• Frozen Vegetables
• Pasta
• Potatoes
• Rice

---

Frozen Vegetables

As a general rule, frozen vegetables like peas and corn can be boiled or steamed if you are serving them on their own. Bring a small pot half-filled with salted water to a boil on high heat. When it’s bubbling, add the frozen veggies and bring to a boil again. Reduce to medium heat and boil for 5 minutes. Serve.

It is easiest to steam veggies in a microwave. Put them in a bowl with a tablespoon of water and cover with a plate or plastic wrap. Heat on high for about 5 minutes. Stir and taste test. Repeat as necessary. Cooking veggies this way keeps more of their flavour and nutritional value.

---

Pasta

Dried pasta: In most cases, drop dry pasta of your choice into a large pot with salted boiling water (enough to cover the pasta). Turn the heat down to med-high, and take the lid off or at least open it a little so that the pot doesn’t boil over. Cook for 8-10 minutes, taste testing to see when you like it. It should be a little bit chewy, but soft.

Fresh or frozen pasta: This varies a lot more for cooking time, but is usually less time than for dried pasta. Homemade fresh pasta takes only a couple of minutes, and filled pasta like tortellini takes more like 6-8 minutes. Watch the pot carefully and taste a piece every minute or so.

---

Potatoes

Boiled: Bring to a boil enough salted water to cover the potatoes. Cut potatoes into chunks, probably halves or quarters. Peeling is optional. Put potatoes into boiling water. Cook for about 15 minutes or until you can easily spear them with a fork.

Mashed: Same as above, but peel them and slice the potato thinly. When the potato is soft, drain the water. Add about 2 tablespoons of butter, and a tablespoon of milk (for 2 large potatoes) and mash with a fork or masher.

Baked: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Leave the skins on, but do wash the potatoes and take out any unpleasant bits. Stab each potato with a fork at least 6 times at various angles. Coat them in cooking oil (eg. olive oil) with a brush or by hand and sprinkle with salt. Wrap them in tin foil, and put in the oven. Time them for at least 45min, then check the largest one with a knife to see if it is soft. If not, leave them in for another 10min and repeat as necessary. They will be very hot, so be careful when unwrapping them.

---

Rice

It is recommended to soak rice before cooking for about 30 minutes, but it is not necessary for everyday meals. If you do, remember to drain it completely or you won’t get the right ratio of rice to water when cooking.

If you don’t soak it, remember to rinse it thoroughly using a sieve or a few changes of water in a pot before cooking.

For long grain or brown rice, you should use at least 1½ to 1¾ cups of water per cup of rice. If you want stickier rice, use more water, but I wouldn’t recommend going above 2 cups of water per cup of rice. For short grain white rice, use 1⅛ to 1¼ cups of water per cup of rice.

Put the rice and water into a pot with a tight lid, turn on high heat until it comes to a boil, and then turn it down to medium and cook for about 10-15 minutes or until the water evaporates. You can taste it to check if you want to add more water to make it softer, but it’s best not to take the lid off too often. When it’s done, take the pot off the heat (with the lid still on) and let it sit for at least 5 minutes before you serve it. This will make it so all the rice has the same consistency, instead of having drier rice on the top and wet underneath.