When is pesto past it
How long can I store homemade pesto? Can I make it in advance, or must it be used the same day?
Pesto is always best eaten fresh, but it will keep for up to five days in the fridge in a sealed pot. To make sure it keeps its flavour, top up with olive oil to act as a seal, then drain off the excess before using it. The commercial stuff keeps longer because it has been pasteurised, but it doesn't have anywhere near the oomph of homemade.
Corked wine: to bin or not to bin?
Can I use slightly corked red wine for anything - gravy or marinade, say - or should I pour it down the drain?
The short answer is, if a wine isn't fit to drink, it isn't fit to cook with. However, to give a fuller answer, corked wine smells musty, and that's caused by a chemical compound called 2,4,6-trichloroanisole (TCA for short), which is sometimes formed within a cork by mould. The level of smell varies, and the moulds rapidly dissolve into the wine. It won't do you any harm; it just takes the joy out of drinking. The only thing I'd do with seriously corked wine is pour it down the drain (that's if I can't be bothered to take it back to the shop and swap it for another bottle), but if it just tastes flat and dull, and hasn't yet developed that off-putting smell, you can use it in cooking because heat changes its chemical structure.
If it ain't broke ...
I have some pudding rice in my cupboard -can I use it in savoury dishes, to serve with curries, etc?
Of course you can, but the question is, should you? There are no formal rules, but different varieties of rice behave in different ways when cooked, so should be put to different uses. For example, paella rice, which is dry, won't do for a risotto, which should be creamy; and risotto rice won't do as an accompaniment for curry because it doesn't go light and fluffy. I have made rice pudding in a risotto style, using milk instead of stock, and rather nice it was, too, but not a patch on my mother's. So pudding rice is best reserved for old-fashioned rice pud - the stuff of dreams.
Mushrooms: the nutritional lowdown
What is the nutritional value of mushrooms, and do they count as one of our five a day?
I assume we're talking about your average, shop-bought mushroom, or those deliciously fleshy field and horse mushrooms you get in autumn - 100g of those will give you 13 calories, 54.6 kilojoules and 0.5g of fat. It turns out they're a good source of phosphorus, magnesium, potassium and selenium, naturally low in sodium and a good source of fibre. To make up one of our five a day, you need to eat 14 button or three or so handfuls of slices. But all that's before you fry them in butter, which you also have to take into account.
Wasabi, part II
The other week (25 April) I failed to track down fresh wasabi for a disconsolate lover of this eye-watering Japanese condiment. Once again, you lot leaped into action.
"I've seen fresh wasabi root at the stall next to Black & Blue in Borough Market, London - I think it's called the Gourmet Mushroom Company. The roots were a little scrawny compared with the ones I've seen in Japan, but may be worth a try!" Bless you, Beverley Clark.
"I recently received a gift package from Tasmania, from Shima Wasabi (shimawasabi.com.au). Fresh wasabi is the most delicious thing I've tasted in ages. I'm not sure if they post to the UK, but it's worth a shot." You're a wonder, Christie Connelly.
"Try Poyntzfield Herb Nursery (poyntzfieldherbs.co.uk - search under "horseradish", "Japanese" or "wasabi". I've got one - it takes twice daily watering, and shade, but the root does the job." David Paylor, you're a sweetie.
Thanks, too, to Keiko Dickinson, Patrick Carpenter, Elisabetta (no surname) and Graham Thomas.
