35 tips from professional chefs that are total game-changers

If you want to look like a pro in the kitchen to impress family and friends, then this one is for you. Learn cooking tips from chefs before whipping up a dish so memorable they’ll ask for more. Let’s get started with:

Bloom Spices in Fat

To intensify the flavor of spices, professional chefs often “bloom” them in oil or butter. This involves heating spices in fat over medium heat until they become fragrant, which helps release their essential oils and enhances their flavor in the dish.

Resting Meat

After cooking meat, it’s important to let it rest for a few minutes. This allows the juices, which are driven to the center by the heat, to redistribute throughout the meat, resulting in a juicier and more flavorful cut.

Cold Eggs in Baking

Using cold eggs in certain baking recipes, like for rich, dense cakes or pastry dough, can create a tighter emulsion and prevent the batter from getting too loose, leading to a richer texture in the final product.

Salt to Boost Sweetness

Adding a small pinch of salt to sweet dishes can enhance and balance the overall flavor profile. Salt reduces bitterness and allows the sweet flavors to shine more brightly.

Acid Brightens Dishes

A splash of vinegar or a squeeze of lemon juice can cut through richness and balance flavors. This is particularly useful in heavy, creamy, or fatty dishes.

Use of Fish Sauce

Fish sauce is a secret weapon in many savory dishes. It adds umami and depth without imparting a strong fishy taste, especially when used in small quantities.

Anchovies for Depth

Anchovies can be dissolved into sauces, dressings, and stews. They provide a savory depth of flavor, known as umami, without leaving any trace of fishiness.

Tempering Chocolate

Properly tempering chocolate involves carefully melting and cooling it to stabilize the cocoa butter crystals. This gives the chocolate a glossy finish and a firm snap when broken.

Deglazing for Flavor

After cooking meat, adding a liquid like wine or stock to the pan and scraping up the browned bits (fond) creates a flavorful base for a sauce.

Preheating the Pan

Preheating your pan before adding oil or food ensures a better sear on meats and prevents sticking, especially important for stainless steel and cast-iron cookware.

Mise en Place

This French term means “everything in its place.” It refers to the practice of measuring, cutting, and preparing ingredients before starting to cook, which streamlines the cooking process and reduces errors.

Toasting Nuts and Grains

Toasting nuts and grains in a dry pan or in the oven before using them in recipes enhances their natural flavors and adds a pleasant crunch.

Cold Butter in Pastry

Using cold, solid butter in pastry dough, and working it in just enough to create small pockets, results in a flaky, tender crust when baked.

Salt Pasta Water

Salting the water in which pasta cooks seasons the pasta internally as it absorbs water. This subtle seasoning cannot be replicated by salting the pasta after cooking.

Room Temperature Butter in Creaming

For baked goods like cookies and cakes, using room-temperature butter when creaming with sugar helps to incorporate more air, resulting in a lighter, more tender texture.

Layering Flavors

Adding ingredients at different stages of cooking builds layers of flavor. For example, adding garlic at the beginning and end of a sauté gives both a mellow and a sharp garlic flavor.

Knife Maintenance

Keeping knives sharp with regular honing and occasional sharpening makes cutting easier and safer, as a sharp knife is less likely to slip.

Using a Bench Scraper

This tool is perfect for efficiently transferring chopped ingredients from the cutting board to a pan. It can also be used for cleaning the board or cutting dough.

The Importance of a Good Stock

A high-quality stock, whether homemade or store-bought, is crucial for adding depth and richness to soups, sauces, and braises.

Balancing Flavor with Fat, Acid, and Salt

Adjusting these elements is key in fine-tuning the flavor of a dish. Fat adds richness, acid brightens and cuts through fat, and salt enhances overall flavor.

Blanching Vegetables

Blanching involves briefly boiling vegetables and then plunging them into ice water. This process preserves their vibrant color and crisp texture.

Cold Water to Stop Cooking

Immediately transferring blanched vegetables to ice water halts the cooking process, ensuring they don’t become overcooked and mushy.

Resting Dough

Allowing dough to rest relaxes the gluten, making it easier to shape and improving the texture of the final product.

Using a Scale for Baking

Precision is key in baking. Using a scale to measure ingredients by weight is more accurate than using volume measurements like cups and spoons.

Sautéing vs. Sweating

Sautéing cooks food quickly at a high temperature for browning and flavor development. Sweating cooks food slowly over low heat, so it softens without browning, ideal for aromatic vegetables like onions.

Infusing Oils and Vinegars

Adding herbs, spices, or fruit to oils and vinegars and letting them sit over time imparts subtle flavors, great for dressings and cooking.

Dry Brining for Juicier Meat

Sprinkling meat with salt and letting it sit before cooking (dry brining) seasons it deeply and helps it retain moisture during cooking.

Slow Roasting for Even Cooking

Cooking meat slowly at a low temperature ensures that it cooks evenly, stays tender, and retains its moisture.

Using Fresh Herbs vs. Dried

Fresh herbs are best added towards the end of cooking and are great for bright, fresh flavors. Dried herbs are more concentrated and are best used in longer cooking processes.

Correctly Using a Whisk

Whisks are essential for incorporating air into mixtures, such as when beating egg whites or whipping cream, and for ensuring smooth emulsions like vinaigrettes.

The Role of Sugar in Caramelization

Beyond sweetening, sugar aids in the browning and flavor development of foods through caramelization, especially in baking and roasting.

Marinating Times

Different proteins absorb marinades at different rates. Fish and seafood require shorter times, while tougher cuts of meat can be marinated longer.

Cooking Pasta Al Dente

“Al dente” pasta, cooked to be firm to the bite, holds its shape better in dishes and maintains a more pleasant texture.

Creating a Roux for Thickening

A roux is a mixture of equal parts flour and fat cooked together, used to thicken sauces, soups, and stews. It must be cooked to eliminate the raw flour taste.

Room Temperature Meat for Even Cooking

Bringing meat to room temperature before cooking allows it to cook more evenly, avoiding the exterior being overcooked while the interior reaches the desired doneness.

Chiffonade for Herbs

This technique involves stacking herb leaves, rolling them tightly, and then slicing them into thin ribbons, perfect for garnishing.

Zesting without the Pith

When zesting citrus, only grate the colored part of the peel. The white pith underneath is bitter and can detract from the flavor.

Clarified Butter for Higher Smoke Point

Clarified butter, which has had the milk solids and water removed, can be heated to a higher temperature than regular butter without burning, making it ideal for frying and sautéing.

Sifting Flour for Lightness

Sifting flour before using it in recipes removes lumps and aerates it, resulting in lighter cakes and pastries.

Using a Mandoline for Consistent Slices

A mandoline slicer provides uniform slices of fruits and vegetables, ensuring even cooking and presentation. Always use the guard to protect fingers.

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