When looking to buy a knife, there are a few things you should consider. There are many kinds of knives and each one serves a specific purpose. Knives come in all price ranges and sizes and it is important to know what you need from a knife before making your purchase. There are six common pocket and folding knives:

Multi-Blade Knives- A pocket knife with anywhere between two to one hundred different blades.

Pen Knives- A small, compact pocket knife. Inexpensive and useful for the camper or hunter who desires a portable knife that takes up very little room.

Advertising Knives- Used mainly as a marketing device to get a company some recognition. They are usually given away to promote the company or product and are printed with the name of the company or product on the handle.

Figural Knives- Similar to advertising knives, except that they are typically in the shape of an animal or person. They are intended for promoting something.

Character Knives- A combination of an advertising and figural knife. Usually used to market something and are designed with a pop culture theme. They are often “limited editions”.

Miniature Knives- Smaller than a traditional knife. Can either be used for decoration or collection purposes, though they can also be used to cut as well.

Having a few good quality knives will make chopping up all your food a lot easier. Also, make sure you keep them sharp. Sharpen your knives regularly to make the prep work easier and more pleasant.

Bobbi Rose is an author for kitchen dinnerware and shares his passion for cooking. Learn some great cooking tips that you can follow to make cooking a pleasurable experience.

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That perfect recipe, or that one great cooking tips, or that informative cooking eBook, they are all as close as your computer. A search online can reveal exactly what you are looking for. There are plenty of food oriented websites and blogs, book sites, and even eBay, where excellent cooking information can be found.

A simple search on Google for the term cooking will return more than 134,000,000, while the term cooking eBook will returns a mere 1,650,000. As you can see, knowing what you want to look for really helps to narrow down the results and helps to bring more targeted information on the topic you are searching for.

Searching with a search engine can provide instant cooking help, but if you are looking for books, hard copy or eBooks, a search of online book stores and even eBay is in order. Cooking books can be found on any of the many online book stores, while eBooks (which can also be had instantaneously) can be found by searching eBay. EBooks are inexpensive books in electronic form that can be viewed and saved on your computer and usually cost considerably less than hard copy books.

Having the right knowledge when it comes to cooking can lead to better cooking and improved cooking skills. The internet can make it very easy to find the perfect recipe, a great new cooking tip, an informative cook book, or even a website or blog devoted to cooking, all you need to do is a little searching.

Jonathan Parker is the owner of The Cooking eBook website. At The Cooking eBook you can find cooking tips, the free report Master Chef Secrets… and the eBook Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Cooking. thecookingebook.com

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So you have found a great recipe, youve gone down the shops and youve bought all of the ingredients. You get back all eager to cook a great meal then you realise that you have no idea what to cook it all in. Here are a few things no budding chef should be without in the kitchen.

A good frying pan most of us will have a frying pan but few of us will have a really good one. A non-stick frying pan can really be the difference between creating a good meal and a great one.

A good knife There is a significant difference between tearing up meat or vegetables and slicing through it. Getting a good quality sharp knife will make the difference between an easy preparation of food or a difficult one.

A good quality cooker Gas is great, electric can be frustrating. Making sure you have a clean, good quality cooker can make sure that any meal is cooked to perfection.

Good pots and pans make sure they are clean, big enough for what you want to do with them and most of all make sure that they are kept in a good condition to make sure the food remains the same.

An apron You may want your food to be great but you probably dont want it to get on your expensive clothes so get a good apron and you wont have to worry about wearing your food, only eating it.

A good chopping board Make sure it is clean again, wooden ones are generally the best and make sure that they are big enough for what you want to be chopping on it with your nice new sharp knife.

Follow the steps and the only thing which could go wrong will be down to human error (which I am sure would not happen!).

Gary Kingston writes for Utterly Recipes, an online cooking guide for those who want simple & quick recipes. The site offers recipes for, amongst others, beef, lamb, vegetarian and vegetarian recipes.

We also have a really nice chicken curry recipe you may want to have a look at!

