Peeling and Chopping Garlic
Here’s a write up with detailed pictures from an Irish site The Lazy Cook about how to peel and chop garlic:
Chopping Garlic can be done Goodfellas style with a razorblade. The idea there is to chop it so thin that it just dissolves when added to the oil in a pan. It looked good in the film but frankly it takes too long.
See here for the full article: Chopping Garlic – how to
It’s a nice website with only a few recipes, but certainly “Cook Like a Guy” style. However, you can’t leave comments, as there is some captcha bug.
Preparing Eggplant
Eggplant is somewhat problematic to prepare for cooking, since it is bitter and turns often mushy. What is done often to draw out some of the bitterness and fluids, is to slice or dice it, lay it out on some paper towels, carefully sprinkle some salt over it and cover it with another layer of paper towels. After about 30 minutes a lot of the moisture has been soaked up by the paper towels and it can now be cooked. Adjust your recipe for the amount of salt you’ve already added in this step