23 tricks which top chefs use in the kitchen

Everyone who loves to spend a lot of time in the kitchen knows a whole load of little secrets which can help turn an ordinary dish into something exquisite. And as for professional chefs — well, they know more tricks than there are fish in the sea. We discovered a few of their best ones which could also help to make you a hit in the kitchen.

1. Add a little vinegar when boiling rice to give it that snowy white colour.
2. If you want to add a note of garlic to the meal, rub a clove over the plate before serving.
3. A way to add a new, interesting taste to some meat: marinate it in dark beer, or a mixture of light beer with soy sauce, salt and pepper. You can also add beer to stewed vegetables, and it gives an especially interesting taste and aroma to boiled potatoes.
4. When cooking liver, salt should be added only at the end, otherwise it becomes too tough.
5. To prevent a pie from burning on top, cover it with damp paper.
6. If you put a piece of ice in some broth and bring it to the boil, the broth will be clearer and less cloudy.
7. In order to cut open a hard-boiled egg neatly, dip the blade of the knife in cold water first; that way the yoke won’t crumble.
8. Beans won’t turn dark when being boiled if you leave the lid off the saucepan.
9. Minced meat will taste and smell better if you add a piece of dry onion, a piece of fried onion, and finely grated pieces of potato to it.
10. Use lemon juice to partly replace the salt you would normally put in a meal. It’s better for regulating your blood pressure, and it will ensure that you don’t over-salt the dish. Lemon juice also has a beautiful aroma.
11. Aubergines won’t have a bitter taste if you cut them into pieces, salt them, and wash them in cold water before cooking.
12. The skin of almonds comes off easily if you first boil them thoroughly for five minutes, then cool them down in cold water.
13. Sour cream will mix much more effectively with cream if you first add a little egg white.
14. Add a pinch of salt to ground coffee to make your drink a whole lot tastier!
15. Smear meat with pomegranate juice and honey mixed with dry wine, cognac or water before roasting it in the oven to give it that appetising ruddy colour on the surface.
16. If you’ve boiled some meat for too long, cut it into thin pieces, put them on a plate, and sprinkle them with pieces of onion and tomato and add some vegetable oil, lemon juice and vinegar. Soon, the meat will become juicy again.
17. Use ground nuts instead of breadcrumbs.
18. It’s best to leave just-prepared meat to cool down for a few minutes before serving. That way it will taste better.
19. Vinaigrette salad will taste better if you first add a tablespoon of milk and a teaspoon of sugar.
20. The apple pieces in your apple pie won’t sink to the bottom if you first cover them in flour before cooking.
21. Before you remove soup from the boil, add some juice from a fresh cabbage, carrot or tomatoes. This will improve the taste, as well as add a few more vitamins to it.
22. Vanilla is a brilliant spice for adding an extra note to vegetable salads.
23. There are many ways to save soup which is too salty. In particular, you can immerse a small amount of oats in some gauze in it, and then boil thoroughly; the oats will absorb the excess salt.