and pepper to the shallots and begin to mix.
* Slowly pour 2/3 cup (150 ml) of olive or canola oil into the mixture, whisking briskly until the dressing becomes creamy.

Season To Taste
* Add salt and black pepper to taste. To brighten the flavor, add a small amount of pure lemon juice.
* Refrigerate and enjoy!

Hi, I'm Chef John Mitzewich for About.com, today I'm going to show you how to make Spanish Romesco Sauce. Or at least this is my version of a romesco sauce. Romesco sauce is a classic and very popular Spanish condiment. With a spicy almond and red pepper pesto-like mixture, romesco sauce is great on everything from grilled fish and meats to cold vegetable salads.

PROCESSING METHOD

Saute the Garlic
* We're going to start with 1/4 cup olive oil on low heat in a saute pan. We're going to basically toast some garlic. I have 4 cloves, I quartered them - you can just roughly chop them - it really doesn't matter. When it starts to sizzle, we don't want to brown them, but when it starts to sizzle give it about 30 seconds.
* Remove from heat and let that cool.

Mix the Romesco Sauce Ingredients
* Now, we're going to take:
1 cup of roasted red pepper, those are roasted and peeled, you can do your own or use jarred
1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes for some heat
2 tbsp of sherry vinegar for a little acid
2 anchovy fillets for some salt and to give another dimension of flavor, and the other main ingredient
1/2 cup of roasted almonds
* So, then add the toasted garlic in there. If you want, some people like to reserve the oil and drizzle it in later as it purees, I don't understand that, I just add it all in now and save a step.

Cook the Romesco Sauce to Desired Consistency
* Now we're going to blitz that on and off until it starts to come together and then you can just leave it on until its as thick or thin and smooth as you want.
* After about 30 seconds or so you'll have you going to have what I would call a coarse or chunky romesco.
* Many people do serve it this way. Maybe for a piece of grilled fish this would be the best texture for it. But, I prefer for a all-purpose sauce something that's smoother. So I'm going to go for another minutes until I have that consistency.

Serve the Romesco Sauce
* Basically this is a pesto. Instead of pinenuts we used almonds and instead of basil we have red pepper. It's better if you let it ripen for one day, all the flavors will meld together.
* Adjust for salt. Make sure you taste it.
* This is so good on everything, literally. Meats, potatoes, vegetables, this is just some steamed green beans, so, so good! I mean this is enough to make me go vegetarian. I served this with some roast pork loin and some green beans and it was fantastic.
* This is such a popular sauce in Spain. It's been called the "ketchup" of Spain. By the way, that's a great way to get punched in the face by a Spanish chef, call it the "ketchup" of Spain in front of them and see what happens.

 
Side Dishes : How To Make Marinated Mushrooms

This simple and enticing marinated mushroom dish will become a favourite vegetarian choice in the hors d'oeuvre selection of your recipes.

SERVING : 4

Preparation Time : 20 minutes
Cooking Time : 1 hour 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS
350 g fresh white button mushrooms
350 g mixed mushrooms, including oyster mushrooms, Portobello mushrooms, chestnut mushrooms, or any mushrooms that are available
500 ml olive oil
1 large sprig of fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
10 whole peppercorns
20 whole coriander seeds
the juice of 1-2 lemons
salt
pepper

1 chopping board
1 small knife
1 colander
1 medium cooking pot with lid
1 wooden spoon
some kitchen paper towel
1 bowl

PROCESSING METHOD

Rinse and dry the mushrooms
* Take your plate of mushrooms and tip them into the colander. Rinse well under a cold tap.
* Now place some kitchen towel on the chopping board and spread the mushrooms onto the paper.Taking another piece of kitchen roll, pat dry.

Preparing mushrooms
* De-stalk and then halve the button mushrooms and place them into a bowl. Repeat with chestnut mushrooms.
* Now roughly tear the oyster mushrooms using your hands into two or three strips and transfer to the bowl. Repeat for Portobello mushrooms.

Cook the mushrooms
* Place the pot over a high heat. Add the oil, thyme, bay leaf, coriander seeds, peppercorns, mushrooms and lemon juice. Season well with salt and pepper, stir, and then cover. Bring to the boil.
* As soon as the mixture is boiling, uncover and turn off the heat. Finally, leave to cool in the marinade, for roughly 1 hour.

Drain the mushrooms
* When cooled, pour the mushrooms into the colander, draining off all excess liquid.

Season
* Season with salt and pepper and finally, add the lemon juice and stir. Your mushrooms are now ready to serve!

Serve
* Spoon the mushrooms into a bowl.
* Serve at room temperature or perhaps with a lemon wedge.