Looking to boost your chef skills in the kitchen? Or maybe you’re a new cook trying to figure out why it doesn’t taste like mom makes it? Practiced hands or newbies, this list can help anyone improve how their meals taste. These are my top 5 Things You Can Easily Do Now To Improve Your Cooking Game. Let’s tuck in!
#1 - Seasoning As You Go
This is one of the best things you can do to start making your meals taste better instantly. It’s also really simple to incorporate and can make a huge impact on how your meals taste. Have you ever wondered why Indian dishes are so packed with flavor? There are several reasons for this, but seasoning as you go is definitely one of them.
If you’ve ever made an Indian dish like Tikka Masala or the like, you’ll notice they soak their meats in herbs and spices, separate from the herbs and spices that are in the main part of the sauce. Often times the spices aren’t even the same, but are spices that complement the sauce they go in. In contrast, traditional American dishes usually add meat, veg and the like to a stew or sauce, and when everything is in one pot, then we add in the seasonings. Imagine instead that you’re eating beef stew, and you bite into a nice, garlic-infused piece of meat that was prepared previously in your cooking process.
The concept is simple – season your dish as you’re cooking instead of waiting to season until the end.
For example, let’s say you’re cooking spaghetti. First, you’ll want to cook the ground beef and onions. While you’re cooking, add salt, pepper, and any herbs or spices that you think would add to the meal. I usually add onion powder, fresh garlic or garlic powder, and some herbs. Once your meat is cooked, then add the tomato sauce and season the sauce too. Season it again with salt, pepper and the herbs that you want to add in.
Now you might be thinking, “Wow, this sounds like a lot of salt!”. It’s really not! As long as you’re tasting as you go, you should be fine. Add just enough to bring out each element in the dish.
#2 - Use Fresh Herbs & Spices
Ok, this one might be an obvious one, and you’re probably not too surprised to see it. But before you dismiss it, take a look at how often you purchase fresh herbs, fresh garlic bulbs, fresh ginger root, parsley, basil, need I go on? I’m also going to add fresh lemons and limes to this list as well.
I believe garlic to be one of the biggest offenders on this list. It’s so easy to grab a jar of already minced garlic or garlic powder and plop it into a dish! Listen, life gets busy I get it, and I’d be lying if I said I never use shortcuts. I love garlic powder and use it religiously! But, just try to incorporate freshly minced garlic more often into your dishes. It makes a big difference in the flavor profile.
We make homemade pizza every weekend as a family. One day I thought I’d add freshly minced garlic to mine as a topping. Oh my goodness, it’s ridiculous how good it is! Fresh herbs and spices can pack such a flavor punch that really gives depth and strength to your meals, that bottled or dried just can’t. Now don’t get me wrong, I love my dried spices as well, and there is nothing wrong with it. But if you’d like to improve any meal, add in some fresh herbs and spices.
If you’re really wanting to take your game to the next level, try grinding your own spices. Here’s a fun experience I had. My family recently moved to Georgia and since I’m a lover of food, my first mission was to go to all of my surrounding grocery stores and see what gems I could find. To my surprise, one of the stores down the street sold whole spices! Since I had a spice grinder at home that I inherited from my grandmother, I thought I’d give it a try.
The first spice I tried was nutmeg, (it’s amazing in my mom’s homemade Banana Bread Recipe). I threw the nutmeg into the spice grinder and gave it a good blitz. As soon as I opened the grinder, a plumage of amazing aromatics filled my nose. It was so fresh and sharp. I poked my finger in the dust and it felt that it was somewhat moist! The oils from the spice were preserved since it was whole. This helped bring forward the flavor of the spice. I added it to my banana bread, and made one of the best loaves of banana bread I’d ever had. Feel free to keep fresh spices in your cupboard for a week or two, or frozen for 6-8 months.
#3 - Mise En Place
This one has less to do with the taste of your cooking, but the efficiency and enjoyment of your cooking. Have you ever noticed in cooking shows that all of their ingredients are cut, scrambled, diced, measured and ready to go? This is Mise En Place!
Mise en place is a French term that means, “putting in place”. You’re getting all of your ingredients and prepping them/putting them in a place so that when you’re cooking, you’re ready to go!
