Damage control every cook should know

Here are some quick solutions to common cooking problemsprovided in If It Doesn't Pan Out: How to Cope With Cooking Disastersby Barbara Bloch (Dember Books, $10.95): Chicken is overcooked or tough. Cut into cubes and serve in asalad, or hot with a sauce. Or, finely chop or grind and bind withthickener, then season and use in omelets, crepes or as a pastafilling. Moisture gets in melted chocolate, causing it to "stiffen." Add oneteaspoon vegetable shortening for every ounce of chocolate melted.

Gelatin mold begins to melt while being unmolded. Leave gelatin inmold, inverted on plate, and place mold and plate in freezer for fiveto 10 minutes. Follow unmolding procedure again. Gelatin is not fully set. Place in freezer briefly to speed settingor return to refrigerator until fully set; if it still won't set,divide in serving portions. Roast is too rare when you're ready to eat. Serve slices from eachend of roast and return balance of roast to hot oven to finishcooking. Or, slice meat and broil until done. Meat is too well done. Slice in kitchen and serve with gravy orsauce. Or, cube or dice and saute with vegetables. Or, grind upand make hash. Fish is too dry. Serve with sauce. Or, flake and use incasserole or salad. Bread is soggy. Slice and toast. Or, hollow out center and fillwith chicken a la king, crab Newburg or other mixture (such asscrambled eggs or tuna or chicken salad). Or, use for stuffing,bread pudding, stratas or french toast. Bread is too dry. Heat briefly in microwave to soften. Or, usefor croutons. Or, make bread crumbs. Or, use in any recipe thatcalls for soaked bread or layers of bread. Edge of pie crust is burned. Remove burned edge as neatly aspossible. If too ragged, camouflage edge with piped whippedcream. Cake looks terrible. Cover with icing, whipped cream, fruit, adusting of confectioners' sugar or ice cream. Or, slice off uneventop of cake and turn upside down before icing. Or, cut into squaresand top with fruit. Cake is too dry. Soak with rum, brandy or a good syrup. Or,cut into cubes and serve with chocolate fondue. Or, make an Englishtrifle. Cake is a hopeless failure. Turn into cake crumbs and use in bakedfruit desserts. Sauce is too thin. Add one of the following slowly, stirringconstantly: paste of liquid and flour, cornstarch, potato starch orarrowroot; potato flakes; pureed vegetables; beaten yolks to whicha small amount of hot sauce has been added gradually.

Or - if sauce does not contain milk, cream, eggs or mustard - itmay be possible to thicken by cooking it over high heat, but thisalso will reduce the amount of sauce. Sauce is lumpy. Remove lumps by processing in blender or foodprocessor. Sauce is too thick. Add more warm liquid slowly, stirringconstantly. Egg-based sauce begins to curdle and separate. Add one tablespoonice water or boiling water and beat hard with a whisk. Souffle breaks apart in oven, or deflates before you serve it.Divide into serving portions in kitchen and top with sauce. Vegetables are overcooked. Puree, season and serve as an elegantside dish. Or, use as base for creamed soup. Or, use as thickenerin gravy or sauce.