What are the best practices you’ve learned to save time or make a meal better.
Ok I might get downvoted to oblivion but I use MSG. It enhances the flavors so much that I have stopped going to restaurants.
Edit- I did my research and found no credible source that says MSG is harmful.
Edit2- If you go to a restaurant or order KFC chances are they use MSG as well
Anti-MSG propaganda actually comes from Asian racism, and was born out of the idea that Chinese food with its MSG was causing headaches and other health effects that were entirely made up. MSG is perfectly fine for you, and it makes a ton of things even tastier. I use it all the time in home cooking.
There is nothing wrong with MSG. It being bad for you is made up by racists.
Uncle Roger agree with you!
Hahaha true
Biggest hack? Realizing that humans have been cooking for millennia, and that it’s in the best interest of big business to convince you that it’s difficult/expensive/extremely complicated.
You don’t NEED the fancy equipment every company out there is trying to sell you.
Not everything needs to be gorgeous on the plate, or a whole production to make.
The poorest people in the world cook delicious food every day.
For instance, you don’t need NEED a +$150 Japanese chef knife to cook at home. What you need is something that can hold an edge through general maintenance, a whet stone, a kitchen towel to dry off your blade immediately after you hand wash it, and a little bit of patience.
IKEA sells some surprisingly great single construction (steel blade, steel handle) knives, and their single body chef knife is like $25. Just get an honing rod for use before you start slicing, and a whet stone for periodic sharpening (there’s TONS of YouTube videos of all the different ways of sharpening your knife), and remember to wash and hand-dry after you’re finished. My chef knife cost me barely anything, and I’ve used it for years and years, and it still slices through a tomato without a problem. Also, I only cook for myself, so I can absolutely 100% guarantee my whet stone will “outlive” me.
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Not exactly a mandoline, but I used to work at a place with a cheese slicer named “Old Nubby.” It had blooded the entire team at least once.
Legend has it the blood was never cleaned off either
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Each one of them did after nubby took its toll
Mandolines are not you friend. They thirst for blood.
Seriously if you get one get a safety mandoline like the once for all brand.
Or pair it with a pair of kevlar gloves or similar. But yes, every commercial cook I know says the worst kitchen incident they’ve seen involved a mandolin.
Can confirm.
If you’re American, you don’t want to have to pay an ER bill when you slice the tip of your finger off, like I did.
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Alton Brown recommends a Kevlar glove when using a mandolin.
Yup, two big and noticable scars on my fingers now. Didn’t lose digits thankfully. If I use that thing ever again I’m using the guard and just cutting what’s left with a regular knife.
If you cook by using a cooking recipe you can be creative (within reason). If you BAKE by following a baking recipe stick to the letter!
I teach my kids that cooking is art and baking is science. You have to be precise with measurements in baking, not so in cooking.
Don’t be afraid of spices. Use more than you think is necessary. Onion and garlic can make a meal 100x better.
Agree. Especially the onion 🧅
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To each their own
Replace everything plastic with glass.
Any brand recommendations? My pyrex lids are all cracked. Probably shouldn’t have put them in the dishwasher…
Generally I completely agree, but I do have an embarrassingly large number of deli containers in various sizes. Great for leftovers or drinking water.
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chicken (or vegetable) broth in lieu of water to cook rice.
I cannot stress this one enough. This turns simple white rice in practically a risotto. And if you REALLY want to make a risotto, you’re just three steps away from this.
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- Nothing goes on a plate without being tasted
- If it’s too sour, add sugar
- if it’s sweet and you haven’t added acid, add a splash of vinegar.
- if it’s too hot, add fat
- if you burn it, throw it out.
- IF you taste it early, it should taste weak. If it’s fantastic when when it starts to simmer, it’ll be too harsh once it’s reduced.
- Taste it and it tastes empty or boring? Smell it. Smell all your herbs/spices on hand, which ever one it smells the closest to, add a healthy pinch and salt if it doesn’t taste salty already.
- know your oils and use the right ones. Olive oil can handle some heat and is great for savory, grapeseed is almost flavorless. Canola has a distinct flavor that doesn’t go with everything.
- season your meat before you cook it.
Only thing I’d add is that, on 8, learn what rancid oil smells like. Most people keep things like olive oil in poor conditions (that’s without us even getting into quality of oil, or how people buy FAR MORE oil than they’ll reasonably be able to use), and the oil goes bad far faster than they think it will.
Use a meat thermometer! All your meat will come out perfect, without being under or over cooked.
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Imo this is the single most important tip that made me cook better. Get one of the instant-read ones, they are worth the money.
Also, flatten your chicken so it cooks evenly.
I hate the idea of a “hack” but:
Don’t worry too much about making sure all cuts are uniform and everything is cooked to the exact same level. Yes, restaurants pride themselves on that and so do many of the youtube chefs (who got their start or even still work in restaurants)
You aren’t making hundreds of plates a night where two people on a date might think it is “unprofessional” that their green onion bits aren’t uniform.
And the advantage to doing a more rough chop is that you tend to get a much greater variety of texture. Obviously you don’t want that for everything, but getting that sudden burst of scallion flavor in one bite can really keep a meal “interesting” and so forth.
And it also makes life a LOT easier and means you can focus less on mise en place and more on not making a weeknight meal take 3 hours.
There are still people who don’t user probe thermometers. This is the single best cooking tip I can give:
- Get a probe thermometer (preferably a fast reading one).
- Use it.
- Know your temps.
Bake bacon on cookie sheets at 375 for about 20 minutes. You can make a ton of bacon very quickly, with almost no mess, and all the bacon is perfectly flat. We have a double oven and we can make about 4 pounds of bacon in about 30 minutes this way. :)
And then save the bacon grease in a jar to add to gravys! I add a tablespoon or so to my sausage gravy for biscuits and gravy and it is freaking delicious. Can also use it to grease a cast iron pan before making a pizzookie for a little extra flavor.
Cookiesheet bacon on the best! If you uike it crispy it heups to broil it for a minute or so atthe end of cooking it.
Does this not splatter all throughout the oven?
Yes and no. A substantial amount of grease will be aerosolized and condense on the interior of your oven when it cools. It’s nasty looking and the next three cakes you bake will taste slightly of bacon. You can decide whether that’s a bug or a feature.
If I could figure out how to make my electric smoker get to 375F I would only do bacon outside in the smoker as I essentially have to clean the over every time I do bacon in it. And, yes, you can smoke bacon. It’s not bad, but it also is a bit more like jerky than the crispy bacon I like. Again - bug/feature territory.
I just throw bacon on the barbecue at the same time as my burgers. It takes almost the same amount of time to cook, and it’s super crispy - just how I like it.
No, it does not splatter throughout the oven.
I do pretty much the same but at a lower temp (~350F) so it doesn’t hit the smoke point. I also prefer my bacon a bit floppy instead of crispy.
Taste as you go and taste everything! Understanding how the components of your meal taste is a great way to make yummy things. It also helps you learn how ingredients manifest in the end result and will help you expand your cooking versatility
Mise en place! Clean as you go.
This one is a little bit of a hot take, but bottled lemon or lime juice is good for consistency. While fresh will most certainly be better, you may inadvertently juice a bad lemon/lime and potentially ruin a dish. Bottled juices can last a bit longer in the fridge.
Similar, but more situational argument for tinned fruits/veggies. Sometimes, the consistency is more important than the freshness.
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Speaking of canned tomatoes, there can be a huge difference between brands. If canned tomatoes make up the bulk of the recipe I prefer to spend a little extra.
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