A Smart Girl's Guide: Cooking. Patricia Daniels

got on your

      favorite shirt!

      Rule #4 Keep clean. The first thing to

      do every time you cook is wash your

      hands with soap. The last thing is wash

      the dishes—and your hands again. In

      between, be careful to keep raw meat

      and eggs away from other foods so

      that germs don’t spread. Always wash

      your hands after touching them—and

      countertops and any tools, too. (Tap

      Keeping It Clean to learn more.)

      Rule #5 Be cool. Hot

      stove tops, ovens, and

      microwaves can burn you,

      even if they don’t look hot.

      Handle hot stuff only with

      an adult’s permission and

      only with that adult stand-

      ing right there with you.

      Rule #6 Be patient. A

      watched pot never boils, they

      say. More important, you’re

      more likely to hurt yourself

      if you’re in a rush. So take all

      the time it takes, and make a

      pledge: “I solemnly promise, no

      cutting corners with safety!”

      Rule #7 Stay sharp. Don’t pick

      up a knife unless you have an

      adult with you AND you know

      how to handle it safely. (Tap

      Handling Knives to learn more.)

      pots & pans

      Pots and pans come in all shapes and sizes. Like Goldilocks, you want to

      pick the right one—not too big, not too small, but juuust right.

      Also called a frying pan, a skillet is a shallow pan used to cook foods

      on the stove top. Some have nonstick coatings. Some have sloped sides,