Is the secret of a good omelet is in the cooking or in the pan? Answer is both. Omelets, to be soft and runny in the center while smooth on the surface, should be cooked very quickly over a heat that is brisk but not too fierce. If cooked slowly, they become flat and tough and similar to scrambled eggs. To ensure even cooking, use a small, heavy-based nonstick frying pan. Better still, invest in an omelet pan, in which the base meets the side in a gentle curve to make it easier to fold the omelet and slide it out. After use, do not wash an omelet pan but simply wipe it clean with kitchen paper.

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Fresh olives are very bitter and must be 'cured' or pickled in brine to render them edible, so they are naturally long-keeping. However, when removed from their brine they will begin to go soft and deteriorate in flavor. Once the jar or can has been opened, or if bought loose in their brine, olives should be stored in the refrigerator and eaten within a few days. Those stored in olive or some other cooking oil will keep for about two weeks in the refrigerator, as long as they are completely submerged in the oil. The oil will take on some flavor from the olives and this delicately flavored oil is very pleasant for cooking.

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They are essentially the same fruit, picked at different stages of ripeness: unripe olives are green, black are fully ripe, and those with a violet tinge are picked sometime in-between. Black olives have a fruitier taste than the green and are more often used in cooking. Olives are one of the oldest processed foods known to man, and there are many regional varieties and preferences. In Spain, there are smooth, green table varieties, from large queen olives to the refined manzanilla often sold stoned and stuffed with red pepper, anchovy, orange rind or almonds. Purple-black Kalamata olives from Greece have an intense flavor, especially those allowed to ripen on the tree. The shiny Nicoise olives from Provence are small, black and wrinkled with an almost creamy taste and are often sold in jars. Kalamata and Nicoise olives are the ones most often used in cooking.

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Olive oils are classified according to their level of acidity. The first cold pressing of a high grade of olives produces the finest olive oil, with a maximum acidity level of only 1 percent and this is called extra-virgin olive oil. Further processing by heat produces more oil, which decreases in quality and flavor. Fine virgin olive oil contains a maximum acidity level of 1.5 percent; ordinary virgin olive oil of 3 percent. Plain olive oil, sometimes called pure olive oil, is made from a blend of refined oil and one of the grades of virgin oil.

Olive oil is healthy and versatile, and it is worth buying the best quality that you can afford. It is important to use virgin olive oil in sauces.

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There are more than 20 different culinary oils available, including avocado and pumpkin seed oils; in addition, there are many varieties of olive and flavored oils. Oils which are fairly neutral in flavor and can withstand high temperatures, such as those made from corn, grapeseed, peanut, rapeseed (canola) and sunflower, are best for cooking. Others, such as almond, hazelnut, sesame and walnut oils, are more suitable for flavoring foods. Some oils, such as olive, may be used for both.

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The traditional noodle for chicken noodle soup is a narrow, square tube rather than a rounded noodle, but any small, narrow egg pasta would be an acceptable substitute. The word "noodle" is confusing because although it was used in the past to describe hollow, macaroni-type pasta, today it is used when referring to long, flat Italian pasta such as fettuccine, pappardelle, tagliarini, tagliatelle or tagliolini. To complicate matters further, Chinese noodles are generally thin and round, like spaghetti.

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There are three main types: raw, cooked and dry. Raw marinades of oils and vinegar, or yogurt, are used for relatively tender foods such as chicken or fish that only require a short marination time. An uncooked marinade composed of wine, brandy, vegetables and/or herbs can be used for large joints, game and poultry. Cooked marinades, such as those using red or white wine, are used to give food a fairly strong flavor. They should be properly cooled before being poured over the meat, which is then covered and refrigerated until you are ready to cook it.

The term dry marinades is a slight misnomer, as a little oil and vinegar (or lemon juice or wine) is included. But the spices and other flavorings mixed with the liquid are firstly rubbed into the dry meat and not used as a bath in which the meat is immersed. Dry marinades are more economical, as very little oil or vinegar is used, and the marinade, plus any juices that run from the meat, is frequently used in the final dish. The function of the dry marinade is simply to flavor the meat through prolonged contact.

Whatever method you choose, turn the food frequently while it is marinating for even absorption.

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Reduced-fat products such as low-fat cheeses and creams may be used to replace full-fat varieties in some recipes. Even more surprisingly, you can reduce the fat, kilojoule and cholesterol contents of some cakes and biscuits by replacing part or all of the butter or margarine with a puree of dried fruit, such as apricot or prune. This will add flavor and texture, as well as reducing the fat.

To make 300g of puree, place 250g dried apricots or 250g prunes in a food processor or blender with 90ml water. Blend until smooth, then use in place of the butter or margarine in the recipe. With many recipes you can replace all the fat with the fruit puree, using the same number of grams of puree. But with other recipes you may find it works better to have half fat and half fruit puree. And note that the puree is not suitable for replacing fat in pastry.

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You can, but be wary as they will work only in some dishes. While hard cheeses made with vegetable oil can be used in cooking like their fattier equivalents, reduced fat soft cheeses tend to perform poorly in cooking. In particularly, they should not be used for icings or dips as the process of stirring will break down the texture of the cheese and the finished produce will be disappointingly runny.

Reduced-fat soft cheeses can however, be used in recipes such as cheesecakes and mousses which contain several other ingredients, but remember to check the flavor level carefully as these cheeses have a less assertive flavor than their full-fat equivalents.

