1."A lot of that cast iron care stuff is complete bullshit. Cook on it, wash it, dry it, and move on with your life. It’s one of the oldest cooking methods around and people act like cleaning that shit is the same as handling plutonium."
2."Margarine is not the same as butter, and miracle whip is not the same as mayonnaise. For the love of God, get that miracle whip out of your potato salad."
3."American cheese is a totally valid ingredient in the kitchen, and it's even superior to 'real' cheese in certain applications such as grilled cheese and burgers."
4."Eggs should always be cooked last when making breakfast, after the pancakes, bacon, and whatever else you're serving. I can't explain why hot eggs are so important, but they are."
5."Both celery seed and nutmeg are nearly disappearing from modern cooking, and they are both very valuable flavors to lose. Nutmeg is not just for baking — it gives a subtle flavor that perks up cream sauces and gives plain baked goods a comforting, nostalgic flavor. Celery seed adds a fresh, green, peppery bite to potato salads and pasta salads that make the dish really pop. It's also a great wildcard to add to spice rubs for poultry and pork."
6."Muffins are just an excuse to eat dessert for breakfast. In fact, most sweet "breakfast" items are more like dessert. Think: pancakes and syrup, French toast, sugary cereals, etc..."
7."The 'prep time' listed in recipes is always wildly, wildly inaccurate."
8."Garlic belongs in Bolognese sauce. It might not be the traditional way, but it is the better way. Sue me."
9."Fresh spices don’t always mean better. Some recipes require dried chili flakes over fresh chilies, for example, and that affects the way a dish is meant to taste. Same with garlic. Fresh garlic and garlic powder do two very different things!"
10."You should use salt to season food while you cook. It is not just for the table. This is not up for debate."
11."Forget regular butter. Browned butter makes all the difference in baking. Try using browned butter in Rice Krispie treats and get back to me."
12."I am #TeamAnchovy for life. It's a shame that everyone seems to hate this delicious little fish. It's treated as a delicacy in other parts of the world. I just open a can and eat them with a fork."
13."There's no right way to eat certain foods. If it tastes good to you then that's the way you should eat it. I worked in fine dining for years, and honestly who am I to judge if you want ketchup on your steak? Enjoy yourself. What makes you happy makes you happy."
14."MSG is magic, and you should use it. In fact, you are likely already eating it in processed foods. It is a naturally occurring salt that adds a wonderful umami flavor, and it just takes things like grits, pasta sauces, and aiolis to a whole new level of deliciousness. I will die on this hill because it tastes amazing, it exists in nature, and people should be way more concerned about the massive amounts of sugar added to popular foods rather than a little wonderful umami dust."
15."Pizza sauce must absolutely be smooth. I don't want any chunks on my pie."
16."Fake sugar has no place in cooking or baking. I would rather have real sugar than to ever have to experience the gross aftertaste of artificial sweeteners."
17."If you're going to alter a dish, at least try it once as it's meant to be eaten before you change it. My girlfriend puts Tabasco on just about everything. When I make something new I always ask her to just try it as it is first. Then she can do whatever she wants to it. We should all be open-minded to experience of eating new foods."
18."Onions sautéing in butter is the greatest possible smell in a kitchen. It can only be made more delicious by adding garlic."
19."Expiration dates are a scam propagated by the food industry, which take advantage of nervous rule-followers. Trust your eyes and trust your nose, but if it's not dairy, that date is a lie.
20."Unsalted butter has no place in the kitchen. Use salted butter for everything. I'll fight over this."
21."It’s perfectly fine to defrost frozen food like chicken or beef on the counter for a few hours and cook it that night. I’ve been doing it my whole life and so far I'm still unaffected."
22."I will never purée canned whole tomatoes just because a recipe calls for them. Use canned crushed tomatoes and call it a day. The difference in the final flavor is not worth the extra mess and dirty dishes."
23."There are two kinds of cooking: 'impress people' cooking and 'we need to eat' cooking. When it comes to 'we need to eat' cooking, anything is permissible: garlic from a jar, pasta sauce from a can, Hamburger Helper, processed cheese, frozen spinach. Sometimes you just need to eat, and that's why instant ramen exists."
24."Using only one or two cloves of garlic is pointless. It's basically like using no garlic at all. I’m putting in six or seven cloves no matter what the recipe says."
25."I will never, ever use mayonnaise instead of butter to make grilled cheese."
26."There is no such thing as breakfast food, lunch food, and dinner food. There is only food that I'm craving when I'm hungry."
27."I buy full bulbs of garlic for exactly one purpose: roasted garlic. For everything else, I use the Costco sized jar of minced garlic."
28."Fresh beef tastes better than dry aged beef. I stand staunchly by this opinion."
29."Scrambled eggs cooked low and slow (like Gordon Ramsay's beloved version) are a goopy disgusting mess."
30."Forget what you've heard. Cheese and seafood go wonderfully together in a ton of dishes."
31."Kewpie mayo over all American types of mayonnaise. There is no competition here."
32."Your air fryer is just a convection oven with more fans. You probably already own one, and it's called your oven. This popular appliance doesn't fry anything...ever."
33."Steak doesn't need to be served medium rare. In fact, blind tastings show that most people like their steak cooked one notch more well done than they claim. If you say you like medium rare, chances are you actually prefer medium. There's a huge amount of snobbery around steaks, which is ironic because it's just a slab of meat. If we just did away with our pretentious attitudes toward steak, we'd all probably be happier with our food."
34."Chicken thighs are better than chicken breasts in every single possible situation."
