7 chef's culinary lifehacks on how to diversify your menu and make food taste better without spending money

Cooking is creative, but many people forget that. A homemade menu consisting of the same products can sparkle in a new way. The secret is in the flavor. It can be achieved with the help of various flyhacks. So even a familiar dish will shine with new colors.

Moreover, even in your kitchen you can serve a dinner that will not yield to a dish from an expensive restaurant. It is important to know some subtleties. Then you will definitely become a master in the kitchen.

The chef always has the task of feeding the client quickly and deliciously. Culinary experts have come up with many tricks on how to make even the most ordinary ingredients exquisite.

Brand chef of the Kroshka Kartoshka cafe chain

“Be sure to apply useful tips and tricks. This way your dishes will become even more delicious and exquisite.”

Lifehacks from the chef

1. When preparing any dish, chefs rely on basic flavors: spicy, salty, sour, sweet and bitter. From this follows the first rule – it is important to keep a balance between sweet and salty notes.

Don’t be afraid to use sugar only where it is really needed. It is added to salad and soup dressings, to marinades for seafood, fish and meat, also during vegetable stewing. It helps to bring out the flavor of the main ingredients to the fullest.

You should always add a little salt to sweet foods and sugar to salty foods. For example, when boiling rice porridge, add a pinch of salt at the very end. When frying fish – a little sugar, then familiar dishes will play with new notes.

2. Food is one of the most accessible pleasures for people. Many deprive themselves of it by choosing the same foods day after day. Always experiment: masterpieces are not born in routine and do not work the first time. At the same time, it is important to develop a gastronomic mindset that will make it easier to prepare new dishes as well as those already tried and tested.

It is recommended not only to watch how others cook, but also to experiment at home yourself. Cooking is not a science that requires following a strict recipe. You can always try substituting one product for another. Add ingredients that are not the most obvious and trust your gut.

3. Aromatic herbs and spices will help to emphasize and even enhance the flavor of dishes. At home, garlic and spices are basic ingredients-enhancers available to absolutely everyone. The first can be used not in pure form, but as a light flavoring. For example, take sunflower oil and add to it a slice of garlic, a branch of rosemary and thyme. Let this infuse for a week. This will give you an oil for salad dressing. It can also be used for frying.

Make several bottles of oil – for different dishes. In one add garlic with rosemary and thyme, in the second – parsley, dill and cilantro, in the third – hot pepper, in the fourth – dry spices that will dissolve in the oil and make it more flavorful.

4. Use alcoholic beverages in cooking to enhance the smells and flavors. For example, those that remain after events and small gatherings. These are red and white wine, brandy or beer. You can add them when stewing the product or in the process of frying.

If you are cooking vegetables or frying fish, white wine or champagne will be perfect. When stewing meat, you can add beer or kvass to it. They will diversify the flavor palette.

5. Chefs do not neglect elementary equipment – pay attention to such basic things as a timer, thermometer, scales. The use of scales will allow you to weigh products more accurately and observe the proportions.

The same story with a thermometer: if you understand at what temperature to braise and fry food, you will be able to better control what is happening in the kitchen. For example, when we bake a large piece of meat or chicken, we often poke them with a knife to check whether they are ready or not.

This action can be avoided. First, it is very easy to miss and not get the knife into the piece that is not baked. Secondly, we destroy the integrity of the shell, the juice leaks out of the meat. It turns out drier than it needs to be. A thermometer allows you to control the temperature inside the product and achieve its perfect readiness.

6. Another secret of chefs is to focus on the seasonality of the product. Herbs, salad leaves will taste better when they are just torn from the bed. All fruits, vegetables, berries and even fish and seafood have their season.

It’s always best to use foods that make the shortest possible journey from the producer to the end consumer. After all, any long storage deteriorates the flavor. If you buy frozen foods, take them in vacuum packs. They retain texture and flavor better.

7. If you want to get a crust in the process of baking or frying, the product should be pre-dried from excess moisture. Proceed as follows – first warm up to room temperature, then dry with a paper or waffle towel.

An important point – do not fry products immediately from the refrigerator. Why? The sudden change in temperature kills the flavor. If you are cooking meat or fish, keep it warm for a few hours.