19 Cooking Hacks You’ll Thank Us For

Cooking can be an enjoyable experience. Both art and science, cooking lets you explore creatively through food and seasonings. But, sometimes, it doesn’t go the way you wanted. Sometimes cooking can be very time-consuming, messy, and quite stressful. That’s where cooking hacks come in. Cooking hacks are tips, tricks, and shortcuts that are designed to streamline the cooking process and make things just a little bit easier. They may save you time, reduce the effort you have to put in, make cooking more enjoyable, or enhance the overall flavour. Whether you’re a seasoned chef already or just a regular person who’s craving some easier ways to cook, we have you covered. Today we’re going deep into several cooking hacks. We’ll teach you how to use them and why you even want to! By the end, you’ll be able to take our cooking hacks and apply them in the kitchen to get extraordinary results. Ready to level up your cooking skills? Let’s go!

1. Peeling Garlic

Peeling garlic in the microwave is the best way to get the job done. Simply cut off the ends of the garlic and place it in the microwave for 20-30 seconds. Let it cool for a few seconds and voila! The skin should peel away quickly and easily.

2. Pit Cherries 

Use an empty beer bottle and a chopstick to pit your cherries easier. Simply put the cherry at the top of the bottle, use the chopstick to push through the centre where the pit is, and the pit will fall into the empty bottle.

3. Marshmallows in Brown Sugar

Keep your brown sugar fresh and soft by putting marshmallows inside the container.

4. Peel Ginger Better

Peeling ginger with a spoon is a simple, yet effective way to do it. It minimises waste and is more time efficient than using a knife.

5. Vegetable Peeler for Cheese

If you want perfectly thin slices of cheese, then use a vegetable peeler. It helps to keep each slice consistent, thin, and perfect for many different things.

6. Parchment Paper

Use parchment paper to reduce any mess from baking. Spread it out on your baking sheet and place whatever you’re baking on top of it. This makes cleaning up a breeze! And, it preserves your baking sheet to last longer.

7. Water to Freshen Stale Bread

Spritz stale bread with water and preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Once the bread is spritzed, place it in the oven for 5-10 minutes, checking every little bit. The water helps to add moisture back into the bread and make the bread seem as if it’s freshly baked, right out of the oven.

8. Freeze Wine

For easy cooking with wine Freeze wine in ice cube trays. Then when you’re cooking, all you need to do is drop a few ice cubes in to level up the taste. Measure it when you’re freezing the wine so you know the exact amount to add at a later point. 

9. Grind Spices

Use a coffee grinder to grind spices. Just make sure to thoroughly clean the coffee grinder; otherwise, your spices might taste more like coffee than anything else.

10. Keep Herbs Fresh

Keep herbs fresh by wrapping them in a damp paper towel. This preserves the freshness and stops them from drying out. 

11. Lemon to Clean Cutting Boards

Using lemon to clean cutting boards is a natural way to clean them and get rid of any lingering odors. All you need to do is cut the lemon in half and rub it all over the cutting board. Let it sit for five or ten minutes to fully clean and then rinse.

12. Soften Cookies 

Soften your cookies by putting a slice of bread in the airtight container with the cookies. The moisture from the bread will make the cookies deliciously soft and chewy.

13. Dice Eggs

Dice hard-boiled eggs with a cooling rack! Simply push the cooked egg through the cooling rack and you’ll have perfectly sized small egg pieces ready for you.

14. Muffin Liners for Snacks

If you have a picky eater that doesn’t like their foods touching each other, then this hack will save you a lot of frustration. All you need to do is use muffin liners for snacks instead of leaving them loose. Small muffin liners will help to keep snacks tidy and organised. 

15. Cube Butter

Quicken up the softening process by cubing your butter first. This increases the surface area, allowing it to reach room temperature more quickly. Additionally, you can place the cubed butter in a warm spot in your kitchen to expedite the process even further.

16. Steak Fries

An easy way to cut consistent steak fries is with an apple slicer. Use it on the potato and enjoy similarly sized steak fries easily, without the hassle of cutting each one individually.

17. Out of Bread Crumbs

If you run out of bread crumbs and need them for a recipe, don’t worry! All you need to do is make some crispy toast and then use a cheese grater to grate it. This works like a charm each and every time!

18. Iced Coffee Cubes

Instead of drinking watered-down iced coffee, make yourself some coffee ice cubes. Then when you’re craving a cold glass of iced coffee, use the coffee ice cubes so that the drink doesn’t get watered down as the cubes melt.

19. Thicken Soups & Stews

A simple and effective way to thicken soups and stews is by adding instant potatoes to the mix. Then just stir until the soup and/or stew reaches your desired consistency.

The Takeaway

In conclusion, these cooking hacks can level up your cooking game, making things easier and enhancing overall taste. From using grated toast for bread crumbs, making wine and ice cubes, thickening soups and stews, and secrets to softening cookies, these hacks are well worth trying! Which one will you be trying first? Let us know in the comments!