Although cooking is a rewarding hobby, balancing several activities at once can make it difficult. It can take a lot of time and effort to prepare the components and clean up afterward. But you can speed up your cooking process and make it more efficient and pleasurable with a few smart kitchen tricks. The ten kitchen tips listed below can help you save time and organize your culinary tasks.
1. Use a Muffin Tin for Easy Portioning
Your secret weapon for accelerating meal preparation may be a muffin tin. It’s ideal for portioning meals or ingredients, which makes cooking and reheating simpler. For instance, you can bake individual portions of meatballs, casseroles, or egg muffins in a muffin tray. Additionally, it can be used to measure out cooked items like little quiches or cookies. A muffin tin can help you rapidly prepare meals ahead of time, saving you time throughout the week if you’re getting ready for a busy week. Additionally, it’s simple to store because you can simply cover it and freeze or refrigerate the pieces.
2. Pre-Chop and Freeze Vegetables
One of the most time-consuming aspects of cooking is preparing the vegetables. Cut up a lot of vegetables at once rather than wasting time chopping carrots, onions, or peppers for each meal. After they’ve been cut, freeze them in containers or freezer bags. A few pre-chopped vegetables can be taken out and added directly to your meal when you’re ready to cook. This is particularly helpful for recipes that call for a variety of veggies, such as stir-fries, soups, or stews. You can use frozen veggies whenever it’s convenient for you, which not only saves time but also lessens food waste.
3. Use a Slow Cooker or Instant Pot
Two great appliances that save time in the kitchen are slow cookers and Instant Pots. These gadgets can drastically cut down on the amount of time you spend cooking and are ideal for hands-off cooking. Simply put all of your ingredients in the morning and your dinner will be ready when you get home thanks to a slow cooker. In contrast, Instant Pots use pressure to cook food far more quickly than conventional techniques. They work well for quick, one-pot dishes like rice and beans, risottos, stews, and soups. These gadgets can help you save a lot of time when cooking, and they’re particularly useful on hectic days when you don’t have the energy or time to prepare meals from scratch.
4. Skip Peeling Garlic
It can take a lot of time to peel garlic, particularly if you need to peel several cloves for a dish. Try this easy method instead of wasting time peeling garlic: push a garlic clove beneath the flat side of a chef’s knife. The garlic will split open, allowing the peel to come off more easily. This method is incredibly effective, saving you valuable time that you would have otherwise spent laboriously peeling garlic.
5. Use Parchment Paper for Easy Clean-Up
Sometimes the cleanup after cooking takes longer than the cooking itself. Before cooking, prepare your baking sheets and pans with parchment paper to facilitate easier and faster cleanup. This lessens the need for subsequent scrubbing by preventing food from adhering to the surface. Additionally, parchment paper helps keep sticky dishes from sticking to the pan and burning, such as cookies, bacon, and roasted veggies. There won’t be much mess to clean up after cooking because you can just throw away the parchment paper.
6. Pre-Cook Grains in Bulk
It can take up to half an hour to cook grains like farro, quinoa, or rice. Think about preparing a big batch of grains ahead of time and keeping them in the refrigerator to save time during the week. For a quick and simple meal base, just reheat the grains in the microwave or on the stove when you’re ready to eat. For added ease, you can divide your grains into separate portions. By pre-cooking grains, you may save time on hectic weeknights without compromising nutrition by avoiding the time-consuming cooking process.
7. Use a Box Grater for Quick Vegetable Prep
A box grater is your best buddy if you need to swiftly prepare veggies like potatoes, zucchini, or carrots. Vegetables can be grated in a matter of seconds rather than taking time to chop them finely. Additionally, a box grater ensures equal pieces, which is particularly helpful for recipes like latkes or fritters. Your total prep time will be decreased because the shredded vegetables cook more quickly and evenly. It’s also a great tool for zesting citrus and grating cheese, so it can be used for a variety of cuisines.
8. Organize Your Kitchen for Efficiency
You will spend less time looking for tools and ingredients if your kitchen is well-organized. In addition to saving you time, a well-organized kitchen also makes cooking less stressful. Keep your cutting boards, knives, and spatulas in a drawer or utensil organizer next to your prep area so you can easily access them. Likewise, arrange your refrigerator and pantry so that you are aware of their precise locations. To keep track of what you have and prevent purchasing duplicates, label your ingredients and keep them in clear containers. Cooking becomes more efficient in a clean kitchen, and you’ll spend less time looking for things you need.
9. Soften Butter Quickly
Don’t freak out if you realize you need softened butter in the middle of a recipe. Butter can be rapidly softened by heating it for 5–10 seconds at a time on a microwave-safe dish. To assist the butter melt more uniformly, you can also chop it into smaller chunks. Using a box grater to grate cold butter is another fantastic trick; the thin, tiny particles allow the butter to soften more quickly. By using these techniques, you can continue cooking without having to wait for the butter to reach room temperature.
10. Make a “One-Pan” Meal
When it comes to time savings, one-pan meals are revolutionary. When you don’t want to waste time washing a lot of pots and pans on hectic weeknights, these meals are ideal. One-pan dinners require less cleanup because everything is prepared in a single pan or baking sheet. For instance, you can create a stir-fry in a single pan or roast chicken with vegetables. Additionally, this guarantees that your flavors will blend flawlessly throughout cooking, producing a dish that is tasty and coherent. You may experiment with different proteins, vegetables, and grains to create a range of meals because one-pan dishes are flexible and adaptable.
Bonus Tip: Meal Prep in Batches
Although it’s not exactly a “hack,” batch meal preparation is a great method to save time during the week. On the weekend or a free evening, dedicate some time to cooking grains, chopping veggies, or preparing many meals. Divide everything into separate containers so you can have meals ready to eat all week long. To save time on meal preparation throughout the week, you can even prepare marinades, dressings, and sauces in advance to utilize in a variety of recipes.