For more information please visit Utterly Recipes

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9 out of 10 Americans will eat turkey at thanksgiving this year. Obviously turkey is a time proven holiday tradition with immense popularity. And this year 8 out of 10 Americans will roast their turkeys, another time honored tradition.

But new and innovate methods of preparing turkey are on the rise, so why not surprise your friends and family this year with a little twist? After all turkey can compliment anything on the place, and is very easy to season, so its very simple to be creative when cooking. Just do a little research.

If youre new to cooking turkey, here are a few tips to prepare you for thanksgiving. Allow 1 pound of uncooked turkey per person from an 8 to 12 pound turkey. When thawing your turkey, always do so in the refrigerator and never at room temperature. At room temperature thawing meat can gather dangerous bacteria rapidly. If your in a rush, you can safely speed defrost your turkey by submerging it in a sink of cool water, changing the water every 30 minutes or so. Remember to keep it in a tightly sealed bag.

You should stuff the turkey right before roasting. Use around cups of stuffing per pound of turkey, and if your stuffing is pre prepared, keep dry and wet ingredient separate.

To judge when the turkey is ready, test the temperature in the thigh. It should be 180. In the breast it should be 170. The fluid should run clear and the drumsticks shout be soft and easily moveable.

Good luck, and may you have a happy thanksgiving.

Nathan Quigley is the owner of http://www.cookingturkey.blogspot.com, a blog dedicated to helping people make the most out of their turkeys and exploring new and fun ways to making thanksgiving lunch exciting.

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Come on. Everyone likes pizza! Wait, let me rephrase that; Everyone LOVES pizza. Can you name one other food that is so immensely popular all over the world and yet remains relatively unchanged for hundreds of years? No matter which continent you may find yourself standing on there is a good chance you can get your hands on a slice of pizza if you wanted to.

Well, I have great news for you. I am going to share pizzas success and popularity to you. There are two main reasons why people go crazy for pizza. The first and most obvious one is that its delicious. The second is that it is not difficult to make on your own and it takes very little time. To prove this, we have a really quick and easy guide for you on how to make a pizza.

Panning your pizza dough

• To “pan” pizza dough, first rub or brush the inner cooking surface of a 12″ round pizza pan with a thin layer, (about 1 tbsp.), of olive oil, then set it aside. Lightly dust your tabletop or a large cutting board with a little flour.
• Place your 15 oz. prepared dough ball in the center of tabletop. Sprinkle a little flour on top of the dough and begin flattening out the ball with your hands until it is about 1″ thick, forming as circular a shape as possible. With a rolling pin, begin rolling out a circular sheet of dough, about 1/4″ to 3/8″ thick, about 14″ to 15″ in diameter.
• Continue to dust the dough sheet with a sprinkling of flour, as necessary, to keep it from sticking to the rolling pin or tabletop. Roll from the center outward, press the pin to the top, the bottom, to the left and to the right. Repeat this process several time as the dough begins to stretch outward. You will find that its elasticity tends to want to draw it back into its original shape. This is normal.
• Place the “sheeted” circle of dough down in the center of the baking pan. The edges of the dough will droop over the edge of the pan. Starting from the center of the dough, draw the dough evenly out to the edge or wall of the pan, letting out any air trapped between the dough and the pan. The dough will conform to the shape of the baking pan.
• Trim the excess dough away from the outer edge of the pan with a dough knife, or, curl the excess inward to form a fatter crust edge.

Topping the pizza

• Ladle about 7 to 8 oz. of pizza sauce into the middle, bottom of the dough shell. Spread the sauce evenly over the surface of the dough. Spoon the sauce out to the edge of the dough sheet, leaving “un-sauced” about 3/4″ to 1″ of the dough crust.
• This exposed dough around the circumference of the pizza will allow the crust to rise and crisp more quickly than the covered dough; creating the classic, puffed up edge of the pizza. The sauce, melted cheese and toppings will be better retained on top of the pizza, not over its edge, seeping under the pan causing burning or over the pan edge into the oven.
• Next, layer the shredded cheese, about two cups, over the sauce, creating an evenly distributed bed of cheese on which to arrange your toppings.

