One Dozen Kitchen Tips | Family Economics

By Trisha

With so much of our time spent in the kitchen preparing meals, it is always helpful to find tips that simplify meal preparation and save time.

Here are a dozen kitchen tips that you will find useful as you clean and prepare meals.

1. Kitchen shears – These are a mom’s best friend in the kitchen. They can be used to cut everything from meat, sandwiches and pancakes to green beans and pizza into bite-sized portions.

2. Easy to clean pots and pans – Boil water and vinegar in your pot or pan and the stuck on food is easily removed when you dump the water and vinegar out.

3. Clean sponges – To keep your sponge clean and smelling fresh, place it in your dishwasher in the silverware compartment before you run it each time. The extreme hot water will sanitize your sponge and keep it fresh.

4. Microwave cleaning – This couldn’t get any easier. Place a microwaveable bowl filled half with water and half with lemon juice into your microwave. Now turn on your microwave for a couple of minutes until the moisture begins to build up inside and then scrub the inside. This will clean and deodorize your microwave.

5. No more sticky oil – First rinse your measuring cup in hot water before pouring syrup, oil, etc. into it. It will now pour out clean and not stick to your cup.

6. Fresh celery – Keep your celery fresh by trimming it, cutting into sticks and placing it into a Ziploc® Brand Container full of water and storing in your refrigerator.

7. Fry-free bacon – Cook your bacon in the oven. Place your bacon slices on a cookie sheet or jelly roll pan and place in the oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit until it is cooked to your liking.

8. Perfect pancakes – Use your blender to mix your pancake batter. You can then use it to pour right on to the griddle.

9. Sliced olives – Need your olives sliced? Use your egg slicer so you can slice more than one at a time.

10. Out of lemon? – Are you in the middle of cooking a recipe that calls for lemon only to discover you are out? Use 1/2 teaspoon of vinegar in place of one teaspoon of lemon juice.

11. Tasty veggies – Add one or more bouillon cubes instead of salt when cooking your vegetables, this will improve the flavor. You can also add a few cloves of garlic when boiling vegetables to add extra tasty flavoring.

12. Flavored whipped cream – First add whipped cream then add two tablespoons of flavored gelatin. Continue beating on slow until the whipped cream is the right consistency. You now have flavored and colored whipped cream.

What tips and tricks do you use in the kitchen?