Getting the most from your food

• To get the most juice from a lemon, microwave it for a few seconds and roll it in your hand.
• Store dried herbs in air-tight containers. Whole spices last about twice as long as ground. Ground herbs flavor goes bad after a year.
• If substituting fresh herbs for dried, triple the measurement.
• Do not store eggs in the egg tray in your fridge. The box the eggs comes in help preserve them and keep them from acquiring icky smells.
• Whole-wheat flour and cornmeal go rancid just after a few months because of the natural oils. Use zip lock bags and freeze and store in freezer if you go through them slowly.
• Nuts will keep fresh in the freezer for at least a year.
• Flavorful oils (like olive and toasted sesame) will become rancid after several months. Keep toasted sesame in the fridge, and olive oil in the fridge. Avoid light and heat.
• Don't keep neutral oils (like canola and vegetable oil) for longer than 6 months. If in doubt, heat a little oil in a skillet, if the smell is off throw it away.
• If brown sugar goes hard, throw in a piece of bread and it will be soft in the next few hours.
• Never put chocolate in the fridge or freezer. Milk and white chocolates will keep up to 6 months. Semisweet, bittersweet, and unsweetened chocolate are fine for one year.
  

Credit for most of these tips come from:
"Home Cooking the Costco Way"
"Publish your own Cookbook"