Baking the Pizza

• Start by placing an oven rack in the middle of the oven. Turn on the oven, setting the temperature at 450 F and completely pre-heat for 10 to 15 minutes.
• After the oven is warmed up, place a prepped pizza in the center of the middle rack to allow for maximum air circulation around the pan. A simple cheese and pepperoni pizza prepared in a 12″ diameter pizza pan will bake evenly and thoroughly in a 450 F oven on the middle rack in only 12 minutes.
• Adding more toppings to the pizza adds more moisture and mass to cook through. For example, a deluxe pizza with four or five different toppings generally requires a longer baking time at a lower temperature.

Signs to look for that the pizza is ready are:

• The cheese has melted on top and is beginning to brown.
• The crust edge has browned, from a medium to a golden brown.
• Carefully lift the edge of the pizza to inspect its bottom. The bottom dough should be evenly browned.

Joel Simkhai has published numerous articles on a wide range of topics related to magazine journalism. He is currently the owner of Magsforless.com- a company that provides magazine subscriptions, and focuses on customer satisfaction.

For more information on topics such as this try looking in the pages of Shape Magazine or Fitness. Subscriptions to these magazines are available at our website, we sell a variety of cheap magazines on health and science issues along with hundreds of other magazines on any subject of your choice.

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A lot of people find that the majority of their cooking recipes come from family members such as their grandmother or mother. But for some people, this just is not the case or they would like to build their own collection.

When building your collection of cooking recipes, it is always best to have the biggest variety available so that there is always something in your collection for every occasion. And as every cook can tell you, there is no such thing as having too many as there is nothing better then wowing your guests with a meal that they will never forget.

A lot of times, people will take old family recipes and give it a little twist so that it represents something of the past and something of the future. But for some people, they could never imagine taking the cooking recipes that were passed down to them and ripping them apart. Keeping them intact is a wonderful way of remembering a loved one who has passed and to keep their memory alive and there is certainly nothing wrong with that at all.

Where to Find Great Recipes

If you are looking to add to your collection of cooking recipes, searching the Internet is the best way to go because people from all over the world can contribute giving you the widest selection of things to pick from. Also, these are sometimes rated by those who have tried it and that can give you a determination of whether or not you should even waste your time. And keep in mind, that the Internet is not the only way to go about finding new cooking recipes, as there are other ways to find that perfect addition for your collection.

There are a lot of magazines that are hitting the shelves that are solely focused on cooking in general and give its readers a lot of recipes with every issue. These can be found in almost any store and you can even subscribe to them so that you can have new cooking recipes delivered to your mailbox every single month. This is an excellent way to make sure that you have something new and exciting to prepare for your family each and every single month. And if you do not like a particular recipe that you tried, simply toss it out and try again with the next issue.

Echo Wang is a contributing Editor for cooking-tips Find out which cooking products, treatments & solutions will continue to be beautiful at any time. Our site is dedicated to providing information about cooking well options so you can continue to do it perfect, if want to more information, please visit Sumptuous Cooking

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Today is January 15, 2007 and I just lived through another power outage. This is the third one in the midwest in the last six months.

The first in July, lasted 8 days and the temperature outside was a balmy 98F Plus. No air conditioning, no refrigeration, no power for even a fan. The second, in late November, missed me for which I am extremely grateful. This latest outage was due to an ice storm on January 12, 2007 and over 150,000 homes in my area were without power. At last check there were still some 80,000. Lucky me, I was one of them. Also, Lucky me, I got my power back in less than forty eight hours.

Again I realize that most of you think I am just ranting but there is a point to this rambling.Sitting in my freezing home by myself - I sent my family to relatives homes - I realized how much I miss the taste of BBQ. I miss the backyard gatherings with family and friends and I cannot wait for the warm spring and hot summer when I can fire up the pit and cook up whatever my heart dictates - ribs, chicken, pork steaks (for those that are unfamiliar this is pork shoulder or butt cut into steaks - 3/4 inch thick is best), burgers, simple hotdogs. Potato salad & cole slaw, watermelon, beer and wine coolers. I am ready. Winter is just too dreary.

