How To Save Time, Space And Effort In The Kitchen

Some useful hacks you can apply in the kitchen.

Probably you often end up in situations where you are baking cookies in the oven, a vegetable stew is simmering on the hob and steaks are grilling on the BBQ. It is quite normal to cook more than one meal at a time, especially if you have a large family, and usually the result is a tall pile of dirty utensils, spilled flour on the floor and empty packages everywhere. What's more, instead of sitting down and enjoying the meals, you have to get down to cleaning and washing... or leave the pile and pay attention to it a few hours later, when the grease hardened and everything will take twice as longer. It is quite familiar, isn't it?

You might have a small kitchen and no dishwasher, whereas if you had more workplace you will be much happier. However, there is a possibility to organise yourselves very well, so that ultimately you don't end up in chaos. It is possible, even with bigger kitchens.

Here are some of the tricks, which can help you have the cooking flusters under control.

Preparation In Advance

So much easier to get everything in order beforehand.

You can prepare in advance all ingredients, which you will need, as well as the cooking tools – grater, scales, measuring cup and mixing spoon. After you are done with the flour, sugar or rice packages, put them straight back in the cupboard, as well as every jar of spice at its place, instead of just leaving it on the worktop. That way you will have few less items to put back after. Cooking with less mess can be achieved easily when you make a few modifications in your style.

A Big Cutting Board

The large cutting board is extremely useful when you cook big.

A sizeable cutting board is extremely convenient. It can fit several kinds of cut veggies, without having to use additional plates or bowls, where they have to wait before jumping into the stew.

Silicon Carpet

A great addition to an orderly kitchen.

It is much easier to clean than the kitchen worktop. You can use it to knead dough or just as a padding beneath the bowls, when you want to save time on scrubbing. It is very fast to wash and nothing sticks on it – amazing and irreplaceable helper in the kitchen duties.

Knife

Save time on cleaning, money and space with a good quality knife.

Investing in a good knife will pay you back over time. If it is of high quality, you can cut absolutely everything with it – from red meat, through vegetables, fruits and nuts, to dough. It saves you space, since you will not need other knives. It will also increase food quality, because a good knife will never blunt and it's always sharp, therefore it gives options for more precision.

Garbage

As in each case, don't leave everything for the end.

It is quite impressive that for such a short time a huge pile of garbage can end up on your worktop – fruit and veggie peels, packages and so on. In order to avoid this unpleasant moment, keep a container/small garbage bin/bowl/deep utensil in which you can collect them immediately. You can have two if there are waste sorting regulations in your city – one for biological waste and another for plastic packages. Plastic bags, that are hanged closely, also do a decent job, but if you care about the environment, you will restrict their usage. When you are done cooking, you can simply empty out the smaller bins into the bigger.

Did you know, by the way, that with the veggie peels you can prepare a great vegetable broth, which you can use for soups and meals later, instead of plain water. The best one is made out of onion, carrot, pumpkin, potato peels and fresh green herb remains. Of course, you have to wash them well beforehand.

The Battle With The Dirty Plates

Don't be afraid of such situations, tackle them smartly.

This is one of my favourite hacks – wash every utensil or cutlery in the process of cooking. For example, you knead a dough for cookies, you stop using the bowl where you prepared it, as well as you don't need any more the stirrer – instead of just leaving them at the end of the worktop, rinse them for around half a minute. If you have a dishwasher, it will be much easier – they will rinse themselves and can stay inside. After you wash them, don't just pile them up, waiting them to dry – you can go over with a towel and put them back in their places. Wash the baking dishes in the end by putting them in the sink, sprinkle with some detergent and fill up the sink to the top. After 15 minutes they are extremely easy to clean.

The Magic Of The Ironing Board

The ideal case, in which your ironing board always IS in the kitchen.

If you don't have enough space, the ironing board turns into a great movable table, on top of which you can place bowls, baking pots or stirred creams to cool during cooking. You can cover it with an old tablecloth beforehand, so that you don't spoil it.

What are your useful tricks and ideas to save time and effort in the kitchen?