Chicken Pot Pie Soup

Ingredients :

2 cups cooked chicken, cubed, I used 2 chicken breast & boiled them

2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

3 tablespoon butter

2-3 tablespoons flour

1 small yellow onion, finely chopped

4 celery ribs, diced

1 x 10 ounce bag frozen peas

3 carrots or 12 mini carrots, chopped

1 1/2 cups heavy cream or ½ & ½

4 cups water

2 ½ tablespoons chicken base

4 teaspoons Montreal Steak seasoning

Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions : 

Source : adashofsanity.com

Cooking Tips :

The Secrets Of Every Single Great Cook

Cooking might be one of the oldest skills in the world. That does not mean that there are any limits to the knowledge available for the cook interested in increasing his or her skills. Even the finest cooks, even professionals, can always find new recipes, methods and techniques to improve their kitchen skills.

When sauteing ingredients in a fry pan ensure that you don't overcrowd the pan with too much food. Trying to cook too much at once will only lower the temperature of the pan and lead to steaming instead of browning. It is wiser to saute the ingredients in two separate batches, if necessary, and this will maintain the quality of cooking.

Store your cheese in the fridge, wrapped tightly in plastic, and away from air. This will help to keep mold away. While a little mold is not harmful to cheese, excessive mold is dangerous to consume. It will certainly affect the quality of your cheese as well.

When sautéing vegetables using Pomace olive oil is a great substitute for butter that should be used. The Pomace olive oil is very affordable and will give vegetables a mild flavor that is quite delicious. You can purchase the Pomace olive oil at any Middle Eastern grocery store. It is low in carbs and in price which makes it extremely appealing.

Sauteing veggies in a bit of chicken broth is a healthy way you can prepare them. The chicken broth adds to the taste of the veggies and, you will not have the extra fat. This method of cooking vegetables will be tasty and rich in nutrients.

Place fruit that is not quite ripe in a plastic bag with a few small holes to allow it to ripen. The plastic helps retain the gases used by ripening fruit while the holes allow fresh air to circulate across the fruit. This also helps you keep your fruit fresh longer!

Never use oil that has been used for other foods or has been sitting in a frying pan for a long time. It will give your food a foul taste. If you are unsure if the oil is good enough to cook with, smell it and use your finger to try a little of it.

If you would like to know more about cooking, do not be ashamed to go to cooking classes. These classes can give you some really good ideas to increase your cooking skills. Many locations offer cooking classes at reasonable prices and some even give you supplies that you can bring home with you.

Spices don't last forever; replace them every 6 months. Many times, spices are kept for too long, and they lose their flavor. So, make sure that when you buy new spices go ahead and give half to either a friend or family member if you feel you aren't going to use all of it soon.

It is very important to make sure your cooking utensils are clean before you start cooking. If items are not completely clean after you put them away, you could ruin everything you cook. This can be costly because it might allow for bacteria to spread.

When you are deep frying foods, try not to fry too much food at once. Overcrowding the deep fryer, will cause the oil temperature to drop and the food will not be as crispy. The key to successful deep frying is to keep enough oil around the foods to keep up the temperature.

Olive oil is any cook's best friend. It is a very versatile ingredient and is, opposed to what many people think, not limited to just Italian cuisine. Stir fried dishes and any dish in which you would ordinarily use butter can be made better tasting and healthier when olive oil is used.

Rice is a great carbohydrate and very inexpensive. Pasta and bread are three times as much per pound than rice. Investing in a rice cooker is well worth it. Use rice as you would orzo or other short pastas.

Choose cuts of meat when roasting. Large rib roasts or tenderloin can be terribly expensive. When roasting meat, consider buying a cut of meat instead. It will save you a lot of money. Legs of lamb, turkey breasts, even pork shoulder are all capable of being just as delicious while being far more affordable.

Add flavor to your bland dishes by replacing water with a stock. Simply adding a bouillon cube to the water that you would be adding will give the same results as well. Your food will get the moisture it needs while getting an extra boost of flavor.

Never wash chicken or other poultry. Washing it with water doesn't eliminate the bacteria; washing merely spreads the bacteria around to your sink, utensils, and countertop. To kill any bacteria in the chicken and ensure that it is safe to eat, cook it to an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

For a more flavorful fried fish coating, replace the usual crackers with your favorite kind of chips. Salt and vinegar chips crush up just as nice as crackers while adding more depth to the final flavor of fish. You can also replace the usual milk dip with dressing for another pop of unexpected flavor.

Include onion in your spaghetti sauce, tacos, casseroles or other dishes without displeasing picky eaters by grating the onion before adding it to the pan. The onion will essentially dissolve into the other food, adding great onion flavor without including large chunks. Use a metal box grater for the best results.

When braising a pork butt, ribs, ham, carnitas or other kinds of pork in liquid, consider using cola or cherry-flavored soda instead of salty broth or plain water. The soda adds a bit of a sweet glaze to the meat and keeps it from drying out, and the flavor mingles well with BBQ sauces and other seasonings.

There is always something new to learn when it comes to cooking and every cook's skill-set is open to improvement. This article included just a few ideas to help improve a cook's performance. There are many more good tips out there and good cooks keep looking for them throughout their lives. Constant learning is the key to ever-improving cooking skills.