Cooking Tips — little secrets from the pros
Why does rice turn out fluffy, why won’t dough rise, why does meat get tough? 2163 tips tested by chefs and the community — sorted into categories and explained one by one.
All Tips
2,163 tips listed
What Causes Rainbow Stains on Stainless Steel?
Blue, purple, and gold reflections that appear on a stainless steel pot after heating are not dirt or damage. Heat thickens the chromium oxide layer that protec...
Can You Sharpen a Serrated Bread Knife?
You can sharpen a serrated bread knife, but not with the whetstone used for a straight-edge knife: the cutting edge is the concave inner face of the gullets bet...
How Can You Measure Honey and Grape Molasses Accurately with a Spoon?
With sticky ingredients, the amount measured is not the same as the amount that goes into the dish, because some stays on the spoon. The solution is to grease t...
How Do You Measure a Pan’s Actual Volume?
Measure a pan’s actual volume with water: fill the pan using a measuring vessel and note how many milliliters it holds. Diameter and side measurements alone are...
Why Is “1 Medium Onion” an Unclear Recipe Measure?
Because “medium” is not a standard; it is an impression. A vegetable’s size varies greatly by variety, season, and growing location; even two onions side by sid...
Which Round Pan Can Replace a Loaf Pan?
Compare a loaf pan with a round pan by volume, not by area, because a loaf pan is narrow and deep. To find an equivalent, multiply the width, length, and the he...
Should Brown Sugar Be Packed When Measured?
Brown sugar should be packed when measured. It contains moisture that makes the granules stick together, leaving large gaps when the sugar is spooned loosely in...
Why Should You Never Fill a Cake Pan to the Brim?
Do not fill a pan to the brim because batter rises in the oven and needs room to expand. Three things cause the rise: gas released by the leavener, water in the...
Why Use a Different Pan When Scaling Up a Recipe?
When scaling up a recipe, the pan’s cooking surface area needs to change along with the ingredients. When you put twice as much ground meat in the same pan, it...
How to Measure Solid Fat with a Measuring Cup
Solid fat does not fit into a measuring cup without gaps; air remains between the pieces, so the cup can look full while the measurement is short. If you do not...
How to Scale Ingredient Amounts When Changing Pan Diameter
Dough quantity scales with the square of the pan diameter, not the diameter itself, because what fits in the pan is determined by the area of its base, not the...
Why Are Fluid Ounces and Ounces by Weight Confused?
They are confused because 2 separate units share the same name: an ounce by weight is 28.35 grams and is measured on a scale, while a fluid ounce is 29.57 milli...