People often talk about the best cooking practices but sometimes, the tastiest dishes on the tables come from the most creative kitchens.
So, interested in switching things up, Redditor u/Suspicious-Account-9 asked other platform users, "What is one cooking 'rule' that you choose to always ignore?"
From measuring spices to crowding the pan, turns out, many home chefs have developed their own ways of going about the stove.
However, I think it's worth mentioning that this thread isn't meant to teach anyone as much as it serves as a reminder to never stop questioning what and how you are preparing. Experimentation is part of the game and what works for others won't automatically fit your taste buds as well.
With that said, continue scrolling to check out the most popular replies to u/Suspicious-Account-9's question!
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I make the food how I like it rather than how it's "supposed to be made". I also don't care how another person eats food. If my pal is over and wants a steak charred to a crisp, then enjoy that brick, my friend. Want to slather it in ketchup? Who am I to tell you no? Eat food how you like it rather than how others tell you to eat it.
Yes, I agree, but sometimes I'd like to be the one to introduce someone to a whole new flavor experience that they may not realize the potential of LOVING it because they may *think* they wouldn't like it. That's the frustrating part about people with picky eating habits, they just might not realize it could be their new favorite!
Measuring basically anything not associated with baking. I juust keep seasoning until the spirit of my great grandmother says "Enough, child."
Made a successful career of it!
I eat raw cookie dough, cake batter, etc., because while I understand that salmonella is a risk, it's a pretty small one and I am willing to live dangerously when cookie dough is involved.
‘Soften onions for five minutes’ man they always need longer if u want them browned and soft- also add garlic much later than they suggest.
Unsalted butter for baking. I’m not buying 2 different kinds of butter, salted in everything
Not really a rule, but almost every damn recipe that calls for caramelizing onions lists the time necessary to perform that at like 5-10 min. Either these people don’t know what caramelizing means or they’re intentionally lying to people to make the recipe seem like it takes less time than it actually does.
When I want caramelized onions, I set aside at least 45 minutes. I want them mostly tender with crispy browned bits.
I don't throw pasta at a wall to see if it sticks. Seems like a waste to me. I just eat it to see of its ready.
"one clove of garlic"
I defrost my chicken on the counter instead of the fridge, 30 years I've been doing this, still fine
I don't leave my scrambled eggs wet. I mean, I don't cook them until they are rubber or anything, but I want them dry not wet.
spices that are "old". Not so much regular spices, but some blends I had acquired. When I feel they aren't as fresh, rather than throw them away I use them as additives to a salad dressing.
Upvote this to the max! What rubbish that spices need to be discarded after 6 months. I’ve got some big spice containers that are years old. Yeah, maybe I have to use 2 tablespoons instead of 1 - but no way am I going to waste the product or the packaging. No loss of flavor in my dishes.
I rinse mushrooms. That whole "wipe them gently with a paper towel" bulls**t is bulls**t. Take 2-3 mushrooms, hold them under lukewarm running water and roll them around between your hands, then set them on a rack to drain off any water. They scrub themselves.
It depends. If you use them right after washing, it's okay. But if you plan to store them for a few days, don't wash just before the use, otherwise will go bad in one day. Although the most commonly used mushrooms, champignons doesn't really need to be washed. And of course, there is an exception:chanterelle. They always has to be washed, because sand is edible, but not really tasty, and they are growing on sandy ground.
1 garlic clove means one head of garlic! Don't tell me how to garlic!
I always double the spices when using a recipe. They don’t know me!
That whole “how to properly cut an onion” business. I get that in a restaurant kitchen it minimizes waste but I’m just gonna lop off both ends and remove like 1 layer.
Minced garlic (the stuff in jars) is NOT blasphemy! It's handy and tasty when used properly.
Lots of great take-out places use minced garlic in their dishes, so if you're trying to recreate a favourite dish, it could be the secret ingredient you're missing.
I still use fresh garlic often, but I've gotten off my high horse about the other stuff.
Beer/wine pairings. I know them, I understand them and I get it. However, at home, I believe that regardless of what the world says, to me, the very best beer/wine to go with meal X is whatever my personal favorite beer/wine happens to be. Does this drink "go" with this meal? Who cares? It's my favorite, of course, it does!!!
Cooking with olive oil.
I really don't see the point. It cost a lot more and it has such a low smoke point, it's way too easy to burn your oil and then everything tastes weird.
I use vegetable oil for cooking. I keep a bottle of very nice olive oil to drizzle on top of things to finish them after they are cooked or to make the marinade, but i don't cook with it.
