Chefs Are Sharing Tips That Amateur Cooks Need To Know And Y'all Need To Jot These Down

On Sunday, Reddit user u/BigBadWolf44 asked, "Chefs of Reddit, what’s one rule of cooking amateurs need to know?" Now, I'm awful at anything cooking-related, so these chefs' tips really helped me.

Here's what they said:

1."Salt, pepper, and acid will brighten up almost any dish. If an otherwise wonderful dish is just 'missing something,' add salt, pepper, and lemon juice, then reassess."

—u/LymphomaThr0waway

2."Clean as you go! Done with the cutting board? Wash it or put it away before you move on to the next step. A clean kitchen makes your life way easier."

—u/heyeve

3."Hotter doesn't mean faster. Turning your burners up to 10 for everything will just lead to smoke and half-cooked food with a burned exterior."

—u/blay12

4."That being said, a lot of times inexperienced cooks won’t let their pan get hot enough. Obviously, you need to know how your particular pans work on your particular stovetop, but so many dishes are ruined from the start because people just light a stove, wait five seconds, and toss their ingredients in. You will never get a good sear when your ingredients are basically boiling in their own moisture."

—u/chunkymonk3y

5."A little sweetness can elevate your dish. Honey or brown sugar, for instance."

—u/pinkietoe

6."Don't use 'cooking wine.' If it's not worth drinking, why put it in your food?"

—u/Birdapotamus

7."Sharpen your knives. They will be more efficient. A dull knife is more dangerous than a sharp one. The difference in efficiency is astounding."

—u/114631

8."Mise en place, which is a French cooking phrase that means everything should be arranged and put in its place before cooking the meal."

—u/Blackandarmed

9."If you eat too many chilis, they lose their heat."

—u/AdminsEqualls

10."Let your meat rest after cooking. The juices will move around and it'll taste better."

—u/Leave_it_to_stupid

11."Instead of frying an egg on high heat and flipping it several times, you can just fry it on low heat with a lid. It'll cook both sides of the egg without you having to flip it."

—u/SauloJr

12.Learn how to sear, pan-roast, and rest your meats. Buy authentic berbere. Under-seasoned is as bad as over-seasoned. Learn how to properly use the most common knives. Now imagine that is all one rule."

—u/DarthDregan

13."Drinking a small amount of olive oil will cleanse the palate and allow you to really taste what you're cooking. Don't knock it 'til you try it."

—u/nipplehater69

14."Keep it simple. I see so many young chefs coming into the kitchen fresh out of the classroom going hell for leather to make some strange gels, jellies — dehydrated this and that. Yes, it can taste great, but just chill out. Show me if you can make a proper jus, properly cook a joint of meat, and know how to bring the best out of a simple, humble vegetable.'"

—u/bibBo

15."Cut your chicken breasts in smaller pieces. Never cook them full. They take forever to cook and are not too tasty."

—u/idontlikemonday32

16."Use high-quality ingredients and don't burn them. Good food is more about the quality of the ingredient than the cook."

—u/mordeci00

17."Add salt to the water you use to make pasta."

—u/euben_hadd

And last, but not least:

18."Taste your food! If you don’t know that it’s good, how is anybody else supposed to?"

—u/jdward01

Now, it's your turn. If you are a cooking connoisseur, share a useful tip with us in the comments below!