Sometimes after a long day cooking is the last thing you feel up to doing. Faced with the thought of dirty plates, messy countertops, and time-consuming meals it’s easy to come up with a solid list of alternatives. Conversely, cooking can be one of the most ultimate forms of self-nourishment and comfort. Albeit, one that requires effort and patience.

Today we’ve rounded up twelve kitchen hacks that are sure to improve your experience: tips for less time, less effort, and less mess.

1) Eggshell Bailout

Do you love the idea of making breakfast but dread the thought of eggshells in your meal? Take a nifty tip from Healthy Roots Happy Soul and use the actual eggshell to scoop up any small pieces left floating in your eggs. It acts as a magnet to scoop extra pieces up quickly.

2) Quick Room-Temperature Eggs

On the subject of eggs, have you ever gone for a baking recipe just to find out you needed to bring the eggs to room temperatures hours beforehand? Have no fear! The Krazy Coupon Lady has found a simple solution. Dip your eggs in a bowl of warm water for three minutes, et voila! You are ready to bake.

3) Easy Guacamole

If you love guacamole but find the act of mashing up the avocados tedious, this tip is for you! Instead of tirelessly mashing with the back of a fork, call out to your potato masher next time! It will do the job quickly and efficiently.

4) Put Your Ice Cube Tray to Work

Your ice cube tray has a lot more value than just freezing water into cubes. Some additional ideas? Freeze extra pasta sauce, leftover tomato paste, herbs in olive oil, and chicken stock for some convenient and wasteless cooking.

5) Easy Corn-Off-The-Cob

Next time you secure a delightful summer crop of sweet corn, try this tip for easy, no-mess preparation. Simply repurpose your bundt pan to hold the corn firm while you shave the kernels into the vessel.

6) Slide-Proof Cutting Board

Are you disgruntled by a slippery cutting board that just doesn’t seem to want to stay in place? Not only does it create a mess, but it can also be dangerous! Next time, follow this tip from Start Cooking and place a wet paper towel or dampened kitchen towel beneath your workspace to keep it firm and in place.

7) Less Mess When Hand-Mixing

Do you love to bake delicious treats but you’re turned off by the messes it creates? The Krazy Coupon Lady has come up with a genius hack to reduce the clean-up time. Cover the beaters of your hand-mixer with a paper plate to shield the mixing bowl.

8) Easily Pit Cherries

Who doesn’t adore a warm cherry pie studded with the juiciest peak-season fruit? Making one, on the other hand, is a painful labor of love. Chelan Fresh has a few ideas that will get you baking in no time. One of the top contenders? A chopstick.

9) Juicier Lemons

Speaking of the juiciest fruit, make the most out of your citrus with a hot tip from Beki Cook’s Cake Blog. Before cutting and squeezing the juice from your lemon, roll it firmly around on the countertop to soften the membranes inside and get the juices flowing!

10) Revive Hard Brown Sugar

Has your brown sugar turned hard and unworkable from your last baking project? Don’t throw it out just yet! Instead, follow a tip from Lifehacker. Simply put it in a microwave-safe container, cover it loosely, and heat it through for twenty seconds.

11) Easily Peel Fresh Ginger

Put that knife away! Instead, consider a much easier and safer hack from Chica and Jo. Use the backside of a spoon to peel ginger root. Simply hold the spoon firmly against the root and scrape it to quickly remove the peel.

12) Speed Up Ripening

Are you looking to magically morph your green banana to yellow? Your rock-hard peach to juicy? Your grenade of an avocado into some smooth and creamy? Put them in a brown paper bag to speed up the ripening process.

Hungry for more hacks? Check out the video below for some additional inspiration!

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

Sources: Home Hacks, Greatist