Life School

📍 Introduction

Boiled cauliflower is a great dish to master because it is so versatile. It can be added to other dishes, or served on its own with a sauce or some toppings. It’s nutritious, filling, relatively low-cost & delicious when cooked right.

🧂 Ingredients & Equipment:

* 1 head of cauliflower

✔️ Instructions: 

* Boil water in a large pot & season to taste 

* Gently rinse/wash the cauliflower before adding to the pot

* Cook until knife-tender (~5-7 min)  

* Cool, butcher, serve. 

📝 Notes, Tips, Tricks

* If the pot is small, trim the cauliflower stem to ensure it fits with room to bubble. You can also break up the head into florets 

* Roasting a cauliflower can take 30 min - 2 hrs. Boiling is faster. 

* Boiled cauliflower can be added to soups, stews, salads, curries, etc

* Sample toppings: Pesto, Hummus, Chimichurri, Tomato Sauce, Olive Oil/Lemon/Salt, Tahini, Vinaigrette, Green Goddess, Cheese Sauce, Curry, BBQ, Teriyaki, chopped fine herbs, parmesan cheese, toasted croutons/bread crumbs or nuts. 

🎓 Further Studies: 

* How an Israeli Chef's Cauliflower Recipe Took Over the World

👉 Next Lesson: 08: Practice - Boiled & Mashed Sweet Potato

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📍 Introduction

Mashed sweet potatoes can serve as a nutritious, filling, and economical addition to many meals. While you can also bake or roast sweet potatoes to soften them, boiling helps retain their moisture, which prepares them well for mashing. 

🧂 Ingredients & Equipment:

* 2 sweet potatoes/yams

* Veggie Scrubber (like these) or a clean scouring pad (like these)

* Large fork or potato masher (like this) 

✔️ Instructions: 

* Boil water in a large pot & season to taste 

* Rinse potatoes & scrub off dirt  

* Add to water. Let cook ~20 min or until a knife easily pierces the skin 

* Remove & drain. Let cool or rinse with cold water. Remove skins.  

* Mash with a fork or potato masher 

* Add oil/butter & salt (optional) 

📝 Notes, Tips, Tricks

* To prep sweet potato cubes instead, remove skins with a veggie peeler, chop into cubes and boil until tender. 1-inch cubes will take 12-15 min, 2-inch cubes 20-25 min.

👉 Next Lesson: 09: Seasonal Vegetables You Can Boil

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📍Introduction

Some vegetables must be cooked to be enjoyed while others simply benefit tremendously from it. Boiling is a safe and fool-proof way to soften and intensify the flavor of many vegetables.  

🧂 Ingredients & Equipment:

* Vegetable(s) of your choice 

✔️ Instructions: 

* Boil water in a pot large enough to hold your chosen vegetabe

* Season water & add vegetable 

* Remove from cooking water when a sharp knife can steadily pierce the densest part evenly  

📝  Notes, Tips, Tricks

* This vegetable Cooking chart provides guidance on timing 

* A bowl of boiled vegetables can make a lovely light meal or snack with the right toppings & a side of toast or soup. 

* Popular toppings include: butter, olive oil, herbs, cheese, lemon zest, garlic, nuts, salad dressing. 

* For next level vegetable boiling, try seasoning the water with herbs (e.g., parsley, thyme, dill) or other tasty items (e.g., garlic, ginger, lemon)  

🎓  Further Studies/Resources: 

* Seasonal Vegetables You Can Boil [Life School]

* Vegetable Cooking Chart

* Seasonal vegetables by region

👉 Next Lesson: 07: Practice - Creamy Cauliflower 

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📍 Introduction

Pasta cooked to perfection is heavenly. Having just the right amount of texture and bite is possible with a few easy steps. 

🧂 Ingredients & Equipment:

* Dried pasta 

* Colander or strainer 

✔️ Instructions: 

* Boil water in a large pot. Leave enough room to avoid overflow

* Season water & add pasta 

* Set a timer to 3 minutes less than indicated on the box

* Taste by using a slotted spoon and cooling the pasta with tap water. Al dente will feel chewy and firm.

* Drain. Serve with sauce/toppings. Enjoy! 

