Food Tips and Tricks you Need to Know

Everybody loves food – it gives us sustenance, makes us happy and helps us survive.

But sometimes, the preparation and all sorts of little problems that come along can be a real hassle.

From handling fresh food to opening that ever so stubborn jar of sauce, don’t you just wish there was an easier way out?

DESIblitz presents amazing food hacks that will make your life in the kitchen a breeze!

1. Stop Boiling Water from spilling over with Wooden Spoon

Every person who has ever used a pot to boil water has dealt with the fear that it will spill.

Simply put a wooden spoon across a boiling pot of water can prevent this little nightmare, so you don’t have to deal with that sticky mess, or spend ages in the kitchen watching over it.

(Disclaimer – you should always keep an eye on your food!)

2. Test Eggs for Freshness with Water 

Do you ever just crave eggs, but don’t know whether they’re spoiled or good to eat?

Drop them in a cup of water. The fresh eggs will sink to the bottom, while the spoiled ones will stay afloat.

3. Make Buttermilk with Lemon Juice

If you feel like baking or cooking and the recipe calls for buttermilk, don’t panic if you have run out.

Just add a teaspoon of lemon juice into a glass of milk, and wait 5-10 minutes for it to curdle and become buttermilk.

You can also substitute lemon juice with white vinegar.

4. Reheat Pizza with a Glass of Water

Reheating pizza is always an issue, because the microwave never fails to make the crusty dough base soggy and gross.

Try reheating it along with a cup of water in the microwave. This should warm up the pizza without taking away its awesomeness.

5. Peel a clove of Garlic with Bowls

Peeling garlic is a messy business. Next time, place the garlic cloves between two bowls and just shake it like crazy (or to the beat of your favourite song).

6. Cut a Cake with Dental Floss

The problem with slicing a cake with a knife is that a lot of that deliciousness ends up on the knife instead of your plate.

Try using dental floss instead to carve out your slice and maximise your cake intake.

7. Keep Cookies fresh with Bread

Stale cookies are the worst! To keep them fresh and crunchy, place a piece of bread on top of them or in the cookie jar.

8. Keep Bananas Fresh with Cling Film

Bananas are great – they provide sustenance, give you potassium and carbs. And more importantly, they make you feel healthy.

But they tend to go off quite quickly. Simply wrap cling film over their crown and they will last up to five days longer.

9. Make Pancakes with Eggs and Bananas

Who doesn’t love a good old pancake? But it’s just so much effort to make one batch from scratch!

Now, if you have a banana and two eggs at home, simply mix them together and you will have some healthy and yummy pancakes.

10. Grate Cold Butter

Some recipes call for butter at room temperature. Instead of waiting for it to get warmer and softer, just use a cheese grater to save you time and get the butter into a mixable state.

11. Revive Stale Bread with Kitchen Towels

Do you ever forget to twist the plastic back on the bread packaging to retain its freshness?

Wrap the dried out bread rolls in a clean damp kitchen towel, and microwave it at 10 seconds intervals until it’s soft again.

12. Open a Jar with a Butter Knife.

Opening jars are a tough job and so often we just want to tap it against a hard surface to open it. Don’t! Breaking a glass jar can be dangerous.

Instead, wedge a butter knife in the lid just enough to let the air in, which is an easier and safer alternative to straining your muscles.

13. Cook Vegetables to the Right Times

If you are one of those people who never quite know how to cook different types of vegetables, here is a cheat sheet to make your life just that much sweeter.

14. Freeze Herbs with Oil overnight

Fresh herbs are a great way to complement a dish – that is until they rot and get funky after a few days.

To counteract this, just freeze them in olive oil in an ice cube tray. It’ll make them last a lot longer and give you sizable portions of the herbs.

15. Keep Salad Fresh with your Breath in a Bag

Put your leftover salad into a plastic bag and blow into it before sealing. The carbon dioxide in your breath will prevent it from becoming soggy.

16. Squeeze Lemons with Tongs

Not all of us have particularly strong hands. You can try using tongs to get fresh lemon juice without all of the grunt work.

17. Wear gloves to Handle Meat

Wearing a pair of gloves whilst handling fresh meat saves you a lot of clean up time and prevent any bacteria from contaminating the food.

So put these simple tricks to practice today and enjoy the pleasure of cooking!