20 strange kitchen hacks that you need to try out
Not everybody is a fan of cooking or spending too much time in the kitchen, and that’s totally okay! After all, some recipes really take a lot of effort, and things tend to get quite messy in the kitchen soon.
Luckily, there are tons of people out there who do love cooking, and who’ve also figured some rather strange, but smart kitchen hacks that are definitely worth checking out. If saving time in the kitchen sounds like something you’re interested in, definitely check out our list of twenty strange kitchen hacks that you need to try out.
1) A quick potato
Baking potatoes in the oven takes such a long time! If you’re really in the mood for one and don’t have a lot of time on your hands, simply pierce the potato with a fork to create some holes, and heat it in the microwave for about five minutes. Next, put it in the oven for a quarter of an hour for that crispness and tastiness. This method saves you about forty minutes!
2) Easily crack open coconuts
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You’re probably already familiar with drilling a hole in a coconut to drain all of the water, but what about opening up the coconut itself? Turns out that putting it in the oven at 400 degrees F for a good ten minutes will soften up the shell, allowing it to be cracked much more easily.
3) Cutting broccoli without the mess
When you’re cutting broccoli florets, things tend to get quite messy, quite soon. There’s an easy hack to prevent this, however. The trick is to turn them all upside down and use the stems to cut through them.
4) Make onions last longer
Usually, you only need a little bit of an onion, but those tend to go bad rather quickly. Spread some butter on the side where you cut the onion and put it in the fridge. It’ll prevent the onion from rotting fast.
5) Save all the avocados!
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Avocados have the tendency to go bad in a short time, and that usually means you have to throw it away and that there’s potential guacamole wasted. Next time, place your avocado half in a container along with a sliced onion – it’ll actually slow down oxidation, keeping your precious avocado fresh for quite some time.
6) How to store bananas
If there’s one fruit out there that tends to overripen very easily, it’s a banana. Luckily, there’s a very simple trick you can use to store bananas longer and keep them fresh. Just wrap the top of the fruit with a bit of cling wrap and you’re golden.
7) Grate ginger root with ease
Ginger is a herb that’s extremely powerful and definitely has its own recognizable touch, but it can be a pain to grate sometimes. The easy way is to just put your ginger in the fridge for a few hours first, and it’ll go a lot easier.
8) Avoid a mess outside the bowl
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Keeping the spill in the bowl? It’s something all of us try every single time, but it just seems like an impossible mission. Instead of splattering it all over the kitchen (and your clothes), use a paper plate with two holes in it for your mixer.
9) Perfect rice? Wash it
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It’s a debate that has been held many times and probably will always be controversial: should you wash rice, or not? A lot of chefs agree that you need to rinse it because that’s the only way the starch on the surface can be removed.
10) Wet paper towel microwave trick
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If there’s one thing we all use the microwave a lot for, it’s to reheat some leftover food. However, it also tends to dry it out rather effectively, reducing the crispiness or texture. Simply put a wet paper towel over the food you’re reheating, and you’ll definitely notice a difference.
11) Chop into blocks more easily
Tired of trying to cut hard potatoes or butternut into small cubes? Simply place them in the oven for about twenty minutes on low heat – you’ll find they peel much more easily and chopping them becomes basically effortless.
12) Easily add umami flavor to your pasta
Want to give your spaghetti an extra touch? Adding a broth cube is an absolutely fantastic idea that will do the trick. It provides just a little bit of umami flavor to your pasta.
13) Keep greens crisp
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Salads and the sorts are best when they’re crisp and fresh, as their shelf life is disappointingly short. You can extend the number of days you can keep greens crisp, however. Simply add a paper towel in between layers. Sometimes, this allows you to keep them fresh twice as long!
14) Upgrade your lemonade
There aren’t a lot of things that are better than some homemade lemonade, but there are certainly ways to make them even better. Simply roast the lemons in the oven for a while, as it can bring out the sugar and decreased the tartness of your refreshing drink.
15) Add a special touch to your brownies
There is a trick out there that really brings out some extra intense flavor whenever your making brownies. Instead of using water for the brownie mix, switch it out for some brewed coffee. You’ll love it!
16) Separate pomegranate seeds
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The seeds of a pomegranate are little taste bombs – but let’s face it, they’re a real pain to remove and we usually have to do it one by one. There’s an easy hack for that: simply soak the pomegranate in water after slicing, and they’ll come off much more easily.
17) Coffee without bitterness
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We all know coffee is quite bitter, but sometimes you just need a morning cup of coffee without that overpowering bitter taste. The solution is to add just a tiny pinch of salt – it’s known to block your bitter taste receptors.
18) Instant noodles extra touch
You can easily make your instant noodles a lot more interesting, simply by adding an egg into the soup when they’re already half-cooked. By the time it’s done cooking, the egg will be cooked as well, and it complements the noodles really nicely!
19) Undo extra salt
Let’s face it: accidents happen. Pouring more salt than expected is something that occurs all the time, but there’s an ‘undo’ method for that. Add a potato or an eggplant to whatever you’re cooking, which will then absorb a lot of the salt. It can make the difference between a normal dish and a ruined one!
20) DIY chocolate sprinkles
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Adding sprinkles to something you’ve baked is always a good idea! Don’t have them laying around? Simply grab a chocolate bar and a potato peeler, and you’re set to make some excellent and easy DIY chocolate sprinkles.
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