WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR KITCHEN HACKS?

[Ashley Malia]

When I cut bell peppers I turn it on its side, cut the bottom off first and then position it upside down and cut along the walls that way the top with the seeds stay intact and I can compost it afterwards. I also put items away and wash dishes as I go so that in the end there is not much to do. If I want to have an easy week I will try to prep all meats and veggies at the same time. During the winter we cook whole chicken and turkeys in the oven on a "low and slow" setting which heats up our house and cooks perfectly by the next morning and cools down by that night.

[Daniel A Roberts]

What I have is not necessarily a hack, but the outcome is night and day.

Most people dislike or outright hate liver and onions. I found out why, because I loved them all the while I was growing up. How many kids do you know actually 'want' liver and onions, right? Well, my mom made them the right way, as it's all too easy to mess the recipe up.

Well, here is the deal. Most people, heck, even some chefs in restaurants where I used to work 20 years ago, made the mistake of cooking the liver on the pan with onions around the meat. Bad. Bad-bad-bad!

How it's supposed to go is the onions go in the pan first until you cannot see the pan bottom anymore. Then the liver is cooked on top of the onions. Why? Liver turns dry and bitter if it touches the metal to cook. If it cooks on top of the onions, the dryness stays away and it never gets bitter. When I've cooked it the proper way, people who have hated liver and onions all their life eventually take a 'polite' taste, and they usually end up very surprised. It's no longer the horror show their mouth expects it to be.

Cook it on medium high heat with a lid, and the liver will be cooked all the way through just before the onions turn translucent.

[Varisha Khanna]

I'd suggest peeling garlic, juicing lemons, making pasta sauce etc. all these things in advance and storing it, it can really help reduce the cooking time! I also like pre portioning meat, cleaning it and freezing it to make my work easier.

[Jacqueline Torres 2]

When cleaning my pots, I add on dish soap immediately after I’m done and put it back on the stove with a little bit of heat and then add a splash of water. Wait till it boils and then it’s much easier to scrub cleaning. It’s like butter.

[Bianca Bennett 2]

Do you have oil you can't remove from a pan? Add baking soda. After you do that, add water and set the temperature to boil. Thank me later.