Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Minor kitchen wisdom

Turn off the burner before removing a pan or pot, always. No more wondering, three blocks from home, whether you turned off the burner.

Use scissors to round the ultra-sharp corners of cardboard-box flaps. No more nasty cuts.

Reader, do you have any minor kitchen wisdom to share?

comments: 8

Benjo said...

If you've had more than one drink, the knife-washing you'd been so keen on doing tonight can surely wait till tomorrow.

(Courtesy of a close friend of mine who spent part of his New Year's Eve in the ER.)

Elaine Fine said...

Be like Julia Child and tuck the corner of a clean dish towel in your skirt (pants, apron, whatever). That way you can always dry your hands when you need to (I'm always washing my hands when I cook--or washing vegetables or knives). After you are finished, throw the dishtowel in the laundry.

When I remember to do this it makes cooking infinitely easier, and it saves paper towels. You also know that the dishtowel you are using is actually clean.

Elaine said...

Use cotton cloth napkins. They are more absorbent, less wasteful, and can last several meals (or even days,) depending on whether you served ribs. You have to do laundry anyway; these don't take up too much room.
After drying, fold them, stack them, and place an old sad iron (or just a heavy old iron) on top of the stack. In a day or so, voila! Nicely pressed. (Why do you think folks used to speak of a 'linen press?')

Tip #2

Instead of those time-wasting, horrid twist-'ems, use wooden clothes pins to close your plastic bags (bread, for instance.) Air is the great enemy of stored food; exclude the excess air, twist and double over the end of the bag, apply the clip. You'll save seconds plus never stick yourself with the nasty little wire again.

Ben said...

Keep the kitchen stocked with mozzarella cheese sticks.

-Ben

Geo-B said...

You won't gain weight from anything you eat over the sink.

Jason said...

Place a damp washcloth underneath cutting boards to prevent them from slipping around as you cut your meat/produce/fruit/other.

Ted Major said...

Put boxes of foil, plastic wrap, etc. upside down in the drawer so that the box tops won't snag the cabinet frame when you open the drawer.

Michael Leddy said...

Thanks, everyone, for the kitchen wisdom.