Here are 13 quick tips to cook food faster…because your time is valuable!
- Use a counter top compost bowl for skins, peels and food discards.
- Efficiently wash produce together in one colander.
- Use smaller pots and pans if possible for faster heating.
- Make one pan/pot meals for less dishes to clean up.
- Know the cooking speeds of different foods. Grains: rice takes longest to cook, pasta is moderate, quinoa and couscous cook the fastest, for instance.
- Memorize ratios and recipes and don’t measure unless you have to. It saves time and extra dishes.
- Use less water when boiling. Try to only use as much water as absolutely necessary so that it heats faster. The more water you put in the pot, for instance, the longer it will take to boil! Keep in mind when cooking pasta and boiling potatoes and
- Boil water first before washing/chopping veggies and warming pans.
- Food cut into smaller pieces. It will cook faster and more thoroughly opposed to larger bits.
- Add salt in the beginning. Salt pulls water out of food, thereby quickening the cooking process.
- Cover pots and pans with a lid to heat contents faster. But be careful! This is very effective and may result in sudden boiling/over overflow.
- Multitask while waiting on food to cook: clean up, set the table, etc.
- Dish food immediately so it can begin to cool -food will remain hot if kept in the pan/pot.
Eco Tips:
- Open kitchen windows for ventilation instead of using the stove’s overhead fan.
- Don’t precut foods far in advance -they lose flavor and freshness. Additionally, they use an extra dish to clean and use more energy from the fridge.
