"It Gives Perfect Results Every Time": People Are Sharing The Genius Cooking Technique Or Hack They Think They Came Up With
One of the best parts of cooking is that you're constantly learning and evolving your techniques by trial and error. And every once in a while, you discover a trick that works wonders. So, redditor u/Papie asked, "What is a cooking technique you THINK you came up with and want to share?" Here are some unusual yet promising cooking methods you just might want to try for yourself.
1."I have a housemate who doesn't eat pork, but some of the recipes I want to cook involve pork sausage (such as pasta sauce). I've discovered that cooking turkey thighs with a bit of sausage seasoning mix (for example, hot Italian sausage seasoning) and a bit of extra fat actually makes a really great substitute for pork sausage."
2."I add frozen berries directly into my hot oatmeal to defrost the berries while simultaneously cooling the oatmeal to the perfect, edible temperature."
3."Instead of boiling in water, steam your eggs in a pressure cooker for easy-peel hard-boiled eggs every single time."
4."I freeze fresh fish in water (completely covered) in Ziploc bags. The water keeps the fish from getting freezer burn, and once defrosted, it comes out tasting so fresh. I've had fresh halibut stored in my freezer this way for two years. Thawed and cooked, it tastes like it was caught just yesterday."
5."I used to boil my pasta in a pot of water, separate from the sauce. Now, I cook it directly in the sauce. It's one less pan to clean, and it gives the pasta an amazing flavor."
6."I give a stale loaf of bread a totally new life by running it under water, then baking it in a warm, 300°F oven for about 10 minutes. The oven steams the stale, soggy bread and makes it as good as new."
—Anonymous
7."Adding a touch of baking soda to grits or polenta cuts the cooking time in half. It's my favorite dinner time-saver."
8."I put a teaspoon of sodium citrate into my homemade mac 'and' cheese. It means I don't have to use Velveeta or Kraft slices or an overload of butter. With a bit of sodium citrate, you can use any cheese you want (young or aged, soft or hard, any mixture of multiple cheese) and you'll still get a perfect, creamy texture. Warm up the sodium citrate just enough to melt the cheese, and voilà. The texture is the same as that of boxed mac, but it tastes much better and reheats better, too."
9."I love cooking bacon in a stock pot. It contains all the splatter and produces lovely, crispy bacon strips. I've tried the oven and the microwave methods and prefer the finished product best when prepared this way on the stove top. Plus, mess-free is a major perk."
10."I have started to soak cashew nuts and pure creamed coconut into my coconut milk before making curries. The extra nutty flavor enriches the coconut milk and makes the final product taste incredible."
11."I basically make a milky Parmesan tea to add to my mashed potatoes. It makes them really special. Boil some whole milk and add garlic, rosemary, and a Parmesan rind. Let the Parmesan 'tea' steep while your potatoes boil. Mash the potatoes, strain the hot, flavored milk into your potatoes, and mix thoroughly."
12."When making scrambled eggs, I hold back one yolk. I scramble the rest of the eggs per usual and then stir in that last yolk just seconds before serving. It gives you that gorgeous yellow finish."
13."I trim and halve my Brussels sprouts, then I barely par-cook them in water. I take a chef's knife and flatten the Brussels sprouts halves so the leaves fan out, then I toss them in a high smoke point oil and roast them in a super hot oven in a large cast iron skillet. The smashing element gives you a lot more crispy leaves that taste almost fried, and they tend to cook a lot faster, too."
14."I like fried egg sandwiches with ketchup, but hate the way ketchup and runny egg makes the bread soggy. My solution? I put a cheese crust on the inside faces of the bread. Then I compile the sandwich so that the cheesy, crusty bread contains the egg and condiments."
15."I bread and fry (or air fry) Babybel cheese for a genius and easy take on mozzarella sticks."
16."I love this trick when I want to save time pan-frying. For foods that must be pan-fried on both sides (such as chicken), I place it into a skillet, spray a bit of water in with it, and throw on a lid for a few minutes. This gets the other side of the meat cooking simultaneously, it shaves off about a third of the cooking time, and it still ensures a great crust."
17."I top my lasagna with cheese and little sliced strips of extra cooked lasagna noodles. I spread the noodle strips on the top of my lasagna sporadically, not in any sort of even layer. The extra noodle pieces get super toasty and crunchy in the oven. I love the texture that it adds."
18."When I scramble eggs at home, I use what I call a half-scramble method. I basically just fry them gently until the whites are mostly set, then I turn off the heat and continue stirring everything together. The yolks make a sort of creamy sauce for the whites, and it tastes delicious."
19."When making hard tacos, I put the cheese in the shell first. It melts and holds the taco together while I eat. Tacos so often fall apart after the first bite, but not if you get the cheese all melty first. Put it directly on the taco shell with the meat on top and whatever other toppings you're adding. The cheese will cling to the shell and hold it all together, maintaining greater taco integrity."
20."Roast your grains like pasta and rice before cooking them. People never think to roast something like dried pasta. This simple step makes the pasta nutty and browned, and gives it a more complex flavor. Pair it with a simple sauce that lets the flavor shine, and trust me, you may never go back to blonde pasta again."
21."I'm sure others do this, but to cook duck breast to perfection, I start off by cold searing. I put the duck breast skin-side down on a cold pan. I let it warm up to almost full heat. This process melts a lot of the fat and leaves the skin perfectly crispy. It works every time for me."
22."Putting fresh herbs like parsley and cilantro in a cup of water with a plastic bag over it in the fridge makes the bundle of herbs last for two weeks or more instead of two days."
23."When making waffles and pancakes from scratch, beer is my secret ingredient. I use half beer and half buttermilk for my batter."
24."Poach your scrambled eggs. Once scrambled, create a whirlpool in a pot of lightly boiling water and add the beaten eggs to poach them. Combining these two techniques (scrambling and poaching) creates the perfect eggs. The gentle heat of the water prevents the eggs from overcooking and makes sure you don't end up with a ton of unwanted browning."