Why do I ALWAYS have to write this one down. Olive oil comes in three types. Refined for frying, Refined and Virgin (and the extra virgin variant marketing thing). Refined olive oil has one of the highest smoking points because the pulp that'd give it taste and lower the smoking point is not in it. That also means it's taste neutral.
Not mine, but my wife's…
Adding salt to a finished plated dish without tasting it first. Cringe every time.
In some countries, like Japan, it's considered bad manners to put anything on your food without tasting it first. It means you don't trust the chef.
Still flabbers my gasts that people rinse off the chicken.
Steak must be undercooked, so says all the hype…. I will eat mine how I like. Sometimes pink in the middle, sometimes cooked right through but never raw/rare.
I never have one raw, and if Im cooking myself I prefer to make sure its cooked.. but in restaurant where professional prepares the meat I will always have medium minus which is between rare and medium
I hate that there isn't a kitchen term for "caramelized outside, moist and hot inside", because I get tired of my options being "burnt and grey" or "still mooing and bleeding"
I love rare beef like roast beef and steaks but FFS restaurants need to understand that medium-rare burgers need to be warm in the middle. I've stopped ordering MR because everything comes out COLD in the center. Don't undercook my food just so you can send it out in record time.
If you believe in "hype" instead of your own taste buds, you have a problem.
It depends on the cut. Flank or skirt, you need to cook the hell out of that. Filet mignon? You're doing yourself a disservice by cooking that above medium. I used to like my steak charred when i was young, but the pinker the middle the more tender the end product. While my father preferred his steak RARE, that's a touch to underdone. Filet can do medium rare, Strip is medium at most. All about the contrast, nice dark, crispy crust on the outside, tender juicy inside. SUV ide and a charzall take all the guesswork out of getting it done right.
Was in New Zealand sitting in a restaurant, ordered the venison. It arrived crispy around the edge but 'blue' in the center. But the clever lighting hid that, it was tender and tasty.
My wife used to like blue steak, never understood that myself but she likes rare these days, me I just like good old reliable medium rare.
I would eat steak raw with a sear. I might even just go for raw. My grandfather always used to say "if its warm its not raw"
Im right with you..... I know this is a cardinal sin, but my mom and I love our steaks rare, but sometimes on the grill you get a cool center (blue) which we want it to at least be warm..... So we would microwave it for a few seconds and Boom
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I cook my own steak, I am often disappointed when ordering it from a restaurant. I think my idea of medium rare is either wrong or just different.
.........have you tried ordering it any other way then?
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Pittsburgh style all the way. If I order steak in a restaurant and the chef doesn’t know what that means, I’m not there to educate a supposed professional, so I avoid the steak.
Depends on the quality of the flesh, I suppose? Bad quality get like shoesoles when cooked through.
Most people don't know how to cook steaks well-done. Hint: you don't just leave it on the stove longer. That's how you make the dry, flavorless, overcooked steak that makes people think they hate well-done steaks. You cook it slower, with oil in the pan. It must be room temperature when you put it on. And it must cool slightly before you cut it open. And you absolutely need a well-marbled steak. Do it right, and it has MORE flavor, not less.n OTOH, I eat medium-rare steaks sometimes because I buy cheap steak or I'm in a hurry.
Frozen pizza:
Preheat the oven...
If I'm eating frozen pizza it's because I'm too busy/lazy to eat real food that evening.
Turn on the oven, unwrap the pizza, "OK google set timer for (recommended time +4 minutes)"
Whenever I made frozen pizza directly from freezer to oven, the middle was still cold and outside would get burnt. Now I defrost it in the fridge and once it is soft in the middle, off it goes. Never failed me! (Dr. Oetker pizzas are delicious.)
I know risotto looks better when made with white wine but try a mushroom risotto with red wine and elevate it to something richer and more satisfying
I never bother to sift flour. I haven’t had a sifter in over 40 years.
“Add a 1/8 teaspoon.” I’m sorry but a 1/8 tsp isn’t going to do anything.
Use grams for pete's sake. It's so much easier than parts of teaspoons of the content of an 18th century midwife's snuffbox.
Searing meat when I make pot roast in an instant pot/crockpot.
I have done it and not done it enough times and it’s not a noticeable enough flavor for me to bother with anymore. I’m content with how it tastes.
Searing colours/caramelises the meat so the sauce ends up looking a nicer, darker brown. But if that is not an issue, don't bother
I add a little oil to nonstick pans. Things just cook better.