So why? Why add this to the list of making you a better cook? Let me answer that with a short story. When I first started my cooking journey, I remember cooking a meal for my husband. It was a brand new meal that had a ton of steps. I glanced over the ingredients the day before, purchased what I needed, and when dinner time rolled around, I went to town cooking up a storm in my kitchen.
As I was heating up a pot with butter with onions in it, I realized I hadn’t cut up the celery, carrots or fresh garlic. Trying to get all those ingredients into the pot before the onions softened too much, I started peeling, smashing, and dicing everything in a frenzy. Well, my butter and my onions got very dark and were basically burnt. This pattern of anxiety went on for the rest of the recipe. Had I taken a few minutes to cut up and prepare my ingredients before I started anything, I would have had a much more enjoyable time cooking, and I would have been able to focus on seasoning, sauteeing and creating something amazing.
#4 - Don't Follow The Recipe
Ok, hear me out on this one. Obviously, I think recipes are a good thing, I run a food blog. Recipes are my life blood! What I’m saying is, make sure to taste and adjust as you see fit. Feel free to add things in or take ingredients out. Think of recipes as a suggested guide instead of an unchangeable law.
A great example of this is my Butter Chicken recipe that I adapted from Chef De Home’s recipe. At the end of this particular recipe, you finish off the dish by adding salt, honey and half & half. The balance of these ingredients can change your entire flavor profile of this meal. In my recipe I give an estimate of how much of each of those ingredients you should use. But depending on how sweet or big your tomatoes are, you may need to make some adjustments.
If you’re not sure how to “taste”, don’t fret! It’s not as complicated as you think it is. I’m sure you can understand when something tastes bland. If so, add more salt. If you feel like a dish is too dark, add some vinegar or lemon juice to brighten it up. If you feel like your dish needs more depth, add some garlic or herbs. The more you play around with your recipes, the more you’ll understand how different ingredients will enhance your meals. The most important thing is that it tastes good!
#5 - Salt
I saved the best for last. This is the most impactful and the simplest thing you can do to enhance your meals today. Make sure you’re using enough salt! You can have fresh herbs and spices throughout your entire dish, but if your salt levels are weak, your meal is going to be weak too. Don’t be afraid to add as much salt as is needed for your meal to be fully developed. Keep in mind that salt is meant to enhance, not overpower. When adding salt, be careful not to add too much and plow over your amazing flavors. Find balance by tasting, adding, tasting ,adding, etc. Salt is like Jesus, it has the power to bring out the best in everything it touches.
Before I get too blasphemous, let’s talk about people’s fear of salt. Salt in copious amounts can be very bad for your health. But let’s put this into perspective. A tsp of salt has 2300 mg of sodium in it. A Big Mac has 1007 mg of sodium in it. That’s a little under half a teaspoon of salt…in one burger! Now think about how much salt goes into cooking an omelet for yourself. A few sprinkles is usually enough. According to nutritionists on Food Insights, “70% of sodium comes from consumption of packaged foods, the remaining 30% is often added during cooking, at the table or is naturally present in foods.”1 So if you’re worried about your sodium intake, I’d eat less fast food and prepackaged foods, and more home-cooked meals.
The sodium that McDonald’s uses has been overly processed. This brings me to my next point, the salt you’re using. If you’re still using table salt, save it for the witches and get something better. Table salt has been over-processed and is devoid of minerals and life. Choose something with a bit more vitality in it. I usually use Himalayan Pink Salt. It’s inexpensive and contains minerals. Redmond Real Salt is also a favorite of mine to use, but isn’t as readily available as pink salt in my area. Kosher salt is a favorite amongst chefs for it’s grain size, flavor and ability to easily pinch.
In Conclusion
Now, the most powerful improvement to your cooking would be to combine everything you’ve read about here today. Imagine the improvement your meals could have when your ingredients have been prepped and ready to go with fresh herbs, spices, seasoned at every turn, tasted and adjusted, and given enough salt to bring it all together. You don’t have to be a top-trained chef to create amazingly tasty food. I hope you’ve found useful my list of 5 Things You Can Easily Do Now To Improve Your Cooking Game. Feel free to share if you have a list of your own!