📝 Notes, Tips, Tricks

* If you plan to cook the pasta further with a sauce, remove ~2-3 minutes earlier

* A single serving is 2 oz or ½ cup dried. This is ~200 calories. For 4-6 people use one pound (a standard box or bag) worth ~1600 calories.  

* If storing, toss with a little olive oil to reduce sticking. Reheat in microwave for ~1 min, or by blanching in hot water 

* If mixing with a sauce, reserve ~ 1 cup of cooking water. It can be used to loosen the sauce without diluting flavor 

* Remember - you can always cook pasta longer, but you can’t uncook it. If you need to cook it longer, add some liquid back in.

📓 Pasta Add-Ins Reference Guide

* Sauce: tomato/marinara, bolognese, cream, cheese, pesto, olive oil, butter, lemon 

* Cheese: parmesan, ricotta salata, pecorino romano, feta, ricotta

* Cooked vegetables: practically anything

* Nuts: Pine nuts, chopped walnuts/almonds

* Herbs/Aromatics: Garlic, basil, oregano, chives, thyme, parsley

* Spices: Red pepper flakes, nutmeg, black pepper  

* Crunch: Breadcrumbs or smashed croutons

* Leftovers (e.g., chicken, sausage, beans, vegetables)

🎓 Further Studies: 

* 9 ways you’re cooking pasta all wrong

* Tips for storing cooked pasta  

* If You Want Perfect Pasta, "Al Dente" Is Actually Overcooked

* 68 sauces that aren’t marinara

👉 Next Lesson: 06: How to Boil Vegetables

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📍 Introduction

* When you cook one ingredient (e.g., pasta) in another ingredient (e.g., water), both elements must taste good on their own before combining 

* Seasoning is the process of adding salts, herbs, or spices to food to enhance the flavor. It most commonly refers to the use of salt and is essential for ensuring that food is tasty from the inside out 

* The salt in seasoning helps food taste brighter and more like themselves (as opposed to noticeably bland)

* Properly seasoned water tastes like seawater 

🧂 Ingredients & Equipment:

* Kosher Salt  

* Ramekin & measuring spoon

✔️ Instructions: 

* Boil 4 cups water  

* Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the water 

* Taste (carefully). 

* Add salt gradually until the water tastes like pleasant seawater

📝 Notes, Tips, Tricks

* Do not use table salt for cooking. It contains iodine, which releases a noticeably metallic taste when heated. Kosher salt is cleaner & economical (~$3 for a 5 lb box). It’s best to choose one brand (e.g., Morton’s or Diamond Crystal) & stick with it. This ensures you are familiar with how salty your pinch is. More info here. 

* Salt the water only after it’s boiling to ensure it dissolves completely. Use a wooden spoon for safer tasting. 

* Don’t shake salt from a bottle into something - it’s impossible to track how much is coming out. 

* Most chefs keep kosher salt in a little bowl or ramekin within reach of the stovetop. This makes salting by hand easy & efficient. 

* Memorize what 1 teaspoon and 1 tablespoon look & feel like in your hand for faster measuring in the future 

* If the water is too salty, remove some with a cup and add more water. Having a filled, heated electric kettle on hand helps ensure you have hot water at the ready for adjustments

* Contrary to popular belief, salt does not impact the speed of reaching a boil. Add enough, however, and the temperature will go up by 1 degree

* Fun fact: human saliva is .5% salt by weight, meaning food at a lower salinity tastes bland. Following this logic, you can “perfectly” season a pot of soup by weighing it and adding .5-1% of its weight in salt 

🎓 Further Studies: 

* You're Not Crazy: There IS a Difference Between Morton's and Diamond Crystal

* Not all salts are created equally

* How Much Salt To Add to Boiling Water?

👉 Next Lesson: 05: Practice - Pasta Al Dente

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“If this is coffee, please bring me some tea; but if this is tea, please bring me some coffee.”  - Abraham Lincoln

📍 Introduction

Coffee is a great pick me up, and many people love to start their day with it. Here is a simple way to make coffee at home. 

