9 Clever Cooking Tips You Learn While Working In Restaurants

Ready to deploy at home… 

1. Sizzle Platter

Broil anything and everything from steak and oysters gratin to asparagus and peaches dusted with brown sugar. The sizzle platter is cheap, easier to handle than a clumsy baking sheet and can double as a trendy serving plate that keeps food warm for longer.

Photo: @Kitchen Konfidence

2. Strain Stock Through Fresh Herbs

Throw a handful of fresh herbs like rosemary, thyme or parsley in your strainer when you pour the stock through, it adds so much freshness in seconds.

3. The “Herb” Clap

Before adding herbs like basil or mint, clap them in your hands to release the essential oils. Don’t believe it will make a difference? Take a whiff before and after. This works amazing for mojitos.

4. Use A Timer

Walk into any professional kitchen and you’ll see digital timers everywhere. Cooking involves multitasking and forgetting to pull the pasta out of the water or the fish out of the oven is easy to do. Get your hands on a couple Taylor Timers. There’s a myth that great cooking relies on “feel”, it mostly relies on precision, timers are precise.

5. Crack An Egg On A Flat Service

Cracking on the side of the bowl drives pieces of shell into the egg and can pierce the yolk. Next, you can move onto the double crack.

6. Hot Foods Hot Plates, Cold Food Cold Plates

Nothing will suck the heat out of your dinner like putting hot food on room temperature plates. Just throw your plates or bowls in an oven at 250 degrees for 3 minutes. This is especially important for soup and serving platters, think the Thanksgiving turkey or this side of Ghee Roast Carrots. Same goes for cold dishes, you know when people say “wow that salad is so refreshing!” well that mostly comes from the temperature, plates in the fridge for 10 minutes will make a big difference especially in summer. Don’t forget ice cream in frozen bowls!

7. Dry With Paper Towel Before Searing

When searing a steak, scallop or any protein, pat the outside dry with paper towel to ensure the crispiest sear possible. Moisture causes a “mini steam” that inhibits the “Maillard reaction”, french for caramelization.

Mantry Live! Ep. 54 // Ghee Tumeric Scallops

Photo: @domesticateme

8. Use Grapeseed Oil To Sear

Grapeseed oil has a really high smoke point and imparts no flavor which makes it ideal to get the perfect sear. Olive oil or butter will burn up before you get the pan hot enough to develop a deep brown colour.

9. Your Pantry Is Like Your Closet For Food

Think of your pantry as a closet for food. A nice bottle of maple syrup and a pancake mix? Boom you’re ready for a spontaneous breakfast. Some good pasta and a decent red sauce? You can feed the crew well in 15 minutes. A couple decent items go a long way and allow you to adapt to any situation, especially say, if someone’s parents come over.

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