Interesting factoids about salt and water

Simple table salt has a great number of uses other than simply seasoning your food. The following list will give you 50 uses of salt, many of which you probably didn't realise. I can't verify that all of these are 100% true so best to take them with a pinch of salt.

1. Add salt to green salads to prevent wilting
2. Sprinkle salt on your shelves to keep ants away
3. Soak stained hankies in salt water before washing
4. Put a few grains of rice in your salt shaker for easier pouring
5. A tiny pinch of salt with egg whites makes them beat up fluffier
6. Rub salt on your pancake griddle and your flapjacks won't stick
7. Soak fish in salt water before descaling; the scales will come off easier
8. Soak wrinkled apples in a mildly salted water solution to perk them up
9. Test the freshness of eggs in a cup of salt water; fresh eggs sink; bad ones float.
10. Add a little salt to your boiling water when cooking eggs; a cracked egg will stay in its shell this way.

Soak your nuts in salt brine overnight and they will crack out of their shells whole. Just tap the end of the shell with a hammer to break it open easily

11. Use salt to clean your discoloured coffee pot
12. Use a mixture of salt and lemon juice to clean piano keys
13. Mix salt with turpentine to whiten your bathtub and toilet bowl
14. Soak toothbrushes in salt water before first use; they will last longer
15. Boil clothespins in salt water before using them. They will last longer
16. Clean your iron by rubbing some salt on the damp cloth on the ironing surface.
17. Pour a mound of salt on an ink spot on your carpet; let the salt soak up the stain.
18. Add a little salt to the water in which your cut flowers will stand and they will last longer.
19. Clean brass, copper and pewter with paste made of salt and vinegar, thickened with flour.
20. Adding a little salt to water when cooking foods in a double boiler will make the food cook faster.

To fill plaster holes in your walls, use equal parts of salt and starch, with just enough water to make a stiff putty

21. Use salt for killing weeds in your lawn
22. Rinse a sore eye with a little salt water
23. A dash of salt enhances the taste of tea
24. Salt improves the taste of cooking apples
25. Eliminate excess suds with a sprinkle of salt
26. A dash of salt in warm milk makes a more relaxing beverage
27. Before using new glasses, soak them in warm salty water for awhile
28. Dry salt sprinkled on your toothbrush makes a good tooth polisher
29. Mildly salted water makes an effective mouthwash. Use it hot for a sore throat gargle.

Soak your clothes line in salt water to prevent your clothes from freezing to the line; likewise, use salt in your final rinse to prevent the clothes from freezing

30. Clean greasy pans with a paper towel and salt
31. Freshen sponges by soaking them in salt water
32. Milk stays fresh longer when a little salt is added
33. Sprinkle salt in your oven before scrubbing clean
34. Gelatin sets more quickly when a dash of salt is added
35. Add raw potatoes to stews and soups that are too salty
36. Fruits put in mildly salted water after peeling will not discolour
37. Rub wicker furniture with salt water to prevent it from yellowing
38. Soaked discolored glass in a salt and vinegar solution to remove stains
39. Soak enamel pans in salt water overnight and boil salt water in them next day to remove burned-on stains.

If a pie bubbles over in your oven, put a handful of salt on top of the spilled juice. The mess won't smell and will bake into a dry, light crust which will wipe off easily when the oven has cooled

40. Salty water boils faster
41. A dash of salt improves the taste of coffee
42. A pinch of salt improves the flavor of cocoa
43. Sprinkle salt in milk-scorched pans to remove odor
44. Salt and soda will sweeten the odor of your refrigerator
45. Cover wine-stained fabric with salt; rinse in cool water later
46. Sprinkle salt between bricks where you don't want grass to grow
47. Add a pinch of salt to whipping cream to make it whip more quickly
48. Mix 1 part salt to 4 parts alcohol to remove grease stains in clothing
49. Remove odors from sink drainpipes with a strong, hot solution of salt water.

Now you know everything there is to know about salt. They even made a movie about it ;)

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COMPETITION: LG Electronics is calling all foodies to enter the 2011 LG Life Tastes Good Championship

SO you think you are a food wizard? Why not show us your culinary expertise by entering the LG Life Tastes Good Championship 2011.

The entries for this year’s national LG Life Tastes Good Championship 2011 are open to all aspiring food lovers.  So get together with a mate, submit a team recipe to www.lgcooking.co.za and stand the chance of winning the 2011 LG Life Tastes Good National Championship title. Also up for grabs is a LG SolarDOM oven each, the grand prize of R30 000 to share, and winning team the opportunity to represent South Africa at the regional finals in Dubai. Entries close on 12 June, so get ready for the cook-off that may just make you famous!

If you fancy yourself a foodie, aspire to be a Nigella Lawson or Jamie Oliver, and your friends can’t stop raving about your culinary skills, then the LG Life Tastes Good Championship 2011 cooking competition is just for you. LG Electronics is again hosting the LG Life Tastes Good Championship, an unique international cooking competition for aspiring foodies, recognising innovative, nutritious and most of all, delicious recipes created by everyday people.

The LG Life Tastes Good Championship is the Idols of cooking shows with renowned local celebrity chef, Jenny Morris (a.k.a. the Giggling Gourmet) as the judge of the contest. The host of the show will be well-known 702 presenter, Kieno Kammies. The top teams will compete on DStv’s Home Channel with the winning team claiming the title, an LG SolarDOM oven each as well as R30 000 to share. The winning team will represent South Africa in the regional finals in Dubai and possibly the global finals in France.

The theme for 2011 is "The World On Your Table by Lightwave", and participants will focus on preparing their winning recipes using LG SolarDOM Oven. This has been designed for health-conscious and eco-friendly consumers, with lower power consumption and faster cooking times, for healthier meals and a healthier planet.