🧂 Ingredients & Equipment:

* Ground coffee

* Cone filter papers like these

* Ceramic coffee dripper

* Filter papers (make sure the size # matches your cone) 

✔️  Instructions: 

* Boil water

* Rinse the filter & paper to rid it of papery taste & heat the vessel

* Bloom the coffee: Pour in enough hot water to cover grinds, let them froth (aka “bloom”) for 45 seconds

* Slowly pour in rest of hot water & let finish dripping

* Flavor to your liking! Sip. Enjoy. ☕️

📝 Notes, Tips, Tricks

* The “golden ratio” is: 1-2 tablespoons coffee per 6 oz water; adjust to taste

* Storing coffee: try to keep whole beans in an opaque, airtight container away from light, heat & moisture

* For ultimate freshness, grind beans each time you make coffee. Here is an article by Wirecutter on Coffee Grinders. 

🎓 Further Studies: 

* Trade Coffee’s “How To” section has excellent tutorials for alternative methods for making coffee (e.g., Coffee Maker, French Press, Cold Brew) 

👉 Next Lesson: 04: How to Season Water

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Today’s lesson is 328 words, a 1 min 18 sec reading time. It is the second lesson of How to Boil Water.

📍 Introduction

A proper cup of black tea is hard to come by. Most shops don’t heat their water to boiling, which is required for proper steeping of many types. Tea steeped below boiling is often weak, light in color, & flavorless. Avoid this situation and make a perfect cuppa by following the instructions below. 

🧂 Ingredients & Equipment:

* Black Tea (loose suggested) 

* Vessel for steeping (e.g., mug, teapot) 

* Strainer or tea ball (something like this) 

✔️ Instructions: 

* Boil water

* Warm the mug & strainer (swirl & then dump some hot water)  

* Add ~1.5 teaspoons of tea (or a tea bag)

* Pour boiling water over tea

* Let steep for 3-5 minutes 

* Remove tea & flavor to taste 

💡 Variations

* Herbal: Prepare like black but steep longer (5-10 min). A lid or saucer can help keep the tea warm

* Green: *Do not* use boiling water or tea will burn & taste bitter. The suggested temp is 167-176°F for Green and 176-185°F for Oolong. Chart of temps here. 

📝 Notes, Tips, Tricks

* Popular flavorings: Honey, milk/cream, lemon, artificial sweetener

* Black tea has about 50% the caffeine of drip coffee (~50 mg/cup)

* Once opened, tea starts to degrade and lose flavor. Store in a dark airtight container away from light or heat for max 2 years. 

* Health: Tea has many health benefits & can help various ailments. (e.g., pepper or ginger for indigestion, chamomile for sleep). Learn more here & here.

* Organic is recommended as tea cannot be washed prior to drinking.  Learn more here.  

🛒 Purchasing Recommendations

* Online Shops: Teabox, Red Blossom

* Teapot

* Tea spoon 

* Tea Infuser

* Tea Storage

🎓 Further Studies: 

* {BBC} How you've been making tea WRONG your entire life

* {UK Mirror} 5 steps to the perfect cup of tea

* {The New Daily} The nasty chemicals lurking in your cup of tea

* {Spruce Eats} Best Green Tea Types for Beginners

* {Spruce Eats} What Is Black Tea? Benefits, Uses, & Recipes

* George Orwell's 11 Tips for Proper Tea Making

👉 Next Lesson: 03 - How to make Drip (aka Pour Over) Coffee

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This lesson is 394 words, a 1 min 34 sec read time. It is the second lesson of How to Boil Water.

📍 Introduction

Boiling water has been the ultimate symbol of hearth & home for over 15,000 years. Researchers trace the roots of cooking back to Ancient China & prehistoric Spain, where our ancestors tossed scraps of meat, bones & vegetables into vats of water heated by fire-warmed stones. 

Today boiling water is a whole lot easier. Nonetheless, may you find equal awe in the magic that happens when boiling water & food meet. So without further ado - and without boiling the ocean 😉- let’s get started! 

🧂Ingredients & Equipment:  

* Fire (or electric heat-source) & water 

* Medium or large stockpot (3.5qt +). Examples: Budget; Investment; Splurge; Extra Lids

* (Alt) Electric kettle: Budget; Investment; Splurge 1; Splurge #2

✔️Instructions: 

* Fill a stockpot with cold water about three-quarters full  

* Turn heat to high

* Place lid on the pot to keep heat from escaping  

* Check every so often until bubbles are large, continuous & bursting at surface 

* Upon boiling, remove the lid to keep water from boiling over

📝Notes, Tips, Tricks: 

* Timing: Track the time it takes for your favorite pot to reach a boil -- it will make future meal prep planning easier. 