Oil (and fat) in pan is not just about not having the food stick but it also conducts heat, making the food cook a bit more evenly.
I always cook the pasta way longer that package directions, Al Dente be damned!
I've been thawing meat on the counter for 30 years. None of that "leave it in the fridge overnight" bulls**t.
I'll never leave food out just for the fact I know the kind of critters that are lurking in the walls of my apartment. They don't need to be fed.
The "No tomatoes or anything acidic in cast iron" rule. My CI dutch oven is just fine after years of bolognese and other tomatoes dishes and while I don't drink wine I certainly cook with it.
Also ever since I tried cooking rice like pasta I've never liked it back.
I used to boil rice like pasta (boil and drain) but ever since I started the absorption method, rice tastes SOOOO much better (or should I say, actually HAS a taste!) I prefer my rice fluffy and nutty not waterlogged and soggy- sauce sticks so much better to it also!
Vanilla.
Whether the recipe calls for a vanilla pod, extract, flavour, or any other variety then I just give the mixture a good glug of vanilla extract. No measuring, no messing, just tasty cakes and cookies
But what about those beautiful vanilla caviar flecks in the finished product? I wouldn’t want to miss out on those, and I throw the bean in sugar for my coffee. No waste.
I don't mise en place everything, only the first few ingredients, or anything that will take a lot of time. I don't like standing around watching things cook, I'd rather stay busy the whole time.
Cutting large lettuce leaves for a salad instead of tearing them
I mostly follow recipes, except if I’m making chili. Then I just blindly dump all of the spices into a pot with all of the other ingredients. It always turns out great lol
Honestly store-bought stock is the stuff. Buck and a half and add some spices. Homemade is a pain in the ass. I get ppl to want their own stock. Not everyone has that kind of time and I respect both
I crowd the pan when I make bacon and nothing bad ever happens.
I don’t add one egg, beat, then add the other egg(s) when baking. All the eggs and vanilla get tossed in there at once.
I flip my steak as many times as I want
I've worked as a line cook and I'm a single flip cook. But that's just because when you're in the weeds on a busy Friday night, your timing needs to be perfect.
Jacques Pepin always said that mushrooms can be washed off without any loss of flavor. I agree.
When making a sauce with a roux, as long as the roux is hot and liquid is really cold, I add the liquid all at once with no fear of a lumpy sauce.
Learned it from Chef John from Food Wishes.
"First, peel the potatoes ...."
I never peel potatoes. We eat them mashed, fried, boiled, you name it. We have a potato peeler. It hasn't been used in 25 years.
Crack eggs on a flat surface. I find that every time I do it i get more shell pieces inside the egg. Also chefs talk about cross contamination and the need of doing it like that, just to realize that then they put their finger to open it and thus cross-contaminating the egg anyway.
I pretty much never take all of the ingredients out of the fridge half an hour early, so they'll be at room temperature. Not meat, not eggs, sometimes butter but not usually.
For most dishes it isn’t a problem, but some recipes are more fiddly about it. Meringue and cheesecake absolutely require room temperature eggs/cream cheese. When I was younger and less patient, I tried to get around this and use them straight from the fridge. The meringue never stiffened properly, and the cheesecake batter stayed lumpy and never got smooth. Same goes for butter, especially if it’s being folded into a batter or frosting, etc that needs to be smooth. Cold butter will inevitably be lumpy, and melted butter is too liquid. Room temperature is that soft but not liquid halfway point.
I never brown ground beef in oil. I use a couple of ounces of water instead. The meat releases fat as it cooks, even the 96% beef. The meat gets browned with the fat it releases, and the water evaporates. Therefore, no need to add any extra fat.
The "proper" way to use Wasabi for sushi is to put the Wasabi on your sushi and dip that into soy sauce. I mix the Wasabi and soy sauce. Way easier to not accidentally start crying at the dinner table
I don't shallow fry my potato pancakes anymore and do them on non-stick. You don't need a cup of oil to enjoy fried garlicky taters.
I love potato pancakes so much and you're right- I used to make them in so much oil and they were always a little soggy. I love them with onions. My aunt is Korean (I'm not sure if it's a korean recipe but I've never been able to find a recipe for it) and she used to make these amazing fried onion pancakes and I've never been able to duplicate it. They were like potato latkes but with onions. They were crispy on the edges and had such an amazing smell. I miss them and wish I could find a recipe but she passed away and took it with her. I love any kind of vegetable pancake.