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The brown charred lines on restaurant food are created either by cooking the food on a chargrill or by placing very hot skewers on the cooked food in a trellis pattern. Charcoal-fuelled chargrills, similar to indoor barbecues, are available for home use from some manufacturers of high quality ovens. These slot into the kitchen bench alongside the stove top. Portable electric 'chargrills' are also available from department stores.

A similar effect can be created by using a ridged griddle or pan. Chicken portions, fish, steaks, as well as eggplants, zucchinis and peppers are delicious cooked in this way.

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Celeriac is blanched before being used in a salad both to set the color and to soften the flavor.

1. Cut away the knobbly base using a strong, sharp knife. Peel the celeriac thickly and cut into slices. (If you are going to mash it, you could then cut it into chunks.)

2. Cut the slices by hand into thin strips, or shred on the julienne-cutting disc of a food processor, and put them into cold water acidulated with the juice of half of a lemon.

3. Boil water with juice from the other half lemon. Drain the celeriac and drop it in. When the water returns to the boil, take out the vegetable and run under a cold tap. Drain it and dress the salad.

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Boning a leg of lamb enables you to add a stuffing, which will give the meat extra flavor and succulence, and makes it very easy to carve. Or you can lay it flat under the grill or on a barbecue, skin side nearest the heat, where it will cook in just 15 minutes, being turned once. To ensure a neat, easy job, use a narrow, rigid boning knife.

1. There are three bones to remove: the shank bone, which juts out of the meat at the narrow end; the middle bone, which is attached to the shank bone by a ball and socket joint; and the V-shaped pelvic bone, which turns across the thick end of the joint.

2. Lay the leg fleshy side down. Start at the shank end and, holding the knife like a dagger, cut through the flesh down to the shank bone beneath. Change your grip to the normal one and cut along the bone, keeping the knife as close to the bone as possible, so as not to waste any of the meat.

3. Scrape round the ball and socket joint then cut along the middle and pelvic bones. Use your fingers to locate each bone in turn and work from both ends of the leg if you find it easier. Gradually ease the bones out, one by one. The boned meat is now ready to be stuffed, rolled and tied up for roasting.

4. To open the boned meat out flat for grilling which is also known as butterfly boning, make two further parallel cuts through the thick pieces of meat on either side of the space left by the middle bone. Beat the meat once or twice with a wooden mallet to even out the thickness, then grill or barbecue.

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There are two ways to tie up a chicken In the first, you sew up stuffed and rolled bird using a trussing needle and string, sewing across one end first, down the length of the roll and then across the other end.

Alternatively, you can fold the bird into shape around the stuffing then wrap it in a piece of muslin or a roasting net. First dip the cloth in melted butter or oil and wring out lightly. Put the stuffed bird in the center of the cloth, flap side uppermost, then wrap the cloth around it tightly, securing it at both ends with string to look like a Christmas cracker.

The cooking time should be calculated according to the bird's weight after it has been stuffed. Be sure it is fully cooked through, particularly if you have used a sausage-meat stuffing. Check by inserting a skewer into the center of the joint and the juices should run clear.

If you have wrapped the bird in muslin there is no need to baste it during cooking - but remove the cloth before the bird is completely cold or it will stick.

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Braising is a method of slowly cooking meat, game birds and poultry in a heavy-based covered pan or covered casserole, using a bed of chopped vegetables, which can also include some diced ham or bacon added for flavor. Water or stock should be added to come halfway up the joint.

Braising tends to use a slightly better cut of meat than stewing and a whole cut is generally chosen. The meat is usually fried briefly to brown it first, then placed in a pan or casserole with a tight-fitting lid and cooked either on the stove or in the oven. It cooks gently in its own juices and the steam from the vegetables, which impart flavor.

The term 'braising' is also used sometimes to mean cooking vegetables in the oven in a covered dish with a little liquid. For example, heads of celery are braised in vegetable or chicken stock.

Stewing is a method in which the added liquid (beer, cider, stock, water or wine) covers the meat and is heated to just under boiling point. This technique is reserved for the toughest cuts of meat which need long, slow cooking, and the meat is generally cut into chunks to aid the tenderizing process.

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You can bone all poultry by the same method, bearing in mind that the carcass of a turkey is very much larger than that of a chicken. Essential tools for the job are a sharp kitchen knife and a pair of kitchen scissors.

1. Put the chicken breast side down and cut through to the backbone. Feel for the fleshy 'oyster' at the top of each thigh and cut round it to remove it from its pocket, then gently scrape the flesh away from the carcass.

2. Continue cutting away from the backbone until the whole rib cage is exposed. Where the thigh meets the pelvis, cut through the sockets so that the legs stay attached to the body flesh and skin, not to the carcass.

3. Keep working right roung the bird, then use scissors to cut off most of the rib cage, leaving only the breastbone in the center. With a heavy knife, cut through the foot joints to remove the knuckle end of the legs.

4. Working from inside the top of the thigh, scrape the leg bone clean, pushing the flesh down until you can free the bone. Remove the tendons, then bone the other leg.

5. Now for the wings. Cut off the pinions (the last small one on the wing which has no real meat) with a heavy knife and scrape the wing bones clean as you did the leg bones.

6. Carefully lift up and scrape the breastbone free, working from the middle of the bird towards the tail. Take care not to puncture the skin, as there is no flesh under it at this point.

7. Keep the neck flap of skin intact, and fold it over once the chicken has been stuffed. Seal as much of the stuffing as possible, then sew up the bird or wrap it in a roasting net.

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