It is not just about having great cooking skills but a lot of simpler things that makes the difference between a struggling cook and a good chef. We have listed out a few simple tips and tricks from different chefs to make your life easy in the kitchen.
Prepare before cooking
Don't start off cooking a dish until you have done all the required preparations. Get out your knife, pan and any tools you will need. Measure out all of your ingredients and put all of them on the counter next to you so that you don’t have to search for it in the middle of the meal prep. When you are on step one, you should know exactly what does the recipe say about step two and three. Most of the time, you won’t have the luxury to go back to the cookbook to double-check what you're doing. So, plan ahead, and make sure you're ready to finish your dish before you even start it.
Don’t crowd the pan
While cooking, it is not only about getting better ingredients and their correct amount but choosing the right utensils is also very important. Nobody wants a soggy stir fry.Whatever you're sautéing, don't crowd the pan. You can either get a bigger pan or cook in batches.Themost likely reason your potatoes and veggiesaren't getting brown and crispy is because they're drowning in their own juice. Unless it is meat that you want to barbeque, never use really cold ingredients right out of the fridge. You must let them thaw before putting it in the pan.
Knife skills
You don’t need a whole set of knifes for your kitchen. One good chef’s knife, and maybe a good paring knife is really all you need. You just have to make sure to keep them sharp.Dull knives are more dangerous than sharp knives because a dull knife needs extra force to cut so is much more likely to slip. A sharp knife will cut with much less effort, thus unlikely to slip and cut your fingers.Getting better with knivesmake cooking much easier and more efficient.You must remember to cut with the rear part of the blade, not the tip, in a rolling motion.Use the back of a knife to shove stuff into a pot, not the sharp side. Another important tip is to remember is that a falling knife has no handle.If you drop a knife, never try to catch itbut let it hit the floor and then pick it up.
Pre-Testing
Always keeptasting your food while cooking. This will help you to adjust your seasoning and cooking time.New cooks may find it tough to know what to adjust, but with time, you will get better at it and it will greatly improve the quality of food you makeand will help you cook without using a recipe eventually.
