Kelsey Opel
Casseroles provide warm, comforting meals for a weeknight at home. But nothing’s worse than pulling your delicious dish out of the oven to learn that it’s still watery and soupy. Why does this happen? And how can you prevent this from happening?
The next time you make a casserole, salt your veggies before placing them in your dish.
This trick might seem weird, but your casserole might be watery from the vegetables. Some vegetables, like mushrooms, onions, and zucchini, release excess water when cooked.
Through osmosis, salt can soak up additional water the veggies let out while cooking. This process reduces the amount of water in your delicious casserole.
To try this out, slice your veggies and salt them in a colander. Let them sit for 30 minutes for the salt to absorb the water.
Make sure to rinse and dry them before adding them to your dish. This method will help remove some of the added salty flavors.
You’ll also want to be light on the seasoning with this trick. Salt diffuses the plant material, so it’s better able to absorb flavor. Only a little bit of seasoning will go a long way.
With the weather quickly cooling off, it’s never a bad idea to prep some casseroles for wintry days.
