Dinka's Cookbook

A quick word about seasoning in salads, especially main course salads and those which are going to be served cold. …

There are a myriad fillings for frittatas. The recipe was originally developed by the thrifty Italians as a way of dealing with leftovers, and turning them into a fairly substantial meal. One of the more ‘famous’ fillings is leftover spaghetti bolognaise! …

Dishes that curdle easily, or that need even gentle cooking are best cooked in a bain-marie in the oven. …

I’m not really a great soup maker, so didn’t think it necessary to make a separate section for soup. These are just the couple of regular recipes that I use. …

Use the touch test to determine the ‘doneness’ of the meat.
Give the steak a deliberate prod with your forefinger. If the steak is rare it will be soft to the touch and an indentaton will be left. Medium-rare steaks are still soft to the touch, but spring back a little. Medium feels firm with a definite spring-back feel, and well-done is very firm, b …

Always test the doneness of loaves by turning out and rapping on the base with your knuckles. The loaf will sound hollow when cooked through.
Personally I always like a well-browned, crisp loaf of bread, so I invert the loaf onto a baking rack about 5-10 minutes before the cooking time has elapsed, and replace it in the oven upside down on the rack.
The beauty of c …

Using yeast isn’t difficult and it is very satisfying to make real bread.
Bread made with fresh yeast seems to have the best flavour, but dry yeast is also excellent. Instant yeast works, but bread made with it tends to dry out very quickly, and the flavour isn’t as good.
Fresh yeast is dissolved in blood heat liquid – place a little of the liq …

A piece of meat will cook more evenly and be much easier to handle if you tie it with string before cooking – at also stops the meat from disintegrating during a lengthy pot roasting procedure.
Two pieces across the width tied tightly and knotted and another two across the length are all you need. You can buy special string from speciality shops for this pu …

To get thin professional looking slice, cut the meat with a very sharp knife, when cold, and then reheat it in the sauce. This applies to any pot roast, as a pot roast tends to tear or fall apart if you try to slice it thinly while hot.
However ther is nothing wrong with a pot roast that is cooked and served immediately, and cut in thicker slices; it just looks more rus …

These days a salad is often served as a starter, and I have included some salad recipes in the starter category. …

Some of these pasta salads, especially the ones with cheese in them, are substantial enough to make light vegetarian meals …

Personally I don’t really like pasta salads – my feeling is that pasta is meant to be eaten hot. However, I seem to be in the minority as most people seem to really like them. …

It is possible to keep avocados from discolouring for quite a while using the following method. …

There seems to be a mystique about using gelatine, but a long as you remember a couple of simple rules it’s easy-peasy. …

Just a quick note about salads made with cooked vegetables. In most instances …