Kitchen Tips and Tricks (Add Yours!)

marthastewart.com

Over the years I've heard some interesting tips and tricks for in the kitchen that have definitely helped me along the way. I'm always looking for new ideas because I love simple ideas that are a big help. Here are some of the tips I've gathered and used. Please share some of your best tips in the comments section and I will add them to the post:

-Cut off any green you find on your potatoes. The green part contains a harmful toxin called solanine that can make you sick if you consume it. I even verified this one at snopes.

- When cooking rice, put a folded towel between the lid and the pot. When the rice creates moisture, the towel will absorb it instead of dripping it back onto the rice. Perfect, fluffy rice every time.

-Use an egg slicer to slice strawberries for a nice, even presentation.

-I rarely buy buttermilk. Instead, add 1 T. lemon juice to one cup of whole milk and let it sit for 10-15 minutes. You now have a perfect buttermilk substitute.

-To quickly ripen bananas overnight, stick them in a paper bag with a ripened tomato. (read that at a grocery store). Bananas are not truly ripened until they have quite a bit of brown on them. That is my favorite way to eat them and definitely the only way to bake with them.

-Rub a peeled potato on your silver to take off the tarnish stains. It really works!

-Peeling onions make you cry? Make sure it’s fresh out of the cold fridge before cutting. It’s not fool-proof though, as I sometimes still cry. The easiest way is to use my food processor. I have no idea how the chefs on tv slice onions without tearing up. My theory is that they slice them so fast there's no time for crying!

-To skim fat off of the top of your soup pot, try a piece of bread. It will soak up that fat in no time.

-When it comes to baking… always use no-salt butter, unless the recipe calls for otherwise.

-Unless the recipe calls for cold eggs, I always use large-sized room temperature eggs in baking recipes.

-When it comes to baking, always measure your ingredients. It’s not like cooking…little dash of this, little dash of that. If you add too much or too little of your baking ingredients, you could ruin the entire concoction.

-Always have a clean kitchen when getting ready to cook or bake. Not only is it sanitary, you’ll just enjoy being in the kitchen more!

-Double check that you have all of your ingredients before starting. I HATE running to the store in the middle of a recipe! Lay everything out first, then start making it.

-Wear an apron (and greet hubby at the door in it). You’ll just look cuter. If you don't have one, visit The Hip Hostesses for the prettiest, flirtiest aprons. I love them!

-Always always taste your end product. And don’t stick the spoon back into the pot afterwards. That's just gross!

TIPS FROM READERS:
-To peel roasted peppers, place them in a brown bag and let them sit for awhile-from Maria

-To peel hard boiled eggs, add a handful of salt to the water once it comes to a hard rolling boil. cook and drain normally and viola! easy to peel hard boiled eggs- from Rebekah

-When bell peppers go on sale, I buy a bunch, chop them up, lay them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, then freeze. Once frozen, they can go into freezer bags and are ready to go into favorite recipes- from Lindsay

-To get shortening out of measuring cups crack your eggs into the cup first. They coat the side and the shortening slips right out- from Christina

-When boiling pasta, place a long wooden spoon over cross-wise over the top of the pot, it will keep it from boiling over - works every time- from Disneypal

-Using an extremely sharp knife on onions will keep the crying down. Apparently oils are released into the air and using a sharp knife helps keep this to a minimum- from Kate

-when you begin to mix something with a large amount of flour or sugar (and assuming you have a standing mixer, take a kitchen towel and hold it tight around the top of the mixer (careful NOT to allow the beater blade to grab the towel). It will prevent the puff of ingredients from getting stirred up and coming out of the mixer and up and going all over the place- from Stacy

-My tip for not crying when peeling onions is before starting, get a metal teaspoon, clench it between your teeth & peel away- from Millie

-When taking muffins out of the oven, place the pan on a wet towel. The steam helps release them from the pan.Vinegar is great for removing hard water stains from the faucet and sink- from Kara

-For cutting the onions, if you have a gas cooktop, turn your burner on low and cut your onions next to it, the flame will burn off the toxins the onion let's off that make us cry. Also use a sharp knife when cutting onions, this helps to keep the membranes that hold the toxins in place better than a knife that is somewhat dull- from Raelynn

-I heard if you eat an orange while peeling onions, you won't cry. Have yet to try it.Use Pampered Chef scrapers (little brown ones) for any dried on food. Won't scratch, but does a great idea cleaning counters, plates, etc.-from Glitzen