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The Reluctant Gourmet Website Established 1997
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Two small ceramic dipping bowls side by side, one filled with soy sauce, one with tamari

Tamari vs Soy Sauce: What’s the Real Difference and When Does It Actually Matter?

looking directly into an open oven with two visible rack positions

Oven Rack Position Guide: Top, Middle, and Bottom — What Goes Where and Why

A bowl of perfectly cooked, deep fried agedashi tofu

Agedashi Tofu: Get the Crust Right, However You Cook It

Whole watermelon with slice cut out

Watermelon — Nutrition, History, and How to Pick One That’s Actually Ripe

a person taking a bite of an incredible homemade meal at a real dinner table, eyes gently closed during an authentic involuntary "yum" reaction

Where Does the Word “Yum” Come From? The Answer Goes Back Further Than You’d Think

Couch Potato Expression Explained

What Does “Couch Potato” Mean? The Surprisingly Specific Origin of the Expression

A wide bowl of chicken and broccoli stir fry over steamed jasmine rice, golden-edged chicken thigh strips and vivid green broccoli florets

Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry with Cashews & Oyster Sauce

A wide bowl of Korean beef stir fry over rice noodles

Korean Beef Stir Fry with Kimchi — and Why It Works

A thick slice of rustic meatloaf on a wide white ceramic plate

Meatloaf Niçois: A French Chef’s Provençal Twist

A sauce pan filled with steaming liquid

A Better Steaming Liquid — and Why It Makes a Real Difference

A large bone-in prime rib roast with a deep mahogany crust, elevated on a bed of whole carrots and halved onions in a heavy black roasting pan

How to Roast Meat and Vegetables Perfectly Every Time

Pan Roasting Technique

Pan Roasting: The Technique That Does Two Jobs at Once

A collection of various asian sauces

Asian Cooking Sauces: A Home Cook’s Guide to the Essentials

convection steam oven with the door open during cooking, complete one-oven dinner inside including salmon fillets, roasted baby potatoes and asparagus

One-Oven Meals Using Steam and Convection

Bucatini alla Amatriciana Sauce

How to Make Bucatini all’Amatriciana the Right Way

Classic Tuscan Pici Pasta

Regional Italian Pasta: Which Shape Goes With Which Sauce and Why

Four types of canned tomatoes

How to Choose and Use Canned Tomatoes Like a Cook

Classic Caesar salad plated in a wide shallow white bowl, whole romaine leaves rather than chopped, shaved Parmesan curls

Caesar Salad from Scratch — Dressing, Croutons, and Why the Bottle Doesn’t Come Close

Arugula Salad

Salad Greens Guide: Types, Flavors, and How to Use Each

A rustic Italian farmhouse table set outdoors in a vineyard, a bottle of Chianti and two glasses of red wine beside a wooden board with prosciutto

What Is Terroir and Why Does It Matter for Food and Wine Pairing?

Ingredient Equivalents and Conversions

Best Food Ingredient Equivalent and Conversion Guide

beautifully organized kitchen conversion station, stainless steel measuring cups and spoons, digital kitchen scale

Kitchen Conversion Calculator: Your Must-Have Kitchen Tool

Adding oil to a pan.

Understanding Oil Smoking Points: A Comprehensive Guide

Lobster Fra Diablo Recipe

The Secret to Great Lobster Fra Diavolo at Home

Side-by-side comparison of fresh mushrooms and dried mushrooms on a rustic cutting board.

Mushroom Conversions: How Much Fresh, Dried, Canned, or Powdered Do You Need?

tomato conversion scene on a white marble kitchen counter

Tomato Conversions — Fresh, Canned, Paste, Cups, and Pounds Explained

A perfectly seared ribeye steak in cast iron skillet

The Truth About Searing Meat and Juiciness

Pan Fried trout Recipe

How to Cook Rainbow Trout Fillets — Pan-Seared, Skin-On, and Done Right

Jersey Steamers Recipe

Steamed Clams With Garlic and White Wine

a rustic wooden kitchen table showing neat side-by-side rows of dry grains transforming into cooked grains

Dry to Cooked Grain Conversions (Because Every Grain Is Different)

Burgundy Sauce Recipe

Classic Burgundy Sauce Recipe — Red Wine, Shallots, and Demi-Glace

A beautifully plated dish of Veal Marsala on a large, elegant white plate

How to Make Veal Marsala the Right Way — Technique, Timing, and the Real Sauce

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About

I’ve been cooking seriously since the mid-1980s — self-taught, a lot of trial and error, and genuinely interested in why things work in the kitchen. I started this site in 1997 because I couldn’t find cooking writing that explained the reasoning. Still at it.

G. Stephen Jones at a food hall Full story →

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