14 Valuable Tips and Cooking Advice from Chefs and Seasoned Cooks

For many of us, Christmas season means cooking season.

And what better way to usher in the holidays than to learn how to cook like a chef does? There’s this gem of a Reddit thread that I discovered while web surfing one night, and I discovered so many valuable cooking advice that I know I should share with you. We’re going to cook a lot this season so we might as well make the most out of our cooking!

Some of these are oft-repeated tips, while some are novel. Either way, you will surely learn a lot!

1. Let the pan get hot before sauteeing. – kwyjibo8

When you cook things slowly by using a cold pan, the inside will heat up at the same rate as the outside, and anything you do that to will become soggy and mushy. When the pan is hot, the outside cooks faster than the inside, so it will harden before all the moisture from inside leaks out and makes it soggy. That way when the inside cooks later on, it will retain its shape. – vbpatel

A good way to know your pan is hot enough – add oil, crank the heat, once the oil looks like its rippling a bit and you see the first wisp of smoke – add your protein (presentation side down). Once you start seeing the correct color just creeping up the side of the meat – its probably seared. To be clear – this isnt any color change, but rather once you see that nice golden brown color. – gkern86

2. If you keep having to add salt, try adding some citric acid instead. – 0jeezrick

Also try different acids because they add different flavors. Citric acid (e.g., lemon) is different from acetic acid (e.g. vinegar). There are also tartaric and malic acid (e.g., wine), as well as lactic acid (e.g., sour milk products). – Iamnotthefirst

3. A blunt knife is more dangerous than a sharp knife. – Lympwing2

A sharp knife does what you want. A blunt knife invites sloppy and unsafe technique, because it doesn’t cut the way it should. – Rollover_Hazard

Also sharp knife cut will heal a lot faster because it’s a clean cut. If you cut yourself with a blunt knife it’s more like using a serrated blade and tears the flesh. – HiddenShorts

4. Learn cooking techniques instead of recipes. – GeraldSparks

Learn what flavors work well together and how to enhance them. Recipes are just people combining compatible flavors and using certain techniques. Learn those and you won’t need half so many recipes. – DukeInterior

5. Mise en Place – theWet_Bandits

Essentially it means get everything ready before you start. Instead of scrambling to measure out four different seasonings or get olive oil out of your pantry while something is burning on the stove, get everything out and measured beforehand. – theWet_Bandits

More cooking advice next page!

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Cooking tips reddit