10 kitchen hacks to help you cook like a pro!

1: Keep your chopping board in place with a damp towel

When you’re being a culinary wizard and cooking meals from scratch, plenty of time is spent with a trusty knife and chopping board prepping protein, veg, fruit, and all manner of other tasty treats.

However, on certain slippery surfaces, it’s easy for your chopping board to go walkabout. Not only is this a little annoying, but it could also be quite dangerous when you’re trying to cut your ingredients and your board is moving around.

To avoid this, simply wet some kitchen roll or a dishcloth and place it underneath your chopping board – just like that, your board will stay perfectly in place, so you can keep on cutting without risk.

2: Use a food processor for chopping veg

If your knife skills aren’t as sharp as you’d like, or you’re cooking a big batch of something, you don’t have to spend time and energy hand-chopping everything. Instead, bring out the food processor to help you blitz your ingredients in a matter of seconds!

This kitchen hack means tricky ingredients like minced garlic and ginger can be a doddle, as well as onions, carrots, and almost anything else you can think of! Just peel your ingredients, throw them in the food processor, and it’s all done for you with a flick of a switch.

Bonus tip: Lightly crush your garlic in the skin to make it easier to peel, and use a teaspoon to peel your ginger. Sorted!

3: Have a bowl nearby for food scraps

A clean kitchen is a happy kitchen. Make sure you’re not getting lost in a sea of onion skins and carrot tops when you’re making a meal by having a bowl close-by to put all your food scraps.

This saves you frequent trips to the bin, making it easier to dispose of all your food waste in one fell swoop, or you can use them to make something else… keep reading to find out what!

4: Keep your counters clear with kitchen storage

It isn’t just food prep which can make our kitchens messy – your kitchen counters can easily get cluttered with kitchen appliances, seasonings, and assorted accessories.

Give yourself plenty of room to work by harnessing the potential of kitchen storage. There are loads of kitchen hacks to be found, from useful cabinets to store those infrequently-used appliances, space-saving storage for pots & pans, and loads of food storage options to keep your kitchen tidy and well-organised – these also keep your food fresher for longer!

5: Delegate your kitchen jobs!

Cooking delicious food doesn’t have to be a lone activity – get the whole family involved and delegate those kitchen tasks like a true chef!

Getting the kids (or the other half) to give you a hand can be a nice way of getting everyone involved in family mealtimes, so ask them for help with weighing, mixing, and measuring to get your kitchen working like a well-oiled machine.

6: Freeze fruit & veg for future meals

We all know that eating 5 portions of fruit and veg a day is the aim, but getting through all those ingredients before they’re past their best can sometimes be a challenge, especially if you’re cooking for 1 or 2 people.

Instead of gorging yourself on enough cabbage to sink a small island to make sure you don’t waste it, consider prepping all your fruit and veg in one go and using freezer bags or food containers to store the rest in the freezer. They’re then good to go for healthy meals in the future, as well as smoothies and soups.

Use this kitchen hack to cut down on waste and get the maximum value for money from your fruit and veg!

7: Use jars to make dressings

Salads are a quick and easy way to get some goodness into our diets, but don’t let anyone tell you they’re boring – with the right dressing, they’re anything but.

Buying salad dressing can be costly over time, and they aren’t always that good for you. Instead, make a simple dressing with olive oil, vinegar, mustard, and seasoning in a close-fitting jar and shake it up! Not only do you know exactly what goes into it, but you can also make the amount you need to avoid waste.

Store in the fridge and reuse whenever you’re having a salad for a flavour boost.

For more tips like this on healthy eating, read our blog on 10 ways to eat healthier.

8: Clean as you go

Having cooked up a culinary creation that rivals the best restaurants, it’s somewhat disheartening to then clean up a mess of a kitchen. This kitchen hack can make like easier for ‘future you’, by simply cleaning as you go when you’re cooking.

It’s useful to have a washing up bowl of hot, soapy water in your sink for washing your hands, as well as washing up knives, boards and bowls when you get some free time. It only takes a few seconds and really adds up!

For small spills (it’s inevitable), keep a pack of cleaning wipes handy for easy cleaning.

If you keep on top of these cleaning tasks, it should be much easier after your meal to wash up the remaining pieces and give your surfaces a once-over with a cleaning spray, giving you peace of mind in half the time!

9: Use leftovers to make your own stock

Here’s another kitchen hack for you to combat waste. As the home of family value, we want you to get the most out of your ingredients!

Don’t immediately be tempted to throw away things like fish and chicken bones, vegetable peelings and herb stalks. Instead, grab the slow cooker and make your very own stock!

This kitchen hack is used all the time in pro kitchens, and is something you can easily do at home with delicious results. Add in your scraps, cover with water, and turn on low overnight. Once it’s strained, you’ll have your own natural stock which you can use for soups, risotto, and any other recipe which calls for it.

If you find you’re creating a fair amount of fruit and veg offcuts, consider disposing of them in a compost bin to create nutrient-rich compost to feed your own plants in the future!

10: Make the most of ice cube trays

Don’t be fooled by the name… you can use your ice cube trays for things other than ice!

Experiment with making your own spice mixes or pesto in a blender, and freezing them into useful cubes for adding to meals whenever you need them for a flavourful hit.

You can freeze just about anything into cubes for flavouring your meals, from minced garlic to Thai curry paste. It’s yet another kitchen hack for you to cut down on waste and make tasty meals at the same time.