Tip of the Day

BUSIENCE ACHIEVE TIP

You’ve seen it before. Every checkmark only leaves two more unfinished tasks. Your to-do list has become an living organism, spawning more and more work while leaving you less and less time to finish. Is it possible to stop your to-do list, or will it just become an unstoppable blob of extra work?

Your best weapon against the rising tide of to-do is dedicating a day to destroying that list. Instead of wandering around, attacking various projects before putting them down, you go for the kill. Set up a massive to-do list and wipe it clean.
Few things are more satisfying than after a day of ending your to-do list. Here are a few tips to get you started:

• Clear your schedule. It’s amazing how much you can accomplish if you give yourself a large chunk of time. A to-do ending day can’t be filled with all the regular errands of your life. The entire day needs to be focused on killing that list, so pick a day where you can have complete control over your time.
• Wake up early. Building momentum is critical. Even if waking up at 5 am isn’t a usual event for you, it can be helpful here. Which do you think will give you the right start: dragging yourself out of bed at ten o’clock, or forcing yourself to start moving at six?
• Collect your to-do list. If you have tasks and projects scattered over different parts of your life, you need to collect them into one list. One list detailing everything you want to have accomplished, on one piece of paper you can hold in front of you.
• Know the end. What does being finished look like? Every task should have a clear goal and purpose beyond just getting done. You can spend an entire day attacking your to-do list and accomplishing nothing if you aren’t clear on the final picture.
• Put hard tasks first. Pick your biggest and most difficult tasks and start on them first. Putting off the hard work is a sure sign it won’t get done. By putting the difficult tasks first, you also build a momentum that allows you to focus easily.
• Isolate yourself. Lock yourself in a room, unplug your phone and internet if you have to. Anything to ensure that interruptions won’t break your focus. A few hours of complete focus can accomplish what would take several days of multitasking.
• Set your rest breaks. Working continuously for several hours can be difficult to do with mentally straining work, especially if you aren’t used to it. My suggestion is to set short, but meaningful breaks in advance so you won’t be tempted to procrastinate.
• Match breaks with tasks, not time. Your breaks should match up with the large to-do chunks on your list, not at a specific time. If you plan to finish a report you expect to take ninety minutes, finish it in one chunk. Taking a break while working on a major task will only break your flow.
• Be patient when accelerating. It can take time to build up speed. When I write an article, it can take me up to fifteen minutes to get a clear idea on what I want to write. During this build-up time, the temptation is to quit or move on to something easier. Avoid that temptation and be patient.
• Give yourself meaningful rewards. If you finish your to-do list, take a break. Go out and have fun, watch a television show, meet up with friends or just stare blankly at a wall. Feeling the urge to be completely productive 24/7 is an easy way to ensure you never do.
• Does it need to be done? Cross off any items that lack long-term importance. Purify your to-do list so it only contains tasks that will be significant months and years from now. If your to-do list doesn’t seem important, it probably isn’t.
• Energize your diet. Engineer your food and exercise routine to give you the energy you need throughout the day. Eat lighter foods and avoid simple carbohydrates (which spike your blood glucose and then drop it). Drink plenty of water and eat smaller meals more frequently. Your goal is to create a diet that will keep your fuel levels even throughout the day.
• To exercise or not to exercise? Exercise is definitely a good idea. But whether you should bother heading to the gym on an intense project attacking day depends. I would say that a quick run can give you enough added energy to make up for the time loss. But if your exercise is long and prescheduled, you might want to leave it out to focus completely on your to-do list.
• Collect resources ahead of time. The night before you plan your epic battle against your to-do, prepare. Make sure you have all the right tools, information and resources to get the job done. Nothing feels worse than a half-finished list because you needed to wait on information from a third party.
• Chunk, don’t spread. Don’t spread tasks over all your waking hours like butter on toast. Intensity trumps time-management. Get as much done as possible and give yourself large chunks for both work and play. Spreading yourself too thin results in only a half-effort.

A half-day is often enough. The surprising thing about creating a to-do list day is, that if you do it right, it takes far less time than you expected. I’m usually impressed that I can accomplish my entire list by the late afternoon when I follow these suggestions.

