Handy Hints and Tips: Making Life Easier in the Kitchen
If you are like me, you spend a lot of time in your kitchen. We've learned a lot in our kitchens over the years, and our cooking is probably a lot easier than it used to be. However, no one I know has mastered all the skills and tools for making life easier in the kitchen. Cooks are always coming up with new ideas for using our time, energy, and money wisely and love to share their ideas.
Below you will find ideas from several everyday cooks who have found some simple ways to make their time in the kitchen count!
1. Make the most of your citrus fruits. To get the most juice out of your citrus fruits, make sure they are room temperature and roll them with the palm of your hand on the kitchen counter. Want to keep extra lemons from being wasted? Take extra lemons and juice them (at room temperature—remember!). Fill an ice cube tray with 1Tbsp. lemon juice per cube and freeze. Once they are frozen, you can pop the frozen lemon juice cubes out and store them in freezer bags. Any time you have a recipe calling for lemon juice, you will have the real deal in your freezer (and already measured!).
2. Keep pots from boiling over. When cooking pasta or any food that must come to a boil, rub the top inside edges of the pot with butter. The water will not boil over and make a mess on your stove.
3. Make a substitute for buttermilk. What if your recipe calls for buttermilk and you don’t have any? No need to run to the store. Just add 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to 1 cup of milk and let it sit for a few minutes. The result will work just like buttermilk.
4. Keep fruits from sinking in baked goods. When baking with dried or fresh fruit, always coat the fruit lightly in flour. That way, they won’t sink to the bottom of your cake or sweetbread batter.
5. Get crispy chicken every time. When roasting a chicken, brush it with lemon juice before salting. It will make the chicken juicier and the skin crispier.
6. Keep your house smelling fresh by making your fish “odorless.” 30 minutes before cooking fish, dip it in milk then refrigerate it until ready to cook to get rid of the “fishy” smell.
7. Tenderize meats. Before cooking tougher and cheaper cuts of meat, rub a little bit of vinegar on your roast or steak. The vinegar will cut down on cooking time and make your meat more tender.
8. Avoid onion-induced tears. Before chopping onions, place them into freezer for 15-20 minutes. If you don’t have time to do that, just dip the onion into ice-cold water. A little chill goes a long way in stopping the tears!
There you have it—eight little kitchen secrets that aren't secrets anymore. Maybe you'll like them so much, you will want to share them with someone yourself!
By Arlene Bascom