Whether you’re a master chef for a restaurant or just in your kitchen, it’s always good to know kitchen and food hacks on the go. You never know when it might come in handy!
To help you with your food and kitchen knowledge, we have compiled 20 hacks for your entertainment.
Some of these tips are obvious or hacks you already know. Others might make you think, “Huh, why didn’t I think of that?”
Regardless, I hope you find some of these hacks helpful or interesting. Maybe you can impress your family and friends with your stellar culinary knowledge this holiday season.
1. Cook eggs without a stove top or pan
We’ve all been there: rushing out of the house to take your kids to school, to make that morning meeting, or to meet that pressing deadline.
But in your rush to leave the house, you realize you forgot to fuel yourself with a morning meal. That, or you grabbed a banana or yogurt on the way out, which isn’t the most glamorous breakfast out there.
Well, now you can spice up your breakfasts by making instant eggs in your office microwave. All you need are eggs, a plate or a bowl, and something to stir depending on how you like your eggs.
In mere minutes, you can have scrambled eggs or sunny side up eggs at the convenience of your office. Follow the instructions in the video above and voila. Hopefully this hack will help put a pep in your step for those dreadful Monday mornings.
2. Freezing meat for later? Cut it into sections!
Wholesale grocery stores like Costco sells you pounds of ground beef. Unless you’re cooking for a large party or some very hungry people, odds are you won’t need all of the meat at once, or immediately, so you’ll put that extra meat in the freezer.
But why defrost all the pounds of ground beef when you only need a small part? Especially when a small part defrosts much faster?
Cut your ground beef into sections so you only break off the specific amount you need. Problem solved!
3. Remove stray eggshells with wet fingers
Did you crack an egg and get more than just the egg white and yolks out? No worries. Simply dab your fingers in water before removing the egg shell bits. The water acts as a magnet so the egg shell can stick to your finger when you reach for it.
4. Rewind time to make limp celery crisp again
Simply cut off the top and bottom parts of the celery (cut off the celery from the root if it is still attache), and put the celery stalks in a jar or pitcher of ice-cold water. The cold temperature will re-crisp the limp celery.
This handy trick also works with other vegetables too, such as broccoli, spinach, lettuce, cauliflower, and asparagus.
5. Use an egg slicer to slice mushrooms
There’s more than one way to slice a mushroom. You can also slice strawberries or other little foods with this method too!
6. Use nonstick cooking spray when measuring sticky ingredients
Certain recipes call for a specific amount of honey or peanut butter. However, getting all of the contents out of the measuring cup can be a hassle. Remove this frustration by using nonstick cooking spray.
7. Don’t worry about doing kitchen math in your head
Use this handy conversion chart instead.
8. Use your hand to check when your meat is done
Do you like your meat cooked a certain way, but you don’t have a thermometer on hand or it decided to stop working? No worries. Use this handy (pun intended) little hand trick instead.
Follow the pictures as shown, and feel the way your palm gets firmer depending on which fingers are pressing. Then compare that same pressure to the firmness of the meat. This will give you an idea of how cooked the meat is.
9. Use a grapefruit spoon to scrape garlic skin off
The sharp edges of the spoon will help you dig at those pesky crooks and corners.
10. Defrost meat on an aluminum tray
The best way to defrost meat is in water. However, if you can’t submerge your frozen meat in water, use the next best thing – an aluminum tray.
The aluminum acts as a heat conductor that will shorten the defrosting time by 30%, a much faster method than using a ceramic plate or plastic cutting board.
11. How to use one cake to serve dozens of people
Hosting a party but not sure how to make sure everyone gets a slice of cake? Simply cut a circle in the middle of the cake and slice around the circle. This will give you nice, sturdy slices for everyone to enjoy.
12. Vacuum seal storage bags with a straw
Use a straw to suck out any excess air in a Ziploc bag. Removing this extra air helps protect the food and keep it lasting longer. Note: don’t use this method on red meat.
13. Make potato chips in the microwave
Have a craving for chips but don’t want to run to the store or preheat the oven? Use a microwave.
14. Easily scoop out ice cream from a muffin tin
Gone are the days of struggling to scoop out ice cream from a very frozen carton. Simply pre-scoop softened ice cream into muffin tins, freeze them, and take them out when you’re ready to scream for ice cream.
15. Make cheese-grating easy
Spray your cheese grater with cooking spray so any cheese, hard or soft, slides easily down the grater.
16. Slice a red bell pepper like a pro
Use the technique shown in the video above to be the envy of chefs everywhere.
17. Speed up time for ripening your bananas
Bake bananas in 350 degree heat for 5 to 7 minutes for riped, gooey, yummy bananas.
18. Use a straw to get out wine cork pieces
This tip will especially come in handy if you’re not the best wine opener. Place the straw in a bottle or glass and put one end on a piece of the wine cork. Cover the other end with your finger and lift. This creates a vacuum to remove the stray cork piece.
19. Make creative molds with brown sugar
Fill a tray with brown sugar and use any household object to leave an imprint for the mold of your choosing. The sugar makes a rustic, imperfect finish. Flour is another molding material too.
20. Use a hanger to hold your cooking book
Now when recipes call for two hands, you don’t have to worry about constantly washing your hands to flip through the cookbook. A pants hanger would the ideal hanger to use, and you can dangle the hook from a knob or shelf.
I know I’ll definitely be using some of these kitchen and food hacks in the future. I hope you found the hacks interesting too!
Please SHARE these clever hacks with your friends and family.
