Simple Tricks at the Kitchen- easy our work

SOFTEN BUTTER IN A JIFFY

Who has the time to soften butter on the kitchen counter for an hour? Try slicing it with a cheese grater or simply put it in a plastic bag and flatten it with a rolling pin instead.

EMOVE POMEGRANATE SEEDS

Don't dye your hands with pomegranate juice doing this. Rather remove the cone of the fruit with a knife and then slice it along the ridges. Now you can easily detach the seeds without crushing them.

DE-SKIN POTATOES WITHOUT A PEELER

Boil the potatoes and immediately transfer them to a ice bath. After a few minutes, the skin will chip off at corners, allowing you to pick it right off. 

ICE-CREAM CONE TO REMOVE SEEDS

Make use of the sharp edge of an ice-cream cone to scoop off the seeds and fiber portions of vegetables like squash, pumpkins and papayas. It's much less messy an affair than using your hands or a spoon.  

MAKE YOUR OWN BUTTERMILK

Wanna make a fluffy pancake or sourdough bread, but don't have buttermilk at home? Don't worry. Add a tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar to regular milk — the product will be less creamy than the market variety, but serve your purpose all the same. 

PIT STONE FRUITS WITHOUT DIFFICULTY

Remove the pit stone from fruits like plum and nectarines by cutting them into two equal halves and twisting it in opposite directions. Either use your thumb or a butter knife to gently pop out the pit. 

KEEP BANANAS FRESH FOR LONGER PERIODS

Wrap the bananas in cellophane to keep the fruits fresher for long as it prevents the fruits from emitting ethylene, which ripens them faster.

SPEED UP RIPENING

On the contrary, to ripen a banana, wrap them in a paper bag: the concentrated ethylene will help in expediting the ripening process. 

PEEL GARLIC WITH EASE

After removing the cloves from the bulb, thump each piece with the side of a chef’s knife to peel off the skin conveniently.

KEEP POTATOES FROM DISCOLORING

Prevent peeled or sliced potatoes from turning brownish or greyish by soaking them in cold water, which stops the release of a starch that causes oxidation.

SOLIDIFY MELTED BUTTER

Keep the melted butter in a small bowl and then place the bowl in a larger vessel filled with ice and cold water.

AKE A PERFECT POACHED EGG

Use a metal mesh strainer to remove excess egg white before gently lowering it into the salted water to make that perfectly poached egg. 

TURN CITRUS FRUITS EVEN JUCIER

Make the most of those citrus fruits while extracting juice. All you need to do is refrigerate and then microwave the fruits for 15-20 seconds to get the maximum output. Also, try using a pair of tongs, rather than your hands, for squeezing out the juices.

PIT AND PEEL AVOCADO LIKE A PRO

Pit an avocado by cutting it lengthwise into four quarters — the pit would fall off by itself. Now, gently move a knife under the tip of skin of each section, it will peel off like a banana.

BROWNIES WITHOUT CRUMBS

Make sure to coat the pan and the parchment paper (baking paper) with cooking oil or butter to save brownies from getting stuck on baking pan. It will make your life easier when you try to remove the brownies from the pan.

DON'T CRY WHILE CHOPPING ONIONS

Keep the onions in the freezer for half an hour before slicing them. In case you are on a tight schedule, keep a bread slice partially sticking out of your mouth so that the bread absorbs the gas before it reaches the eyes. 

SLOW DOWN TOMATO ROTTING

To give a longer life to tomatoes, don’t detach tomato stems and store them at room temperature. Also, keep the tomato stem end down, which prevents air from entering and moisture from exiting from the scar where the tomato once attached to the vine. 

PIT CHERRIES WITH EASE

This is a bit time consuming, yet cleaner way of pitting cherries. Place the cherries one at a time on top of an empty beer bottle and use a chopstick to push the pit into the bottle.

PEEL GINGER SKIN WITHOUT PEELER

Use a spoon to scrape off the papery skin of ginger; just make sure not to scrape off any flesh though. 

DE-CRYSTALLIZE HONEY

Simply place the jar containing crystallized honey in a vessel filled with hot water for 10 minutes, the honey is ready to be used again. 