I never mix wet & dry separately when baking. It all goes together. I’m not dirtying another bowl.
You don't have to dirty another bowl. Mix your dry ingredients, then make a well in the center. Add your wet ingredients to the well and whisk them together. Then mix the entire bowl.
Searing meat until there's a black crust on it. I don't like charcoal with my protein. I use a cast iron grill pan and using that adds plenty of flavor without causing a textural mess.
Nothing wrong with pan frying a steak. I know it's sacrilege, but I pan fry my favorite cust all the time. T-Bone, prime rib, etc.
I don’t let bbq steak or pork rest. I want it hot, and any juices that run out on the plate I just sop up with the pieces of meat that I cut off.
I salt straight into the pan. I’ve bought the same dollar salt can for decades, I know the flow rate!
I always salt a beaten egg before scrambling or making an omelet-makes the salt distribution more even
I never, ever EVER boil, parboil, simmer, etc. bratwurst in beer or anything else. Not before cooking, not after cooking, never. They go out of the butcher paper straight onto the grill and straight from the grill into buns.
I've had beer infused meat once in my life and I can't say I tasted much flavour. Just a waste of beer.
I no longer flour stewing beef before browning it. I just toss it with salt and pepper, then add to an oiled pan for a good sear. I often don't even work in batches - just bung it all (1-1.5lb) into the pot, roll the cubes around until browned on the outside, then remove and set aside until required.
Agree. I find it usually just burns the flour. But I do brown in batches for better color.
I measure with my heart and not spoons or cups
Just don't try to bake anything fragile or well don't bake anything. Baking is a science. I mean, you can add more chocolate chips to cookie dough but they're not going to spread correctly because they too dense. There's reasons behind the whole recipe craze
Cooking risotto by adding the stock gradually. You can make a perfectly fine homemade risotto by putting the stock in all in one go. Just needs a few stirs not constant attention.
I am going to respectfully disagree with this one, Chief. I have tried it both ways many times and I think risotto is creamier when the stock is added a little at a time. Risotto is a labor of love.
plenty of weeknight meals where I don't wash my rice first
Sifting. I will only ever do it for cocoa powder and icing sugar. Hate it so much
Lost of variables. Depends on how smooth the final product has to be, or how long you’remixing it, or how much liquid it’s going to be mixed with.
You‘re supposed to put a pinch of pepper into lots of dishes, yet I never do because I just hate it…
Love love love black pepper! Couldn't live without it. You can have all my jalapenos, I'll have you share of black pepper, and everyone can be happy.
I never refrigerate my cookie dough before baking, it gets too hard to scoop easily.
I roll it into a log to the right size before putting in the fridge. Then you dont have to scoop - you can literally just cut slices off the roll. Best thing is, you can just slice as many as you want so you can have fresh baked cookies with absolutely no fuss every single day.
I add some salt to my beans when soaking. They still get tender. I have a theory that the original reason people suggested not to do this was because it's easy to oversalt your beans since so much water cooks out in the process.
I also don't toss the soaking liquid or skim the foam. Before anyone asks, I do rinse the beans thoroughly before soaking.
It’s called brining beans, and is scientifically proven to help with cooking evenly. See America’s Test Kitchen.
I like to stir my rice once or twice during the cooking process
I never skim off the white stuff that floats to the top when making stock. I don't care about the color and I've never been able to taste the difference in the final product.
I never taste what I'm cooking and 99% of the time it comes out great.
My problem is I’m gluten sensitive and my husband isn’t. If I’m cooking for him, I literally cannot taste anything with wheat flour in it or I’ll be sick. He either has to be around to taste it, or just make do with what he gets.
Having 1l of water for 100g spaghetti when boiling. I go rather for a 1:1 ratio, saves lots of time.
Idk if it's a rule, really. I don't pre-soak my potatoes before boiling them.
I also don't use milk in meatloaf (apparently, not using milk is abysmal to both my in-laws and my family).
No parsley on carbonara. A thousand apologies to all Italian grandmas, but I think it tastes good.
Letting your food cool down all the way to room temperature before putting your leftovers away. I can’t stand washing cold pans caked with grease and yes warm food may increase the temp of my fridge but so will literally opening it…..
Measuring
Baking and candy making, you better measure precisely. Other cooking, be as artistic as you want.
Title was terrible, almost all of these cooking tips were not "to be avoided at any cost" but ones that people feel are unnecessary and are free to ignore.