I can sometimes satisfy the urge with an electric indoor grill that I have had for years. While it is not the same as a charcoal grill (I prefer charcoal over propane) it does satisfy a need when you combine it with your favorite BBQ sauce, be it bottled or home-made. Now, just for you, if you do not have access to an indoor grill, I am going to give you my absolutely favorite recipe for getting past the BBQ urge in winter. Your can do really great BBQ chicken in the oven:

• 2 1/2 to 3 lbs. of chicken pieces - either a whole chicken cut up or pieces of your favorite parts - I usually use thighs & drumsticks as I prefer the dark meat
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1/3 cup water
• 1/2 cup ketchup - use jalapeno ketchup if you want to spice it up a bit
• 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 Tablespoon of either Dijon or Hot Sweet mustard
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon dried red pepper - like cayenne - if you want a little heat.

Heat oven to 400deg F. Arrange chicken pieces in a deep baking dish and season with salt and pepper if desired.

In a bowl combine water, ketchup, brown sugar, vinegar, mustard, worcestershire sauce, and red pepper if desired and pour over chicken pieces.

Bake about 45 minutes, uncovered, then tip the baking dish and skim off the fat.

Quality Cookware makes Better Home Cooking

This dish will take care of any BBQ withdrawal without having to stand in sub-freezing temperatures in a foot of snow. It goes well with either your best home-made or deli potato salad and a green salad or hot green beans. Use your imagination and enjoy. Whatever you would make for a summertime gathering will work here equally as well. Feel free to come and visit me at Cookware for Home Cooking or visit my Links for links to some very exciting cookbooks and cooking tips.

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Many people ask the question Which is better. Store bought or home made barbeque sauce? It really comes down to what your personal preference is but if the run of the mill taste of the bbq sauce found on grocery store shelves just doesnt cut it then creating your own secret sauce can be part of the grilling fun.

Lets face it, using the right or wrong kind of barbecue sauce can make or break your barbecue. The flavor of your meat, poultry or pork will live or die by the sauce that you choose. Barbecue sauce provides that extra kick that barbecue is known for and with the right kind of sauce any dish you prepare will taste that much better.

Lets look at store bought barbecue sauce for a moment. Weve all seen the bottles lining the shelves. They come in different flavors and colors, in small bottles and large bottles, but are they really the best choice for the ultimate in barbecue tastiness? It seems that most people are satisfied by what they offer, otherwise they wouldnt buy them. But for most people its probably just a matter of convenience. What most consumers dont realize is that barbecue sauce bought at the local grocery store is nothing more then a watered down version of the homemade sauces that make barbecue so popular in the first place.

Foods that sit on grocery store shelves have been manufactured with a long shelf life in mind. The ingredients used are chosen because they will not go bad quickly and in many cases are less then healthy. The barbecue sauce found on store shelves uses high fructose corn syrup as a sugar substitute because it is a whole lot cheaper to use than natural sugar.

While sugar is not necessarily healthy high fructose corn syrup is even less so. It is a sugar substitute that is a low grade quality food. The human body is actually unable to metabolize and break it down so when it gets to your liver it is almost always instantly turned into fat.

There is an easy way around this problem, make your own barbecue sauce. Nobody is saying that barbecue sauce is the healthiest of food products, but by making your own recipes you can cut out some of the processed foods such as high fructose corn syrup. The way real barbecue sauce is made is with natural cane sugar or brown sugar. There are also hundreds of spices and herbs readily available as well as other ingredients that if combined right can make a tasty sauce that will have friends and family asking you for your secret recipe.

You start with a basic sauce and add to it from there. A base sauce consists of melted butter, sugar and small portions of chili powder, salt, and black pepper. Once you have a basic foundation sauce made you can add some tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, maybe some onion powder. Mixing these basic ingredients in different amounts and combinations will give you a multitude of flavors to start with. After that you can start adding any number of other spices, herbs or flavorings such as lemon juice, hickory or mesquite flavoring to make a truly personalized barbecue sauce. With a little patience you can create a sauce that can compete with the best of them.

