Do you have any good kitchen hacks?

Question

Kitchen hack: a clever technique or shortcut used by cooks, both professional and home cooks, to make food preparation tasks easier, faster, or more efficient.

My mom’s way to peel garlic is a good one. Put garlic in bowl of water and microwave for 30 seconds or so. Skin falls right off.

llorando · Accepted Answer

If you're microwave needs cleaned, nuke some vinegar water on high for a few minutes and it'll easily wipes without cleaning chemicals.

If you're butter butter is too hard, stick a glass of water in the microwave a few minutes until the glass is good and hot, drain the water and place the glass upside down over the butter, the heat from the glass helps soften the butter without it melting.

Friendlybro79 · Accepted Answer

If you have a lot of small tomatoes to cut like cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes this technique saves a lot of time. Just make sure your knife is really sharp

James The Foodie · Accepted Answer

Experimenting in the kitchen is part of the adventure. One hack that’s become indispensable for me is using a spoon to peel ginger. It scrapes the thin skin off easily without wasting the flesh. Another favorite of mine is placing a damp paper towel under a cutting board to prevent it from slipping while you chop. These little tricks make cooking smoother and more efficient! 🍽️

FreyaRed · Answer

To get better taste for a broth, I take an onion put two toothpicks in the onion cut vertically in two halves (every half with one toothpick) and roast those halves slowly directly over fire until cutting surface carbonizes slightly. It smells a little bit burn but this smell disappear after 30 minutes cooking.

To peel garlic cloves I squeeze them slightly with flat side of a knife, this makes the skin going easy away.

I use coffee machine filter bag and paperclip for spices which I don't want in soups, stock or sauces. Coffee machine filters never dissolve in hot water and are taste neutral but let all aromas trough.

Carbon steel skillets need fresh seasoning from time to time. To avoid smoke and smell of burnt oil. I put a very thin oil layer on cold skillet, then a thin layer salt and roast this salt on small flame 10 minutes long. Salt prevents smell of burnt oil while polymerization of steel surface.

I like ultra sharp Japanese knives but hate to sharpen them on sharpening stones. A ceramic sharpening rod doesn't make a mess like stones and it's easy to use. Cutting edge of a knife made of hard steel can be sharpened this way 20-30 times until sharpening stone treatment is necessary.

WhiteSteve · Answer

Here’s a good one, if you like Chinese food…

Fried rice is never the same when you reheat it. It feels dry and stiff, nothing like when it’s fresh. But Chinese food is one of the more leftover-y meals out there.

So, pro tip: you want to basically re-steam the rice. Here’s how…

Put the rice in a bowl (not just loose rice in the microwave…THERE’S a pro tip for ya🤣)…. make a little hole in the middle of the rice and put an ice cube in there. Doesn’t have to be a big ice cube, if you have a broken half-cube, that’ll do. As I’m writing it, I assume this could be accomplished with water too, but I go with the ice method. Anyway, put the ice in, and then use plastic wrap to cover the bowl, and pull it taut. Then use a fork and poke a few ventilation holes. Reheat like normal in a microwave, and the ice will be melted off and will have re-moisturized the rice, much closer to its original quality.

Another good one, if you need to separate egg whites…. use an empty plastic water bottle, squeeze it, put the mouth of it on the egg yolk, and when you let go, the bottle will suck the egg yolk out and into the bottle. It easier than juggling it through your fingers or pouring it out of the shell between the two shell-halves to separate it👍

LegoMaster · Answer

When I clean my microwave oven, I’ll get a bowl of hot water and cut a couple of fresh lemons in half and put them in the bowl of hot water and then microwave on full power for at least five minutes (depending on how dirty the microwave is). When the time is up, I’ll leave the bowl in the microwave for ten minutes. Not only does the steam break down the dirt, which you simply wipe away with a cloth, but it also leaves a lovely fresh smell, especially if you’ve cooked strong flavoured food, it removes the odour too.

Smashingdoozy · Answer

To one up the garlic... Just buy packages of pre-peeled garlic. 🤣

If you need softened butter but don't have time to let it sit out, put it in the microwave on defrost (or half power) for 30 seconds to a minute (depending on the amount)

To defrost things faster put it in a container or sink of cold water or run cold water over it (important to use cold as warm or hot water can heighten the risk of bacteria)

Taking 1/3 of your butter from a Choc chip cookie out and browning it on a stove will make your cookies tastes amazing. (So I've been told)

lilBigPotato · Answer

I don't have any since I'm mostly stealing food from my roommates. Or does that count as kitchen hack too? 🤔

Your garlic hack sounds more like a workaround. Just squash it with the flat side of a large knife. Takes 5 second and the skin can easily be lifted off. No water or microwave required. Squashing the garlic also gives it stronger flavour

blondfrog · Answer

Yes and tooting my own horn here but i've told by many that I am a great chef. The onion hack which is not mine but another one I like is put oil around the rim of when your cooking something with water that can easily erupt over the pot if your not careful. But if you put oil around the top of the rims that water will never erupt over. Also next time you make patties mix it with ground flour and put it in the fridge for at least an hour. It will make it a lot less likely for your patties to break off as your cooking it. The flour adds a nice taste to it that you wouldn't think works but it does. Make sure you mix the flour in really well with the patties obviously lol.

SleepingHazard · Answer

There's a little man in my kitchen who puts the seasoning in my dishes. It takes him a while, as he can't carry more than one grain at a time, but he's a hard worker.
@Circushowcowboy thank you for all the work you do!

LiamS95 · Answer

I just smash the garlic clove with the side of my chefs knife blade placed over the clove and hit my blade with my hand the skin separates and I finely chop it. There is a great technique most chefs use for dicing or finely chopping onions if you search youtube for knife skills chopping onions you'll find it I learned it years ago and is the only way I dice or finely chop onions. Larger onions are easier to do then small ones. Ginger peels great with a spoon.

Lynx122 · Answer

If I go to the kitchen and hack off my hand does that count? :)

Grond21 · Answer

Put a soaking wet paper towel near your cutting board when you're cutting onions and your eyes won't water nearly as much

Xawyx-2 · Answer

I have a good GaG hack: If you ask a question about food & beverages, just wait a few seconds, and James The Foodie will tell you everything you need to know about cooking, baking, frying etc... just listen to his words of wisdom 😂🤣

exitseven · Answer

I eat over the sink so I do not dirty a dish

slatyb · Answer

Buy the good stuff -- cookware and cutlery. It's expensive but it will last forever. Good cookware is easy to clean. I like All-Clad.

DishLady · Answer

Yeah. Keep my guy out of the kitchen so he's not constantly picking at the food platters I like to make till I've set them all out on the table.

lgh1998 · Answer

You can get a little rubber tube to roll garlic in and it takes all the skin straight off. It's a time sacer and it's easy and cheap. Sounds like a fad bit it REALLY works!

Spencer10 · Answer

The best hack for me is to stay the hell out of the kitchen. To quote Harry Callahan " A mans got to know his limitations" lol

Agape93 · Answer

After sharpening, strop your fucking knife. Takes a whole 30 seconds and it makes the edges even more honed

Cormac995 · Answer

Get good at using chopsticks. They are genuinely useful when cooking not just when eating.

TheSpaceGnome · Answer

I tend to avoid kitchen speed hacks, they usually reduce the food's quality.

SuperZonicGUY1992 · Answer

What you gonna cook for me beautiful 😍?

Do you have any good kitchen hacks?

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