People Reveal 'Weird But Life-Changing' Cooking Hacks

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satirequeen
Oct 13, 2020 2:00 PM EDT

The world is divided into two types of people: those who cook and those who don't. Those who don't get takeout or buy microwave meals, and those who do, take pride in their work (mostly). They all have their secret tips and trips to make recipes easier and tastier, which they've discovered along the way or learned from their mom or grandma. Discovering cooking hacks happens to be a passion of mine, and I'm always eager to find new ways to improve my recipes. People reveal their "weird, but life-changing" cooking hacks in this Reddit thread, uncovering some real gems. Please scroll down to read them and get yourself one step closer to being a (somewhat) professional chef.

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  • 01
    Text - Posted by u/leonardo-di-caprisun 1 month ago 12 2 What's your "weird but life-changing" cooking hack? For me, I have two. The first is using a chicken stock cube (Knorr if I'm feeling boujee, but usually those cheap 99p a box ones) in my pasta water whilst the pasta cooks. It has the double use of flavouring the pasta water, so if you're using a splash for your sauce it's got a more umami, meaty flavour, and it also doubles the tastiness of your pasta. Trust me. Secondly - using scissors
    via u/leonardo-di-caprisun
  • 02
    Text - CorneliusJenkins 2.3k points · 1 month ago Cutting hot peppers and don't want an unfortunate accident in the bathroom (peeing, changing contacts, etc) later? When done, rub a little neutral oil (canola, vegetable) on your hands, then wash with a little dish soap. The capsaicin (spicy chemical in the peppers) essentially binds with the oil, then the dish soap takes care of the oil on your hands.
    via u/CorneliusJenkins
  • 03
    Text - JMSidhe 887 points · 1 month ago Adding a splash of orange juice to pumpkin or banana bread. The acidity really adds some brightness against the spices
    via u/JMSidhe
  • 04
    Text - PhatChance52 1.3k points · 1 month ago Lemon zest in garlic butter, specifically for garlic bread. It's an absolute game changer, even just a little bit.
    via u/PhatChance52
  • 05
    Text - dalore 236 points · 1 month ago Baking powder on your chicken skin for extra crispy
    via u/dalore
  • 06
    Text - 365eats 771 points · 1 month ago · edited 1 month ago Keep ginger in the freezer. Use a micro plane or grater to grate the frozen ginger into sauces, fried rice, etc. Edit: Lots of people asking; No, you don't have to peel it first. You can if you want. I don't, just wash the skin.
    via u/365eats
  • 07
    Text - MMCookingChannel 1.4k points · 1 month ago Stop cutting the ends off of things before cutting them. Use the end as a handle
    via u/MMCookingChannel
  • 08
    Text - CelebratingPi 236 points · 1 month ago I like to use a heavy glass ash tray as a spoon rest. Super easy to clean and multiple resting spots are great for the stirring spoon, tasting spoon, etc. Got it from my mom who was never a smoker. But keeps things clean next to the stove and they're widely available in second hand shops.
    via u/CelebratingPi
  • 09
    Text - Krinklie 513 points · 1 month ago Not sure if it counts as weird but cooking my vegetable in the last few minutes of boiling water for my pasta dish. They soak up that starchy deliciousness and it turns many of my recipes into one-pot cooking recipes.
    via u/Krinklie
  • 10
    Text - Grendels-mum 1.5k points · 1 month ago I don't think it's weird but I save all the scraps of my vegetables - onions, garlic, bell peppers, carrots, celery, herb stems, tomatoes, mushrooms – and collect them in a freezer bag and when it's full I turn it into stock and then use that stock to replace the water while cooking rice, quinoa, lentils, etc.
    via u/Grendels-mum
  • 11
    Text - January1171 264 points 1 month ago When you're cutting broccoli or cauliflower, turn it upside down. Then rotate it as you cut the stem part. SO MUCH CLEANER than cutting through the flowery part from the top, and you get really nice florets
    via u/January1171
  • 12
    Text - topazlacee 409 points · 1 month ago When I bake, I grease my pans, but instead of using flour to coat it, I use granulated sugar. It makes the edges sweet and crunchy, and saves me from needing to use icing or frosting.
    via u/topazlacee
  • 13
    Text - WinstonNilesRumfoord 329 points · 1 month ago Probably 80% of the dishes I make use bell pepper and onion. A while back, I started freezing little bags that each have 1 bell pepper and half an onion. I'll spend a few hours on a Sunday every other month or so just chopping bell pepper and onion. It makes cooking during the week so much easier for me.
    via u/WinstonNilesRumfoord
  • 14
    Text - [deleted] 107 points 1 month ago Wipe a large spoon with vegetable oil and use it to put batter into cupcake pans. The mix wont stick to the spoon and makes the process much neater.
    via u/deleted
  • 15
    Text - cellists_wet_dream 99 points · 1 month ago It's a well known trick to soak fries in ice water to make them crispy, but standard practice is to soak them for a few hours. Whenever I'm cutting potatoes for frying or roasting in oil, I throw them in a bowl of ice water as I go. When I'm done, I swirl them to wash off excess starch, drain, and pat mostly dry. They don't soak for more than a few minutes, but even this short period is long enough to make them really crispy and significantly red
    via u/cellists_wet_dream

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tips cooking life hacks chef kitchen food Reddit weird
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