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I am 48 years old, and have been cooking since I was around 15 years of age. My problem is I cannot get a pork roast to come out juicy. It either gets burned on top, comes out dry as the Sahara Desert, or pink. What am I not doing or overdoing, or should I simplify my question simply by saying HELP?
I love a good pork roast and would be over thrilled if I could cook one myself, and have it presentable enough so that my wife and two grown children would agree to partake in a meal with me. -- Gerald S.

A: Like you, I had real trouble keeping today's leaner pork moist when cooking. Yes, the pork chop you buy at the meat counter today has much less fat than its counterpart from 25 years ago, but that slimming has come at the expense of moisture.

The secret to tender pork is simple: brine it! You'll notice that some grocery stores sell "always tender" pork cuts. These come already brined, essentially, and you're paying the per-pound price for the weight of the brine as well as the meat.

You can find a stellar recipe for pork chop brine at the Good Eats Fan Page site in the transcript for the episode titled "Pork Fiction."

Brining not only brings flavor into the meat, it helps keep it moist during cooking. Once you've brined a chop, just like brining a turkey, you'll never want to go back. Trust me.

Q: Should I put sea salt in a grinder or use it as is? The crystals are so large. -- Bill Poole

A: Those big crystals are what makes sea salt special. They allow it to impart little "bursts" of saltiness to your meat, fish or fowl when sprinkled on top. If you use it in a soup or sauce, the crystals will of course dissolve easily.

For much the same flavor with a lot less cost, use large-flake kosher salt.

Q: Loved your detail explanation of preparing pumpkin for soups, pies, etc.
Would you give the same explanation for cooking with leeks. I want to try to make a potato and leek soup but not sure about proper washing and cooking with leeks.

A: The biggest thing to remember with leeks is to wash, wash, wash them thoroughly. Dirt gets EVERYwhere inside them, especially down between the large, green leaves.

Trim the darker ends of the leaves, as they have a stronger and less-pleasant flavor.

Leeks are often used in soups, or in braised dishes. They cook much like cabbage, responding well to long exposure to low-to-moderate temperatures. Beware of overcooking, as that will turn them squishy and slimy. When I make vegetable soup, I add the leeks after the onions, garlic and bell peppers have sauteed, and cook them for about three minutes before I add the stock and the rest of the ingredients.

Q: When I'm making Bundt cakes, as they cool they seem to collapse, so much so, that it almost looks like a layer cake. Can you give me any clues as to why this happens? Thanks! -- Ashani M.

A: Collapsing upon cooling is not an uncommon problem. The most common cause is uneven mixing of the flour and leaveners. I like to sift mine together after measuring just to make sure I've got a good mix.

Also, make sure you don't overbeat your batter once you add the flour. That will form gluten, which will keep it from rising properly.

And finally, be sure to add your eggs one at a time! Beating them in one by one helps add air to the mix, and gets the most out of your egg whites.

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