 

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5 tips cooking

1. Throw out The Cornstarch or How To Make Proper Gravy

Gravy should not be see-through, nor should it plop and jiggle on top of your meat. It should be velvety, meaty, and not too thick. You’ve already learned the basics with the white sauce, so figure out how much gravy you want to end up with and you’re going to use roughly 1/4 to 1/2 the proportion of flour.
Cook the meat and don’t forget #2, good quality beef can be dry roasted on high heat so it browns itself, otherwise brown it first. Take the cooked meat out of the pan, put it on a plate and wrap it with saran wrap, don’t be stingy, lots of saran wrap and then a towel. It’ll stay hot and juicy. Put the roast pan on top of the burner or use 2 if your roast pan is big enough. Add or remove fat as required, but leave all the chunky bits in the pan. Generally the only time you will need to remove fat is with cheap pork (which tastes way better than loin), and poultry. Turn the burners on high or med-high if you have gas. Throw a handful of fine sliced onion into the fat, cook it for a minute or two and then throw in the flour. You want to really brown the flour, so you just keep moving it around with the spatula, its going to stick, don’t worry about it, just keep scraping it up till it gets really brown. Now it’s really hot and smoking, sticking to the spatula and the pan, and you are starting to panic, pour in a good slosh of red wine and a couple or three of cups of beef stock. Whisk it until it comes to the boil, turn it down to medium and let it cook down a bit….Voila perfect gravy. You can take the hand mixer to it, but I don’t usually bother. If you don’t have any wine you can skip it, but do add a little vinegar or lemon juice.
For poultry gravy I don’t usually use wine, just stock, but add a little bit of beef stock to your poultry gravy. It improves it immensely. You can substitute or add fine diced mushrooms with the onions for mushroom gravy. I make this without the drippings, just oil, flour, onions, red wine, and stock to have with pork chops. I kid you not, quicker than gravy in the package.

2. Breading that doesn’t stick to the pan

Thanks to the brother-in-law for this one, I tried for years and failed. Good thing I pay attention.
There are a few secrets to good breading, I will divulge them all.
You need 2 pans and a bowl, square cake pans work best because they have steep sides. Pan 1 is plain flour. The bowl in space 2 is either beaten egg whites or whole eggs. Egg whites work marginally better, but unless I’m going to make custard, I use whole eggs. Pan 2 is the breading; dry bread crumbs, seasoning (try a packet of chicken Bovril and a teaspoon of lemon-pepper for fish, I like seasoning salt, salt, and lots of pepper for pork.), and the secret ingredient, a handful of Parmesan cheese. In this instance be liberal with the seasoning. The flavor is all on the outside, and you want the taste to last the entire chew. The parmesan adds little or no flavor, other than a bit of salt, but the texture is improved immeasurably. Dredge the meat/fish in the flour, pat off the excess. Dip the meat in the egg mixture; use the side of the bowl to scrape off any excess. Plop the meat into the crumbs, use a spoon and mound the crumbs over it. Pat firmly. Flip it over and do it again. Now for the real important part; put them uncovered, in a single layer, in the fridge for an hour or so. The egg evaporates and you have a crust before you even cook it. Either pan fry in a mix of a little oil and butter, or olive oil, or alternately spray with Pam© and bake. Baking works well with stuffed chicken, no cheese leaking out everywhere, but it tends to get a little gooey on the bottom. Just scrape it off; that’s the side that’s on the plate.