SAVE APPLES FROM BROWNING

Prevent apple slices, or for that matter any cut fruit, from browning by squeezing some lemon juice on it or by applying a mixture of one part honey with two parts water to slow down the oxidation process that causes discoloring. 

SEPARATE YOLKS FROM WHITES

This method would take some practice, but once mastered, would work like magic. Gently press a plastic bottle over the yolk of a broken egg. The air pressure created inside the bottle will promptly suck in the yolk, separating it from the white. 

DE-KERNEL A COB OF CORN

Fix the pointy end of the cob on the hole of a bundt pan. Use a knife to gently slice the kernels in a downward motion. 

GRATE CHEESE HASSLE-FREE

Softer cheeses like fontina and fresh mozzarella are often messy when grated. Tide over this problem by putting them in the freezer for half an hour before grating. 

CHECK EGGS' FRESHNESS

Gently place the egg in a bowl of cold water: if it readily sinks to the bottom and lies on one side, its fresh; if it takes time to sink or worse still, floats, it's high time you toss them in the bin as they are past their edible stage. 

DEAL WITH HARD-TO-OPEN JARS

Use a rubber band to wrap the lid as it will offer you extra grip. If it still doesn’t work, cover the band with a cloth and try again.

REMOVE EGGSHELL PIECES

Use a broken egg shell to scoop up tiny pieces of eggshells dropped in a bowl of cracked eggs. The shell attracts the shell bits like a magnet without wasting much egg.

MEASURE STICKY SUBSTANCES WITH EASE

Dip the measuring spoon into hot water or cooking oil before measuring viscous stuff like molasses and honey. The oil or water will help the entire thing slide off without leaving a mess. 

COOK A WHOLE BIRD EVENLY

Don't forget to ice the breast of the chicken or turkey before cooking as this portion cooks faster than thigh meat. Icing the breast will help to cook the whole bird evenly.

PEEL CITRUS FRUITS EASILY

Citrus fruits like sweet lemon or oranges can be peeled off easily by rolling them with mild pressure or by microwaving them for a few seconds beforehand.

COOL YOUR DRINKS QUICKLY

Got surprise guests at home and no chilled soda in the fridge to offer? Just grab your favorite drink, wrap it with a wet paper towel and stick it in the freezer; 15 minutes later, you have a chilled bottle.

CHILLED WINE ON THE GO

Pop some frozen grapes in your glass of wine to get chilled wine within minutes.

DE-STALK STRAWBERRIES WITH A STRAW

Take a straw and press it through the bottom of a strawberry until it reaches the top and takes off the hull (white stem). Any remaining leaves can be removed by hands. 

PEEL MANY BOILED EGGS AT ONCE

Put the hard-boiled eggs in a lidded container and shake vigorously. The shells will come off and you have eggs ready for a salad. 

USE PARCHMENT PAPER FOR MUFFINS

If you forget to buy muffin liners, there's no need to worry. Use parchment paper (baking paper) instead to make your muffins impressive. Spray each paper properly and press the squares into each hole, folding the sides as needed to create flat walls.

EGGSHELL REMOVAL MADE EASY

Add a spoon of baking soda or vinegar to the water before boiling eggs. The substances permeate the eggshell, helping the egg white separate from the shell. 

COOK SCRAMBLED EGGS IN MICROWAVE

Crack an egg in a coffee mug and pierce the yolk. Make sure you lightly coat the sides with cooking oil and power it on high in a microwave. You have gourmet scrambled eggs within seconds.

PERFECT ICED COFFEE

Pour coffee in a ice cube tray and freeze them into cubes. Next time you want that perfect iced coffee, toss a couple of those cubes into your glass, without the fear of watering down the coffee. 

KEEP KNIVES SHARP

Always store knives blade-side down in a knife block to prevent them from dulling. Also, after chopping, use the back of a knife, rather than the blade side, to transfer food to a container to keep it from dulling fast. 

USE SHOWER CAPS CREATIVELY

Though not mentioned in cookbooks, still plastic wraps or tin foils can be replaced with a shower cap to protect food from contamination and flies. What more, the caps are reusable and need not be regularly replaced like plastic or tin foil wraps