* Efficiency: Electric kettles make boiling water faster & simpler. You can also use one simultaneously alongside or prior to stove boiling to speed things up. Conversely, to buy yourself extra time, heat water on a lower temperature. 

* Hot debate: While hot tap water boils faster & is tempting to use, most cooks advocate for starting with cold. Hot water can pull minerals/heavy metals from pipes, as well as pick up flavors from the water heater. (Learn more here) 

* Elevation: At sea level, water boils at 100° C (212° F). For every 500-foot (150 m) increase in altitude, water's boiling point is lowered by approximately 0.5° C.  

* Microwave: You can safely boil water in a microwave-safe dish (e.g., glass, ceramic). Do not cover, and be careful of “superheating” (where the water can suddenly & explosively bubble over upon being touched post-heating). To avoid this, stir the water every 1-2 minutes until the water is visibly boiling inside the microwave. 

* Safety: Handle pot carefully & with mittens or burn-proof gloves. Boiling water can create 3rd-degree burns. 

* A watched pot will boil. 🙃

🎓Further Studies: 

* Everything You Ever Wanted to Know (Plus More!) About Boiling Water

* Why You Should Always Use Cold Water in Your Kettle

👉 Next Lesson 02: How to Make Tea

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This lesson is 502 words, a 2 min 0 second reading time. It is the first lesson of Cooking Without Recipes and the introduction to How to Boil Water.

“There is a prevailing theory that we need to know much more than we do in order to feed ourselves well. 

It isn’t true. Most of us already have water, a pot to put it in, and a way to light a fire. This gives us boiling water, in which we can do more good cooking than we know.”

- Tamara Adler, An Everlasting Meal: Cooking with Economy and Grace 

Like a writer, an aspiring home chef may at times become “blocked.” She stares into her cupboards and fridge and thinks to herself, "I have nothing to eat! What will I do?!" 

Tamara Adler addresses this moment in The Everlasting Meal. She writes, "instead of trying to figure out what to do about dinner, you put a big pot of water on the stove, light a burner under it, and only when it's on its way to getting good and hot start looking for things to put in it! In that act, you will have plopped yourself smack in the middle of cooking a meal.”

Since reading that sentence in Tamara’s book, my approach to cooking has changed. When I can't think of what to make, I put a pot of water on the stove to boil. I then look around my cupboards, freezer, and fridge for things that might go well in it. Pasta, rice, sweet potatoes, broccoli -- the list goes on of ingredients commonly on hand, that transform beautifully inside a pot of boiling water. 

Boiling, while perhaps not the most glamorous cooking method, is reliable, practical, and provides workhorse-style leverage. While a few things *don’t* boil very well (e.g., meat, dairy), a tremendous number of food items turn out deliciously. 

In this course, “How to Boil Water,” you will learn the three main types of moist-heat cooking -- boiling, simmering & steaming. These cooking techniques can produce a wide array of foods - from mashed sweet potatoes to soft boiled eggs. 

In terms of ingredients to get started with, you’ll need tea loose or a bag, ground coffee, kosher salt, olive oil, a head each of cauliflower & broccoli, two sweet potatoes, pasta, and some eggs. 

For gear, you’ll most importantly need a large stockpot (wide enough to hold two sweet potatoes comfortably). You’ll also need a sharp knife, a slotted spoon, some tongs, a colander/strainer, a large bowl, and a tea/coffee brewer. 

We all have moments where we think we can’t do something. The task at hand is too great, our knowledge too sparse, our energy (or pantry) reserves too low.  In those moments what we need is something practical, reliable and easy to manage. A pot of boiling water is just that. 

I hope that this course helps you feel more comfortable and confident in the kitchen. Even better, I hope it becomes like that pot of water -- something handy and useful that opens up a new world of delight in the kitchen.

Best of luck & bon appétit! 

~ Michelle 

Chief Researcher, Life School

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