3. Make Salad Dressing / Marinade

Good salad dressing requires the correct proportions; 1 part acid, 1 part water, 1 part oil. I make it in an old relish jar, but a bowl and a whisk works just as well. This is our family favorite; it works wonderfully on Greek Salad or as a marinade for chicken. Add a little extra salt and garlic for marinade. Mince 2 or 3 cloves of garlic, 1 tablespoon of onion, a good forkful of grainy mustard, a shake of Mrs. Dash, a grind or 2 of pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Squeeze a lemon over the seasoning. Lemons where I live are never fresh and juicy, they are extra tart, so I have to double the juice with water to get 1 part acid. Add the correct amount of water and good quality light-tasting (if you like the yucky green flavor of extra-virgin, go ahead) olive oil. Shake or whisk like mad, let it sit for an hour on the counter to blend flavors.
An excellent way to cook fish, skip the water, add a bunch of chopped tomato to the mix, pour over dense fish and bake…mmmmm
Balsamic dressing; sub the vinegar, omit the Mrs. Dash and the mustard and 1/2 the garlic.
An excellent dressing for layered cucumbers and tomatoes; Sub white vinegar, quadruple the onions, omithe Mrs. Dash, 1/2 the garlic, add a pinch of basil and a tablespoon of sugar.

4. Make Custard

Not the kind that goes on trifle. Lord, I get a headache just taking out the double boiler. Buy Bird’s, I can’t make it any better than that. I’m talking about baked custard. Bread pudding is custard, Rice pudding is custard. The proteins in eggs stiffen up when heated. Even soufflé is custard, the whites and yolks are beaten separately to incorporate air, but the principle remains the same. I use a proportion of 1 part egg to 3 or 4 parts milk, with a few extra yolks added in for good measure. A dozen eggs, add 3 extra .

5. Make Soup

We eat home-made soup once a week. Soup is filling, cheap, and good for you. We have it with crusty bread or brochetta.
Chicken Noodle… Skin and pick the fat from a bunch of cheap chicken legs with backs attached. Season it with a fine dusting of poultry seasoning, a generous shake of Mrs. Dash©, and a very light sprinkling of seasoning salt. (We are going to use prepared stock later). Bake on a rack at 350 until well done. Dried out even, you want most of the fat rendered from the meat. Pick the meat from the bones and reserve. Rough chop a large onion, a couple stalks of celery and a small carrot. Sauté in a bit of oil in the soup pot, add the bones, tendons, and other gross bits from the chicken. When the veggies are beginning to brown add a bunch of water. Boil for an hour or two, skim the scum and run it through a sieve. Throw out the bones, veggie bits etc. Return the reserved meat to the broth and bring back to the boil. Reduce by 1/3. Now taste the broth and add 2 or 3 or 4 cups of prepared stock, the seasoning on the chicken determines how much is required. Bring back to the boil, skim, and add a couple cups of cheap frozen mixed veg. Bring back to the boil, pop in the noodles, adjust seasoning (sometimes it needs a tsp of vinegar or a shake of Worcestershire), and serve when the pasta is done. Soups and stews are both better the next day, so make it on the week-end, just add the pasta at the last minte
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Tips

Cooking tips

Cooking Tips

When you soak rice and urad dal for idlis and dosas, wash everything thoroughly before soaking. Later use the soaked water while grinding. If you wash rice and dal after soaking you will lose most of the vitamins. Excess salt in any dish can be brought down by adding diced potatoes, tomatoes or a teaspoon of sugar. When you are making vadas, if the batter is watery - you will have the problem of oil splattering when you fry it. Add a tablespoon of ghee to the batter and your problem will be solved. Don't salt meat before you cook it. Always salt meat halfway through cooking. (little less than what is required). Then taste the meat when it is done and then add salt as needed. To thicken any gravy or soup add corn flour to it. It is an excellent thickening agent. Remember to mix it in good water before adding to avoid lumps. While making any pasta add salt to the boiling water in which you are cooking it. That will be the only chance you get to salt it. Add salt after the water boils. If you add it before , it will take a longer time to boil. To avoid sticky rice, soak washed rice in water for at least ten minutes before cooking. A teaspoon of oil can be added to get separate grains of cooked rice. While make any deep fried dish, if the hot oil starts foaming and rises in the pan, add a small piece of tamarind to the oil. This will prevent foaming and spill over. If you want to have soft idlis, do not beat the batter before pouring idlis. The air bubble sin the batter helps you to get soft idlis. Beating the batter removes these air bubbles. Chill onion is refrigerator before cutting to avoid tears. One other way to avoid tears is to soak peeled onion is water before cutting. To get crisp, golden dosas add a teaspoon of fenugreek seeds to the urad dal and grind it. To make a healthy chicken dish remove the skin from the chicken. This will remove the major fat content on the chicken. Add a pinch of sugar while cooking any green leaf vegetables. This will help maintain the bright green color. For maintaining the bright color of any vegetable don't forget to put it in ice cold water as soon as you blanch them. To keep apples from turning brown, add little citrus juice like the juice of a lemon or orange and toss apples in it. A pinch of turmeric powder added to all kinds of dal when cooking hastens the cooking process. Remove the stems from chilies before storing them. This will keep them fresher for a long time. It is better to use round dishes in the microwave oven rather than square or rectangular dishes as round dishes spread heat faster. Oil applied to dal before it is cooked helps it to cook faster by softening the proteins. Healthy tips

