Learning new cooking methods and kitchen hacks to use at meal time can be fun and exciting, but it can also save you a lot on your weekly grocery bill while making life so much easier.
I love learning and sharing new kitchen tricks and ways of cooking food that save time and money and they always seem to resonate so well with my readers and followers, too. There’s no need to attend culinary school to learn how to be a good home cook, and truthfully, the real “trick” is to amass a collection of little tips and techniques over the years that work for the way you like to eat and the way you enjoy preparing food. I thought it would be fun today to share a few of my “fan favorite” kitchen tips that I’ve shared over the years. These are the ones that always seem to get pinned the most on Pinterest, or the ones that I get the most comments on when people are just thrilled that something actually worked for them the way it was supposed to. You know how great that feeling is. 🙂 Here are a few that we all just seem to love.
The Butter in the Glass Trick
This is the best, quickest way to evenly soften a stick of butter if you’re like me and always seem to forget to take it out an hour or two ahead of time.
Learn how it works: The Butter in the Glass Trick to Soften Butter Quickly
Learn How to Keep Stored Potatoes From Sprouting
Does your bag of potatoes always seem to start sprouting before you get the chance to use them all up? This works amazingly well. Yay for science!
Get the tutorial: How to Keep Potatoes From Sprouting
Use the “Lemon in the Jar” Trick for Citrus Fruits
This keeps lemons and limes fresh for so much longer! They always seemed to dry up and shrivel up on me before I had the chance to use them, and this saved me so much frustration.
Learn how: The Lemon in the Jar Trick
Make Your Own Pancake Syrup
The next time you’re making pancakes or waffles on Saturday morning and you realize you’re out of syrup, just whip a batch of this up, and you’ll be all set. So many reviewers have said they actually like this even better than store-bought syrup, and this is all they use now!
Get the recipe: Homemade Pancake Syrup Recipe
Discover How to Peel Garlic Almost Instantly
If you’ve ever had a recipe that calls for a lot of garlic, you know how tedious it can be to peel all those individual cloves. This garlic peeling trick that I originally learned from Martha Stewart really works, and it’s fun too. 🙂
Learn the Martha-approved method: How to Peel Garlic in Seconds
Learn the Trick to Keep Celery Fresh
Celery is another one of those things that we all seem to buy because we have a recipe that needs a stalk or two, but then it always seems to get floppy and sad before you have the chance to use up the rest of it, doesn’t it? This is a simple trick, but it’s so effective for keeping celery fresh.
Learn the trick: How to Keep Celery Fresh Pretty Much Forever
Homemade Baking Powder
We all know that every trip to the store somehow leads to spending at least $50 on impulse purchases and necessities, so if you’re looking to save money and time, avoiding running out for missing ingredients is incredibly useful. If baking powder is missing from your cabinet, no need to run out to the market. You can make your own using other pantry staples.
Get the recipe: How to Make Your Own Baking Powder When You Run Out
Slow Cooker Baked Potatoes
There aren’t many cooking methods that are easier than tossing something into the slow cooker. If you’re a home cook looking for a simple and satisfying side dish for family dinners, or even for a potluck, a crock pot full of baked potatoes will work surprisingly well. This basic cooking technique is a cross between steaming, browning, and roasting and results in potatoes that are perfectly fluffy on the inside with deliciously crispy skins. This works equally well for cooking squash too.
Get the Recipe: How to Make Baked Potatoes in the Slow Cooker
Homemade Italian Seasoning
Preparing your own seasoning blends for basic cooking and everyday grilling not only brings a nostalgic aroma to your kitchen, but it’s a great way to cut down on waste. You probably already have all the herbs and spices necessary for this popular homemade spice blend in your spice cabinet, just waiting to be used up so they don’t get old. Why not mix them up into something useful rather than buying a new bottle of a pre-made seasoning blend?
Get the recipe: Homemade Italian Seasoning Blend
Drizzle on a Glaze
If you’re looking to create a dessert to impress, instead of trying a new, complicated cookbook recipe with fancy ingredients, bake something simple and reliable, then dress it up with a glaze or topping made from pantry staples. A sprinkling of streusel topper can elevate almost any cake, muffin, or quick bread, and a drizzle of glaze will make any batch of cookies or cupcakes look like something truly special.
Get the chocolate glaze recipe: Easy Microwave Chocolate Glaze With Cocoa Powder
Make Your Own Cake Mix
Stop paying extra for the convenience of store-bought boxed cake mixes and just make your own in bulk. You’ll have it ready to go whenever you need it and this recipe works just as well for fancy gourmet desserts as it does for the basic cupcakes you make as an after-school snack.
Get the recipe: Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix
Learn to Freeze Your Extra Fruits and Veggies
If you like to cook often, chances are that you end up with extra odds and ends of different veggies when you’re done making a recipe. If you find these often go bad before you have the chance to use them up, consider freezing as an option. You can even chop, slice, and dice a small number of your veggies before putting them in the freezer so they’re ready to be used for various cooking techniques, whether high-heat frying, braising or using them in a casserole. Not only does freezing vegetables save money, they’re also very quick and convenient to use.
More information on ways of cooking foods after freezing: Can You Freeze Celery?
Use Veggie Scraps to Make Broth in the Crock Pot
Leftover vegetable scraps and ends can easily be turned into delicious and useful veggie broth. So many different methods of cooking require broth or stock to add extra flavor, and this easy, low-cost recipe will become indispensable for homemade soups, gravies, and casseroles.
Get the recipe: Homemade Crock Pot Veggie Broth
Refresh Stale Bread
There’s no need to let that beautiful baguette or artisan loaf go to waste if you didn’t have the chance to eat it in time, just follow this simple method and it will be soft and fresh again in just a few minutes. Serve your rescued loaf with a pot of homemade soup made with your vegetable broth for a truly satisfying, budget-friendly meal.
Get the tutorial: How to Soften Stale Crusty Bread
Courtenay Hartford is the author of creeklinehouse.com, a blog based on her adventures renovating a 120-year-old farmhouse in rural Ontario, Canada. On her blog, Courtenay shares interior design tips based on her own farmhouse and her work as founder and stylist of the interior photography firm Art & Spaces. She also writes about her farmhouse garden, plant-based recipes, family travel, and homekeeping best practices. Courtenay is the author of the book The Cleaning Ninja and has been featured in numerous magazines including Country Sampler Farmhouse Style, Better Homes and Gardens, Parents Magazine, Real Simple, and Our Homes.