Store bought barbecue sauce will work in a pinch but for truly remarkable barbecue taste creating your own home made barbecue sauce is the best way to go.

Andrew Bicknell is a barbeque aficionado with a website about barbequing. For more tips for a successful barbeque visit his web site Backyard Barbeque.

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When it comes to that time of year that everyone is looking forward to because of the delicious food that is served, there is always at least one person that is slightly tense about it and that would be the person who is going to be cooking a turkey.

Although it really is a simple job, a lot of people tend to get a little stressed out about cooking a turkey and it is not because it is a hard job, but because the turkey is the thanksgiving dinner and many people feel that if the turkey gets ruined, that thanksgiving is ruined. Even though that is not the case, a lot of people cannot get that thought out of their minds.

Remember, that cooking a turkey is not a hard job in itself and that is a fact but it is strictly the anticipation of whether or not it is going to come out right that is the problem. But when you think about it, your oven is actually doing more work than you are so when thinking about how hard cooking a turkey is, think about how much work your oven has to go through. All you really have to do is dress it and place it in the oven and the rest of the work from cooking a turkey is done by the oven while you prepare other things such as side dishes.

The Most Important Thing

Although messing up the turkey in that it came out a little dry or without a lot of flavor is heartbreaking to some; that is not the real danger to consider when cooking a turkey. When you are getting ready to begin cooking a turkey, you have to make sure that you have fully read over all of the instructions. By not following these instructions, you are either going to have a bird that does not taste all that great or you could end up giving your guests food poisoning.

When roasting a turkey, make sure that it has reached the proper temperature of 165 degrees by sticking a cooking thermometer into it. Any reading lower then that, you need to put it back in. All in all, when those few things are followed, cooking a turkey does not have to be anything to worry about or stress over. You can do it just as millions and millions and of people before you have done it. Cooking a turkey will soon become second nature to you and you will be a pro before you know it.

Echo Wang is a contributing Editor for cooking-tips Find out which cooking products, treatments & solutions will continue to be beautiful at any time. Our site is dedicated to providing information about cooking well options so you can continue to do it perfect, if want to more information, please visit Cooking Turkey

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Chicken can be cooked in different ways- it can be grilled, steamed, fried and even barbecued. Any method you choose to cook your chicken can still result in tender juicy meat if you follow certain procedures.

One of the most useful kitchen gadget you can when cooking any meat is the meat thermometer. It allows you to determine the temperature of your meat accurately and that is the key to successful cooking.

For starters, I do recommend that you season the chicken before you begin. Brining is an easy way to add flavor to your chicken. You can varied the amount of salt and sugar to your liking. All you need to do is to soak the chicken in this salt and sugar solution before you begin cooking for about an hour and you should be set to go. All you need to do after this is to ensure that you washed off the brine and dry the meat before you cook.

Here are some ways you can choose to cook your chicken.

Microwave
Cooking a chicken in a microwave can very convenient but you should be mindful that it can result in uneven cooking.

For this method, place your chicken (should be boneless) in a microwave-safe dish. Add about 3/4 cup of buttermilk over the chicken. Add in your herbs and spices before you cook the meat on high temperature for about 10 minutes. Remove the meat from the buttermilk once it is cooked and your chicken should be ready to serve.

Sauteing
This is a fast and easy way. By ensuring that your meat is thin, you should be able to cook your meat in less than 5 minutes.

Pressure cooker
For this method, choose to add your thawed chicken to the cooker together with your herbs and spices. Add about 1/2 cup of water and you can cook it on high. Your meat should be ready in about 12-15 minutes.

Whichever method you choose, do check your meat before you serve them. The above methods should allow you to dish out a variety of mouth-watering chicken dishes from now on.

By the way, you can whip up restaurant recipes in your own kitchen from http://www.pickupcooking. Anyone can learn how to cook, even if you have not cooked before. For more cooking ideas, go to http://www.pickupcooking/cooking/.

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