Eight Cooking Tips To Cook Like A MasterChef At Home
So, what exactly differentiates a MasterChef from someone who can only ace microwave popcorn? Well, I could say that a professional’s skills stem from his or her’s confidence, but I’d be lying.
What truly sets apart a MasterChef is their ability to follow the right tips and tricks. To start your journey to becoming a MasterChef, you should first attend a cooking class, such as the Alice Waters course that’ll bring you a step closer to creating perfect meals.
Once you’ve learnt under the guidance of an expert, it’s time for you to take matters into your own hands. So, how do you do that? To help you out, here are eight essential cooking tips that can take you from zero to hero in the kitchen:
Read the entire recipe before starting
This tip should be obvious, but you’d be surprised how many people tend to skip this very important first step when they’re in a rush to cook lunch or dinner. Not only will going through the entire recipe before you get your hands dirty help you save time, it’ll allow you to start prepping ingredients beforehand, if they require it.
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For instance, suppose the recipe requires softened butter and, right before you start prepping the cake batter, you realize your butter is in the freezer. By reading the recipe in full some time in advance, you’d have ample time to keep the butter outside so it could soften up. Knowing what you’re getting yourself into beforehand will definitely help you save time.
Invest in the right tools
You may have high-quality ingredients and you may have followed the recipe step by step, but if your tools look like they were bought at the flea market and are of the lowest quality available, you’re compromising on your food.
The most common mistake that’s made in this area is when people don’t buy the right set of knives. A well-balanced and sharp knife set should be equipped to cut all sorts of ingredients and foods, from meat to cakes and breads. Investing in a good set of knives will not only help you save time in the kitchen, but it’ll make the entire chopping process safe and easy, too.
Choose ingredients that are in-season
It’s important to choose recipes that require ingredients that are in-season. Choosing meats and produce that aren’t in-season will not only require you to spend more money, but it also won’t result in a meal as high in quality as one that’s made from fresh ingredients.
Seasonal ingredients always result in the best flavours and you will need to put in less effort overall to ensure it tastes delicious.
Don’t bother peeling everything
Many people have the misconception that the skin of fruits and vegetables have to be peeled off and thrown in the dustbin. However, fruits and vegetables have fiber dense and nutritious skin that can easily be added to your meal as long as it’s washed properly.
Remember the “mise en place”
This step is extremely important to prevent any recipe disasters. Regardless of whatever you use for your mise en place, whether it’s a muffin tin, a plate, or a bowl, it’s always beneficial to have all your ingredients prepped and laid out in front of you before you begin.
The phrase “mise en place” is French for “together in place” and refers to having all your ingredients ready and within an arm’s reach before you start cooking. This is especially important for recipes that cook quickly and require you to add ingredients immediately one after the other. Other meals that take time to cook, such as soup, prepping your ingredients beforehand always helps save time when you have everything ready to go.
Prep your utensils
Your ingredients aren’t the only thing that require prepping; your utensils do, too. For instance, you should definitely start with hot pans which is always better than using a cold pan on the stove, adding oil, and waiting for it to get warm. You can either put the pan in a preheating oven or heat it directly on the stove. The pan will warm up while you’re prepping your ingredients, bringing it to an ideal temperature for when you want to cook your food, making it cook faster, too.
Clean as the dishes get dirty
There’s no denying that cleaning up is the worst part about cooking a meal. You can make this step less of a hassle by filling in your sink with warm water and soap. As you’re cooking the meal, you can slide the dirty dishes and pans one after another when you’re done using them. By giving the dishes time to soak, it’ll be much easier to clean them later since all you’ll have to do is scrub or scrape them with a sponge.
Meal prep for the coming week
Even if you don’t have time to spend an entire day cooking food in batches, you can always spare an hour over the weekend to prep that you’ll need during your busy workweek. By taking out an hour to mince the garlic, grate the cabbage and carrots in a food processor, chop all the onions and packing everything up, you’ll not only be saving time, but saving a few calories by preventing last-minute takeouts simply because you’re too lazy to cook a meal. Even if you don’t have time to commit to meal prep as a whole, you can always prepare parts of a recipe.
Cooking the perfect meal doesn’t just happen overnight. You may create a few below-average meals with a few kitchen disasters in between, too. However, it’s important not to give up. Everybody starts somewhere and, with the right tips and tricks, you’ll be able to master your meals in no time.
What other tips would you suggest to cook like a MasterChef at home? Sound off in the comments below!
