Not all of us are born with a talent for cooking, and even some of us have the desire to spend many years in the kitchen. All we really want is to be able to cook food in the fastest and tastiest way possible so we can eat it quickly and then get on with our lives. That’s why we’ve compiled a list of amazing kitchen hacks that are absolutely genius. These kitchen tricks will save you tons of time in the kitchen and make the whole experience a lot easier, less stressful, and more enjoyable.
1. Form for pancakes
You don’t need to be a brilliant artist or illustrator to make wonderful pancake molds. In fact, you don’t need to be able to draw at all. For fun pancakes, just use cookie cutters. Put them on the pan and pour inside the batter. But don’t crowd them too much, you want the pancake batter to rise or you’ll end up with a mess.
2. Soft ice cream
If you also hate waiting for your ice cream to melt a bit, but at the same time despise solid ice cream, this hack is for you. Just store the ice cream in the freezer in a zip lock bag. This will keep the ice cream cold, but still soft enough that you won’t bend or break your spoon trying to eat it.
3. Soften the butter
Most people these days would think that the best way to soften butter is to use a microwave. But a microwave is much more likely to melt it in places or completely rather than soften it. The best way to soften butter is to cover it with a warm glass. Your butter will soften in minutes.
4. Quickly wash the potatoes
If you are going to cook potatoes in a uniform, you need to wash them first. If you’re making a large batch, this can take a while because you really want to clean them and make sure there’s no dirt left on the potatoes. A simple solution to this is to simply use the dishwasher and put it on the rinse cycle.
5. Heat the food evenly
Microwaves are magic, but they’re not perfect. They will reheat your food in minutes, but most of the time it will be uneven. To make sure all of your food is heated, not just the edges of the plate, arrange your food in a circle with a hole in the middle. So it will heat up evenly and you won’t have any cold pieces left.
6. Cook dry beans faster
Cooking dry beans is much healthier and more cost-effective than buying canned, but there is one drawback. They usually need to be soaked for a couple of hours or overnight. Well, there’s a hack that can cut that time down to just 15 minutes. Place the beans in a microwave safe container, cover with water and microwave the beans for 15 minutes. That’s it, soaking is no longer required, from here you can immediately proceed to boiling.
7. Light Watermelon Bites
Watermelon is the ultimate summer treat, but everyone will agree that it can be pretty messy. If you don’t want your face and hands completely covered in watermelon juice, try cutting it into bite-sized pieces.
8. Egg freshness test
Eggs have a relatively long shelf life, but it’s hard to tell exactly when they’ll go bad. By the time they start smelling funky, it’s too late. However, sometimes they look and smell good, but taste just off. Well, there is an easy way to check their freshness. Just put an egg in a glass of water. If it sinks, it is fresh. If it floats, it is not so fresh.
9. Hack with peanut butter
If you like organic nut butters, you know that they tend to separate. This is because they have no chemicals or preservatives to maintain the consistency. So it’s only natural for them to split into nut paste and butter. However, if you hate having to stir it every time you open the jar – just store it upside down.
10. Keep the salad fresh
If you like greens, you probably know that they tend to get a little soggy and weird after a few days in the fridge. But there is an easy way to keep them fresh longer. Just store them in an airtight container with a paper towel inside.
11. Mince meat in seconds
Do you like pulled pork sandwiches or shredded chicken in your soup? But you probably hate the process of grinding it, right? Well, this hack will change your life. Just use the Kitchenaid and you’ll be done in seconds.
12. Light even slices
If you’ve ever tried to slice raw meat, you know that getting even slices is quite difficult. Raw meat slides and slides and kind of moves, making it difficult to cut into even pieces, but there is a way around it. Just freeze it for 15 minutes to firm it up and then you can slice it easier and more evenly.
13. Coffee with ice
If you love iced coffee but hate when it’s diluted, you should try this trick. Instead of just freezing water in cubes, try freezing leftover coffee or milk. That way, when you add it to your coffee, it won’t dilute it at all.
14. Longer ice
Large ice cubes keep the drink cold for a long time. So the next time you want to make ice cream, consider using a cupcake pan instead of those little ice cream molds. You’ll save time, and you’ll only need one cupcake-sized ice cube per glass, rather than an entire tray of tiny pieces. Consider adding some fruit to it to make things look nice.
