7 Easy Cooking Hacks

There are countless recipes out there that involve the use of some form of oil. It’s the ultimate ingredient for frying, but we often tend to add our other ingredients before the oil has actually gotten to the right temperature, as it’s so hard to tell how hot oil really is. Oil doesn’t bubble up like water, but there is a way you can test the heat without putting yourself at risk. Simply grab a wooden spoon or other wooden cooking utensils and place them into the oil. As seen in the picture, the oil should start to bubble up around the wood if it’s hot and ready to start frying. If it doesn’t bubble, you’ll need to leave it a little longer.

When you don’t have too much time to spare but want to bake something sweet and tasty, a box cake is a great option. They’re quick and easy, with most of the hard work done on your behalf, and all you usually need to do is add in a few extra ingredients like oil, water, and eggs. However, many box cakes end up being a little dry and disappointing when they come out of the oven.
This top tip can help you take your box cakes to the next level, giving them a truly homemade taste. The key here is to ignore the on-the-box instructions and add different ingredients instead. If the box tells you to add water, add milk. If it tells you to add oil, add butter. And if it tells you to add one egg, add two. These extra ingredients will vastly improve the flavor and texture of your cake.

Making your own pasta sauce is so much better than using the pre-made canned sauces out there, but it can also be quite a long and tiring process. Wouldn’t it be better if there was a simpler and faster way? Well, maybe there is, and this top tip can help you enjoy delicious pasta sauce with ease.
The trick here is to actually use canned tomato sauce but add in some of your own ingredients to vastly improve the flavor. First, prepare a pan and heat up some olive oil. Then add some chopped garlic and onion powder before applying the canned sauce. The garlic and onion will really help out with the flavor, giving your sauce an authentic taste.

Steaming your vegetables is one of the best ways you can cook them. It keeps all the vitamins and nutrients inside, and it doesn’t involve the use of any extra fat, too, so it’s super healthy. The only problem is that many people don’t have a steamer and don’t want to buy yet another kitchen appliance, but there’s a way you can steam your veggies without even using a steamer.
This trick involves parchment paper. All you need to do is prepare some parchment paper parcels and then rinse off your veggies in a bowl. Don’t let them dry off. Instead, place them straight into the parchment paper parcels and fold the paper over them. You can even add a little seasoning here like herbs, lemon slices, salt, and pepper to add some extra flavor. Then all you need to do is place your veggies in the oven for about half an hour.

Many of us love to stop off at our local coffee shops and grab a frothy cappuccino or other milky drink, and we often marvel at how the baristas can make such frothy milk so quickly and easily with their high-powered coffee machines. Well, you don’t need a fancy machine to make frothy milk in your very own home!
For this trick, all you need to do is pour your milk into a little jar, like an old jam or jelly jar. Next, secure the lid tightly in place, so you don’t make a mess and then start shaking the jar around as fast as you can. After that, place the jar into the microwave for about 30 seconds (make sure there are no metal pieces on your jar for safety), and you’ll get super frothy milk at the end.

Got a craving for some rice but not enough space on the stove to cook it up? Maybe you just don’t have the time to stand around and keep an eye on it, or maybe you just want a super speedy alternative to using your pots and pans. Either way, there’s a quick and easy way to cook rice using nothing but a microwave.
For this trick, simply place your rice in a microwave-safe container and then fill it up with water. The water should get to about 1 inch above the rice. Next, cover it up, and place the container into the microwave for about 9 minutes, give or take depending on the power and settings of your appliance. Once the microwave beeps, you’ll find some tasty, perfectly cooked rice waiting for you.

Many people like to cook with various oils each day, but it can be so annoying as the heat builds up and that oil starts spitting and splattering all over your nice, clean kitchen. It can be hell to clean up afterward, and all those little splashes of oil can sometimes hurt your skin if they make contact. There has to be a better way, right?
Well, there is! All you really need to do is add a sprinkle of salt into the pan with the oil. Due to some pretty complex science that we won’t detail here, the salt prevents the oil from splattering and spitting around, keeping your skin safe, your kitchen clean, and letting you enjoy your favorite recipes.