Healthy Tips

If you are from a family where diabetics runs in the hereditary, try having few curry leaves every morning for 100 days. This is believed to prevent diabetics Taking raw curry leaves daily helps prevent premature graying of hair. Are you having high blood pressure or excessive cholesterol - take raw garlic in empty stomach everyday. This significantly reduces blood pressure and cholesterol. Indigestion ? - Add 3-4 crushed cloves of garlic to boiling milk and drink it. It gives immediate relief. Are you having difficulty sleeping ? - Take the juice of a few coriander leaves by grinding them. Mix it in hot water and have it before going to bed. You will have a restful sleep. Mix coriander juice with buttermilk and drink it to treat indigestion. If you are anemic - add fenugreek leaves (methi leaves) to your food more often. It really helps. For cold relief - take the juice of ginger, mix it with honey and lime juice and drink it. For indigestion/acidity - drink lime juice mixed with ginger juice. Pudina (Mint) helps in digestion For asthma relief - take 3-4 cloves of garlic. boil it in milk and drink it every night. Banana helps wash fatty wastes from kidneys, is soothing to the digestive tract and helps relieve constipation and diarrhea Oatmeal helps reduce cholesterol. Regularly eating oatmeal for breakfast results in significant reduction of cholesterol in a few days Household tips

Household Tips

Store coffee powder in the freezer to retain the freshness for a long period of time. To remove greasy/oily stains from any metal, wooden or plastic surfaces, apply a dap of Vaseline over it and work the stain with your finger for a while. Then wipe it off. the stain will come off easily. Same can be done to remove grease from your hands. To easy clean greasy pans, soak the pans in hot water and then scrub it with a lemon peel and then wash it as usual. To shine silver utensils/jewellery, wash them using toothpaste. While cleaning your storage containers add a pinch of baking soda. This will help to remove all odors and cut grease. Every weak disinfect your kitchen cutting boards and knives in hot water added with bleach and vinegar. Bleach disinfects and vinegar removes odors. Beauty tips

Beauty Tips

To have healthy shiny hair, treat your scalp with a mixture of almond oil and olive oil, leave for 10-15 minutes and wash your hair. This also reduces hair loss. You can also wrap a hot towel over your head for the oil to seep in easily and also to open all your pores. Mix honey with finely ground almond paste. Add little lime juice. Rub gently on your face and neck. Rinse off with warm water. This acts as an excellent cleansing scrub. To get firmer skin, take a egg white, add little sugar to it. Wisk it and apply on face and neck. Leave for 10-15 minutes. Wash off with Luke warm water. This prevents fine wrinkles and gives a firmer skin. Cut a ripe tomato and rub it on your skin. It will become very shiny. Place slices of cucumber over your eyes to remove black circles around the eyes. This also cools your eyes and relaxes you. Placing a slice of potato over your eyes helps reduce black circles. For healthy looking skin apply olive oil or almond oil to your face everyday. Leave it for ten minutes and wash thoroughly. To remove dirt from your face make a mixture of besan/channa flour and cold milk and apply it on your face. Leave it until it dries thoroughly . Scrub slowly with your hands using lukewarm water and then wash your face. Drink plenty of water. This will automatically solve most of your hair and skin problems.