Simple tip: Cook with your nose. Use your sense of smell to guide you. (In baking, use a recipe and experiment *carefully*, but again, your nose knows!)
Nope. I have almost no sense of smell. If I cook to smell, I can't even eat it.
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There are so many repeating tooics in this list. BP should edit them all together.
The only tip I have a problem with is cooking with "vegetable oil" while treating olive oil as a condiment. What is even meant by vegetable oil? There are literally dozens of plant based culinary oils that could be used instead of olive oil as could animal products like butter, ghee, and lard. They all have different tastes and properties, but none of them are directly comparable to olive oil. Also, although olive oil has a relatively low smoke point, most foods taste better when cooked low and slow. Furthermore, most residential ranges don't produce enough BTUs for extremely high temps anyway so there is no reason to reject olive oil based on it's supposed low smoke point. I think there are two reasons that olive oil has a reputation for scorching. One is not using enough oil. If your food isn't well enough coated with oil, the drier parts will burn before the food is evenly cooked. The other is adding garlic at the same time as onions. Garlic will scorch way before the onions are soft.
Time to start a fight! Charcoal BBQs. I have an electric hot plate and I can’t taste the difference when I cook food for a BBQ. I understand if you are adding wood chips for flavour but mines instant, easier to control the heat and easier to clean. I prefer my burgers cooked, not engulfed in uncontrollable fire.
I've never noticed any flavor difference with wood chips. I like charcoal though cause you've got nothing to do but drink beer until the coals are hot enough.
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would have been nice to know what the ignored 'rules' are. All I see are pictures that don't represent any rules to me. For example is the 'rule' don't pour white wine beside your food?
So, according to title, preheating oven before putting frozen pizza in it, is "bad cooking tip". Aha.
I don't know if this was on there (I clocked out around number 40, this list is massive), but I hate the trend of adding pasta water to your sauce. Over on BF, when I said I tried this and found it made absolutely no difference, someone even told me "just make your sauce thicker than you want it and then add pasta water". WHY. Why would I make my sauce wrong just to have to correct it in some half-assed way?
I do that solely when the pasta will be finished IN the dish and the sauce is too thin so the starch will help thicken it.
Load More Replies... Title was terrible, almost all of these cooking tips were not "to be avoided at any cost" but ones that people feel are unnecessary and are free to ignore.
Simple tip: Cook with your nose. Use your sense of smell to guide you. (In baking, use a recipe and experiment *carefully*, but again, your nose knows!)
Nope. I have almost no sense of smell. If I cook to smell, I can't even eat it.
Load More Replies... There are so many repeating tooics in this list. BP should edit them all together.
The only tip I have a problem with is cooking with "vegetable oil" while treating olive oil as a condiment. What is even meant by vegetable oil? There are literally dozens of plant based culinary oils that could be used instead of olive oil as could animal products like butter, ghee, and lard. They all have different tastes and properties, but none of them are directly comparable to olive oil. Also, although olive oil has a relatively low smoke point, most foods taste better when cooked low and slow. Furthermore, most residential ranges don't produce enough BTUs for extremely high temps anyway so there is no reason to reject olive oil based on it's supposed low smoke point. I think there are two reasons that olive oil has a reputation for scorching. One is not using enough oil. If your food isn't well enough coated with oil, the drier parts will burn before the food is evenly cooked. The other is adding garlic at the same time as onions. Garlic will scorch way before the onions are soft.
Time to start a fight! Charcoal BBQs. I have an electric hot plate and I can’t taste the difference when I cook food for a BBQ. I understand if you are adding wood chips for flavour but mines instant, easier to control the heat and easier to clean. I prefer my burgers cooked, not engulfed in uncontrollable fire.
I've never noticed any flavor difference with wood chips. I like charcoal though cause you've got nothing to do but drink beer until the coals are hot enough.
Load More Replies... would have been nice to know what the ignored 'rules' are. All I see are pictures that don't represent any rules to me. For example is the 'rule' don't pour white wine beside your food?
So, according to title, preheating oven before putting frozen pizza in it, is "bad cooking tip". Aha.
I don't know if this was on there (I clocked out around number 40, this list is massive), but I hate the trend of adding pasta water to your sauce. Over on BF, when I said I tried this and found it made absolutely no difference, someone even told me "just make your sauce thicker than you want it and then add pasta water". WHY. Why would I make my sauce wrong just to have to correct it in some half-assed way?
I do that solely when the pasta will be finished IN the dish and the sauce is too thin so the starch will help thicken it.
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