Food Preparation and Cooking Skills
What you must understand
Know the methods of cooking: moist (boiling, simmering, steaming, stewing, poaching), dry (baking, roasting, grilling, toasting), fat (shallow frying, deep frying, sautéing) and microwave. For each, state the effect on food, nutrient losses and suitability.
Learn preparation techniques: weighing and measuring, chopping and cutting terms (dice, slice, julienne, mince), mixing (creaming, folding, beating, whisking, kneading), and combining (rubbing in, binding). Understand why each is used - folding keeps air in, kneading develops gluten, creaming traps air in fat and sugar.
Know the effects of cooking: starch gelatinises, protein coagulates, fibre softens, colour changes, flavour develops, micro-organisms are destroyed and some vitamins (especially C and B group) are lost.
Traps in questions
- Describing a method without stating its effect on food.
- Forgetting that boiling vegetables in lots of water leaches water-soluble vitamins - steaming or stir-frying preserves more.
- Mixing up simmering (gentle, small bubbles) and boiling (rolling bubbles).
- Ignoring safety in frying - hot oil and water cause spitting and burns.
Worked rule of thumb
When describing any cooking method, use the pattern method → how it works → effect on food → nutrient/safety point. Four short sentences cover the usual four marks.