Can You Ace This Basic Home Kitchen Quiz?

There are just a few basic steps between you and a pot of boiling water. All you need to reach a full boil - or just a few bubbles breaking on the surface - is a pot, some water and the right temperature: 212 degrees Fahrenheit.

Sautéing requires high heat and minimal fat to get that nice brown doneness on your food. Its name literally means, "to jump," and that's what you should expect from food during the sauté process. There should be at least a half-inch between each piece of food in the pan.

Reviving wilted produce is as easy as putting them in a bowl of ice water and letting them soak for about 30 minutes. Through the process of osmosis, your lettuce will rehydrate and crisp back up.

Water can cause your cast iron pan to lose the non-stick coating you've worked so hard to build up - and if it sticks around, it can cause your pan to rust. For hard-to-remove stuck-on food bits, scrub your pan with a few pinches of kosher salt, paper towels and a little elbow grease.

Pinching the blade of a chef knife gives you the most control of the blade for both speed and safety. This grip, "choking up," also helps keep your hand and arm from getting tired as quickly.

You don't know how much salt is in salted butter because it varies by brand. Unsalted butter allows you to control the exact amount of salt that goes into your baked goods. Unsalted and salted butter may be used interchangeably, but with one small tweak to your recipe: how much salt you add. If you're substituting unsalted butter with salted butter, reduce the amount of salt you add by 1/4 teaspoon for every 1/2 cup of salted butter and vice versa.

A roux is nothing more than flour and fat, in equal parts (by weight), combined and browned over low heat. There are three types of roux, white, blond and brown, and all are used in gravies, soups and sauces for their thickening power. Short on flour? You can substitute cornstarch.

Whip up a quick simple syrup by simmering 1 cup of sugar in 1 cup of water, over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. This sweet syrup can be stored in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

In the kitchen, a "yield" is the amount of food you'll have when you've finished cooking it. For example, your favorite muffin recipe may yield 12 oversized muffins or 24 regular ones.

Browned avocado flesh is the result of oxidation and can be blamed on leaving your avocado exposed to the air for too long. Keeping it in an airtight container and sealing with plastic wrap will help slow that process, as will storing it with its pit to reduce how much surface area is exposed or tossing your avocado with an acid like lime or lemon juice.

About 4 ounces of dry pasta will make two cups of cooked, which is enough for two servings. Measuring long pasta, like linguine? Measure a bundle with a diameter of a quarter to get the same yield.

A teaspoon is a unit of measurement commonly used in cooking and baking, and is typically abbreviated as 'tsp.' One teaspoon is approximately 5 ml.

Remember: cook times will increase when you don't thaw ahead of time. In fact, it will take approximately 50 percent longer than the recommended time for fully thawed or fresh meat and poultry when that meat is not thawed.

Traditional mirepoix is composed of one part carrots, two parts onion, and one part celery. The mixture is sautéed in butter or oil, and it's used as the foundation for everything from soups and stews to braises and sauces. It's called "soffritto" in Italian dishes.

The 2/4 rule for leftovers is your guideline for avoiding foodborne illness. They may be cooked, but leftovers can make you sick if they sit out too long. All leftovers should be stored and refrigerated within two hours and eaten within four days.

For the best food safety and storage, refrigerators should be kept at about 32 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Generally, the door shelves are the warmest spot in the fridge. Freezers need to be much colder, down to 0 degrees Fahrenheit or below.

French Mother sauces are used as a foundation for other savory sauces. There are five main sauce preparations known as the classic five French Mother sauces, including Béchamel, Espagnole, Hollandaise, Velouté, and tomato-based sauces. Rainbow sauce, on the other hand, is a dessert sauce typically made with pineapple, candied cherries, apricot, citrus, pears and pistachio nuts.

The standard ratio of oil to vinegar is three parts oil to one part vinegar when making this salad dressing, although you can add a little less or more vinegar depending on your tastes and needs. The most effective way to emulsify your dressing is in a blender. Don't forget the salt, pepper and herbs!

Raw and in the shell, eggs can be kept for quite a long time - as long as three to five weeks - if you keep them refrigerated. Refrigerated raw egg white and yolks, though, can only be used for a few days before going bad.

Blanching tomatoes is the key to easy skin removal. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the tomatoes into the boiling water. Remove them when the skin begins to peel, after about 30 seconds, and cool them down in a bowl of ice water for a few minutes. Once they cool, you'll be able to peel them with your fingers.

First, be sure you're storing your sugar in an airtight container. Storing brown sugar with a few slices of apple or a slice of bread helps to soften a hard lump overnight. But for those who didn't plan ahead, microwave hard brown sugar in a bowl covered with a damp towel - just 20 seconds should do the trick (and not melt the sugar).

Pasta's not the only thing cooked to al dente - you can also describe vegetables and rice this way. Look for a firm but chewy bite that's more meaty than mushy.

To poke or not to poke your potatoes? Unpoked baked potatoes run the risk of exploding - it's because of how much water is in a potato. The high baking temperatures turn that water into steam, which the potato's sturdy skin traps. Too much steam build up, and the risk of busting open rises. It also helps the potato stop "squealing" during baking.

Meat cooked to a rare doneness should have an internal temperature of about 125 to 130 degrees Fahrenheit. To gauge meat's doneness without a thermometer, try learning the touch test.

Sharpening or "honing" knives requires the right tool for the job, but there's more than one way to get the job done. A honing rod, a sharpener or a whetstone can all be used to hone your knives.

The thing about used cooking or frying oil is where to put it when you're done. Hands down, the worst thing you can do with your oil is to pour it into your pipes. Pour it into a resealable container, allow it to cool and solidify, and toss it in with your regular trash, and if there's an opportunity to do so near you, used cooking oil can be recycled. Always allow hot oil to cool before tossing.

Always follow the instructions on the package. But in general, you'll need to prep 4 to 6 quarts of water for every one pound of dry pasta you're cooking. Add the pasta, stir, and return to a boil.

Because it has a lower water content than other dairy products, pasteurized butter is less susceptible to bacterial growth and safe at room temperature when it's kept in an airtight container. It may begin to develop a rancid flavor after about a week or two. Above 70 degrees Fahrenheit, all butter should be refrigerated.

Pan searing is a technique used to brown a piece of food over high temperatures, causing the sugars in the food to caramelize and the proteins to brown. It's typically something you'd do with meat, poultry or fish.

It's true; honey doesn't go bad. It can, though, with time and temperature, become cloudy and thicker, which can be cured by placing the jar in a pan of warm water.

The material your cutting board is made of will dictate the best way to clean and disinfect it. When it comes to wood, stay away from detergents that can dry them out as well as soaking, which can cause it to warp or crack. Stick with acids such as vinegar or lemon, and scrub away particles with baking soda.

Thawing meat and poultry in the refrigerator is the safest way to go, although it's the most time-consuming method. In fact, meats stored this way can be refrozen without cooking them first. Slightly quicker is to submerge the frozen turkey in cold tap water - and expect it to take about 30 minutes per pound. In a rush? Frozen meat and poultry can be thawed in the microwave, too.

Known gas releasers such as avocados, bananas and tomatoes emit a natural gas called ethylene, which is actually a hormone they produce. Storing them around other fruits and vegetables that don't produce the gas can make that produce turn soft and spoil faster than usual.

You need a whole raw egg and a tablespoon of water when making an egg wash. Whisk until smooth, and brush on top of breads and pastries to give them a glossy look.

All a garbage disposal needs to be clean and odor-free is nothing more than water - cold water and ice cubes, to be exact. The ice will knock any debris loose while running cold water flushes any leftover food down the drain.