Cooking Tips
Short, practical fixes for the mistakes that spoil everyday cooking. Each article ends with recipes that put the tips to work.
7 Soup Mistakes and How to Fix Them
Seven common soup mistakes and the simple fix for each: under-cooked onions, timid salt, no acid, boiled dairy, hot-blender splatter, mushy noodles and thin broth.
Read the tips → Cooking tips3 Ways to Make Hummus
Three ways to make hummus: the classic smooth version with canned chickpeas, the extra-creamy version from dried chickpeas, and a quick no-tahini version, plus tips for smoother hummus.
Read the tips → Cooking tipsHow to Reheat Leftovers
How to reheat rice, steak, pizza, pasta, fried chicken, mashed potatoes, turkey and stuffing without drying them out, plus the general rules that apply to every leftover.
Read the tips → Cooking tipsHow to Thicken and Freeze Soup
Six ways to thicken a thin soup (reduce, blend, mash, cornstarch, flour, starch) and how to freeze soup in single portions so it reheats well.
Read the tips → Cooking tipsHow to Make Gravy
How to make smooth, flavorful gravy from pan drippings or from scratch, and how to fix lumpy, thin, salty or bland gravy.
Read the tips → Cooking tipsCornstarch Substitute
What to use when you are out of cornstarch: flour, arrowroot, potato starch, tapioca and more, with rough starting amounts and when each one works best.
Read the tips → Cooking tipsTomato Paste Substitute
What to use instead of tomato paste: tomato sauce, ketchup, canned tomatoes, fresh tomatoes and more, with rough amounts and the adjustments to make.
Read the tips → Cooking tipsHomemade Cajun Seasoning
A simple homemade cajun seasoning blend from pantry spices, what each spice does, how much to use, and how to make it milder or hotter.
Read the tips → Cooking tipsEasy Halloween Dinner Ideas
Five easy, kid-friendly Halloween dinners you can make before trick-or-treating: mummy hot dogs, jack-o'-lantern quesadillas, chili in a mug, eyeball spaghetti and pumpkin face pizza.
Read the tips → Cooking tipsQuick Egg Dinners
Five quick, cheap egg dinners: egg fried rice, egg drop soup, eggs in tomato sauce, egg quesadillas and soy butter egg rice. Great for students and busy weeknights.
Read the tips → Cooking tipsThanksgiving Make-Ahead Timeline
A simple Thanksgiving timeline: what to plan, buy and make ahead in the weeks, days and hours before the meal so the day itself is calm.
Read the tips → Cooking tipsHomemade Seasoning Mixes
Six easy homemade seasoning mixes from pantry spices: pumpkin pie spice, stuffing seasoning, taco seasoning, ranch seasoning, Italian herb blend and an onion soup style mix, with starting amounts and how to use each.
Read the tips → Cooking tipsHomemade Seasoning Gift Jars
Five easy homemade seasoning gift jars for Christmas: taco seasoning, ranch dip mix, Italian herb blend, pumpkin pie spice and cajun seasoning, plus what to write on the label.
Read the tips → Cooking tipsEasy Holiday Appetizers
Five easy holiday appetizers for Thanksgiving, Christmas and parties: a cheese ball, spinach artichoke dip, pigs in a blanket, caprese skewers and baked brie, with ingredients and simple steps.
Read the tips → Cooking tipsCold Weather Dinners
Cozy cold weather dinners to make this week: soups, chili, shepherd's pie and more, plus five simple habits that make any warm dinner taste better and stretch further.
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