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Wednesday, August 22, 2001
Outside the box

SKINNING ROASTED PEPPERS

Jackson

   Mike Jackson, executive chef at the Omni Corpus Christi Hotel Bayfront, said skinning roasted peppers need not be an exercise in frustration.
   "After roasting, place peppers in a bowl, toss them with coarse salt and cover with plastic wrap," Jackson said. "Leave them out at room temperature. In about five minutes, the steam and salt will work to help the skin peel right off."

   ADDICTED TO MICROWAVES
   We want everything in a hurry, and dinner is no exception. In a recent poll, the microwave was neck-and-neck with the stove for most-used kitchen appliance. Ninety-five percent of Americans use their microwave at least two times a week; 78 percent use it every day.
   Source: Tupperware Corporation

   CEREAL AND MILK TO GO

   General Mills has figured out how you can have a bowl of cereal in the car without winding up with a soggy mess. New Milk 'n Cereal Bars claim to offer all the nutritious benefits of a bowl of cereal packed into a bar.
   Our tester tried the Honey Nut Cheerios bar, and said the familiar O's were smushed together in a bar shape, held together with a sugary, white filling reminiscent of cream-filled cookies. Sweet and delicious and, the package assures us, made with real milk. A great way to get the most important meal of the day when you don't have time to sit down at the table.

   Food tips
   KNOW YOUR FUEL
   Today's griller can choose from a variety of fuels for stoking up their grill - from familiar lump charcoals to exotic fruit wood chips. Each fuel imparts a distinctive flavor to food as well as a different kind of heat. Lump charcoals, made from woods like hickory or mesquite burn hot and fast. Convenient briquettes burn at a more moderate rate and heat. And wood chips (which should be soaked in water before being tossed on the flames) impart a distinctive smoky flavor but relatively little heat.

   AGAINST THE GRAIN
   The grain in meat is the direction that the fibers or strings in the muscle run. With a cut of steak like London broil, it is very important to cut the meat against the grain. If you cut the meat parallel to the grain it will be stringy and fibrous in the mouth. It is always best to cut against the grain. To get nice broad slices hold a fork at about a 45-degree angle to the meat. Make cuts across the grain with a slicing knife, using the fork as a guide for the angle of the cuts, so the slices are nice and broad.



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