1. To stop peeled fruit such as apples, pears or quinces going brown, drop them in acidulated water. To make this, squeeze the juice of half a lemon into a bowl of water.
2. To peel an apple, start at the stem end and, with a peeler or small knife, peel round and round, removing the skin in one long strip, if possible. Put the apples in the acidulated water as you peel them.
3. To core an apple, place it stem side up on a board. Hold it firmly in one hand and push an apple corer down the middle of the apple. Take care to keep the corer vertical. Twist slightly to remove the core.
4. You can fill the hole of cored but unpeeled apples with dates or raisins and a little honey or brown sugar and bake them in an oiled dish with a little water at about 200degC for an hour. Serve as a dessert with ice cream, cream, yoghurt or custard.
To make an apple or tomato peel rose for decoration: If you have a strip of apple peel, you can coil it up into a rose. Dip it in acidulated water to stop it going brown. If necessary, hold the rose together with a toothpick.
Daniel Pfyl, hospitality management lecturer at Otago Polytechnic, shares some professional techniques to make your cooking easier.
This week, how to peel and core apples.
If you would like to request a particular technique, please let us know. Write to Trick of the trade, Editorial Features, Otago Daily Times, PO Box 181, Dunedin or email odt.features@odt.co.nz with trick of the trade in the subject line.
To check earlier Trick of the trade columns visit: http://www.odt.co.nz/news/tags/trick-trade. More information on cooking from Otago Polytechnic can be found on www.otagocookeryl4.blogspot.com