The LG Life Tastes Good Championship is the only cooking competition globally that is endorsed by renowned organisations such as the World Association of Chefs Societies and Le Cordon Bleu.

Entries are now open for non-qualified chefs, so don’t delay, get your cooking buddy and recipe together and visit the LG Life Tastes Good Championship site for entry details and terms and conditions. Entries close on 12 June 2011.For mobile users please access the competition details at http://m.lg.com/za/promotion/promotion.jsp

• The LG Life Tastes Good Championship 2011 will be televised on DStv’s Home Channel from mid-August.

- Submitted on behalf of LG and Meropa Communications

PRAISE THE RAYS: Higher electricity bills power a surge of interest in solar power

THE sun is possibly the most untapped resource we have. The amount of solar energy produced by our bright, burning star is enough theoretically to power the planet forever; or until it decides to give up on us and fizzle out entirely.

The total solar energy absorbed by Earth’s atmosphere, oceans and land masses is about 3 850 000 Exajoules (EJ) per annum. In layman’s terms, the amount of solar energy reaching the surface of the planet is so vast that in one year it could produce roughly twice as much power as that which could ever be obtained from all of the Earth’s non-renewable resources (coal, oil, natural gas and uranium) combined.

Solar power can be harnessed at different levels around the world depending on geographical location. Basically, the closer a place is to the equator, the more potential­ solar energy is available. Unfortunately, the erection of entire solar power plants is not cheap, but there are ways that we can all do a little better to harness this clean, renewable energy­ source.

I always imagine my future home as a green embodiment of eco-friendliness - a home with a rooftop covered in solar panels. These would be used to heat water, power lights and store excess energy in batteries. Solar geysers are great for water heating and can save a lot on your electricity bill — especially­ if you like taking long, hot baths.

Unfortunately, a solar geyser will set you back about R17 000, but it can cut your monthly electricity bill by up to 40%. More importantly, a solar geyser could cut your carbon emissions by three tons per year. This is according to SolarTech, one of South Africa’s major­ solar businesses that specialises in solar-powered geysers.

The Sun Ray Cooker

The average household electricity consumption, according to Eskom, is 1100 kWh per month, with an estimated eight percent of consumption ascribed to the stove in your kitchen. The Sun Ray Cooker offers an alternative to using a conventional oven.

THE SUN RAY COOKER

If you like the idea of using solar power and are interested in testing the rays, the Sun Ray Cooker is a great affordable start. This solar-powered oven consists of a couple of pots and a reflective box. Simply placing food inside the box and leaving it in the sun for a few hours, slow cooks food to perfection. It is said to be great for stews and can even bake bread.

Natural temperature build-up cooks the food and the cooker can feed up to six people. Generally, a slow solar cooker takes twice the time to cook a meal that a conventional stove does, but the Sun Ray Cooker can save you up to 8% on your electricity bill.

November is the perfect time to make use of such solar-powered devices as we’ll be getting an average of 10 hours of sunlight a day here in sunny South Africa. Even winter sunshine is sufficient for perfect cooking results, says Herman Warren, chief executive of Sun Ray Cooker. The Solar Cooker combo sells for R900.

Prices on solar-powered devices are gradually dropping, yet solar power for individual homes is not nearly as cheap as it should be in this country. But it is certainly a great investment if you wish to go green in 2011.

What should really happen is that solar power be made compulsory for homes of a certain size. Like the power-saving light bulbs we got previously, this Christmas we should get solar panels — freely installed by power-hungry Eskom.

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DID YOU KNOW ...

Cooking Tips: In the kitchen ...

• Store opened chunks of cheese in aluminum foil. It will stay fresh much longer and not go moldy.
• Heat leftover pizza in a nonstick pan on the stove on medium-low heat. This keeps the crust crispy.
• If you take bananas apart they will not ripen as quickly if you were to leave them connected at the stem.
• Make scrambled eggs or omelettes taste richer by adding a couple of spoonfuls of sour or heavy cream or cream cheese, then beat.
• Before pouring sticky substances like peanut butter or honey into a measuring cup, rinse it out with hot water and don’t dry before pouring in the goo.
• Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating than peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom which are firmer and better for cooking.

Household Tricks: Around the house ...

• Use a wet cotton ball or Q-tip to pick up small bits of glass which are not easy to see.
• Eliminate a foggy windscreen or windows using a blackboard eraser. Works like a charm.
• Hairy legs? Use some hair conditioner to shave. It leaves legs smoother than a baby's nether region.
• To open a sealed envelope without tearing it, place it in the freezer for a couple of hours.
• Wet torn bits of newspapers and layer them around the plants, overlapping them as you place. Cover with mulch and forget about weeds.

And just for fun: 8 amazingly simple home remedies ...

• If you can’t fix it with a hammer, you’ve got an electrical problem.
• Avoid arguments with the females about lifting the toilet seat - use the sink.
• If you have a bad cough, take a large dose of laxatives. then you’ll be afraid to cough.
• Avoid cutting yourself when slicing vegetables by getting someone else to hold the vegetables while you chop.
• If you’re choking on an ice cube, simply pour a cup of boiling water down your throat. presto! the blockage will instantly remove itself.
• A mouse trap placed on top of your alarm clock will prevent you from rolling over and going back to sleep after you hit the snooze button.
• You only need two tools in life - Q20 and duct tape. If it doesn’t move and should, use the Q20. If it shouldn’t move and does, use the duct tape.
• For high blood pressure sufferers ~ simply cut yourself and bleed for a few minutes, thus reducing the pressure on your veins. remember to use a timer.

If you have any of your own cooking tips or household tricks you would like to share, please do!

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