Keep staples on hand
Who needs 5 different types of flour, 4 different sugars and 3 different types of rice in the house? E-V-E-R-Y-O-N-E.
Experiment!
Always ask yourself, ‘What if …’
‘What if I added pomegranate molasses to spaghetti sauce?’
‘What if I use sweet potato instead of pasta in lasagne?’
‘What if I sprinkle dried chilli flakes on my choc chip cookies before baking them?’
The worst that happens is a funny story, the best is a new divine taste.
Play ‘Surprise Chef’ every couple of weeks
We’ve all got dregs of different ingredients that we bought for a particular recipe haunting the back of the pantry. Every couple of weeks, make a deal with yourself to cook something with ONLY the ingredients you have on hand – you’ll need to get creative and improvise, but it means you can reduce food waste and that’s always a good thing!
Get salty
Don’t. Be. Afraid. Of. Salt.
Sharpen up
A sharp knife is a safer knife as there’s less chance it’ll slip off the food and cut you. And everything is easier with a sharp knife. Get a good knife sharpener and learn how to use it properly.
Butter ’em up
Want your sauces to really shine? Add a little butter (just a teaspoon or so) at the end of the cooking process and watch that restaurant-like gloss shine through.