Food Hacks, Share Yours!

[HandsomeGorilla]

Title is the title

I'm a pretty passionate home cook (wouldn't dare call myself a chef) and I've learned a few things in my three decades of experimentation. 

I've got tons, but I've been on a burger and patty melt kick lately and I've picked up some tips that will not let me do it any other way from here on out. Please spare me the self righteous 'omg that's so bad for you!', this isn't about health, it's about hedonism lol. If it's unhealthy for you, don't eat it. 

First, use mayo in lieu of butter to toast your buns! Actually, this is SOMEWHAT healthier as the mayo sticks to the bun and in the end you use less of a fat source to reach the desired outcome. I prefer stovetop toasting in a heavy bottomed pan. The result is a more substantial crust and arguably tastier crust! 

Second isn't my own idea (none of these are, really), I was inspired by In n Out when I found out the secret to the Animal Style burger is a mustard fried patty. It's as it says, fry the patty as normal on one side, add a few lines of mustard on top, then flip and finish frying. 

For the patties themselves, I have two to share. First one is inspired by Smashburger, and it's obviously the smash. You can either do this before cooking by putting the patty between parchment paper and smashing or you can do it right in the pan with a wide spatula, but I find that makes it more likely to stick to the pan. The result is lacy sides of 'meat candy'; same amount of beef, just two thin patties instead of one big one. Second is inspired by food shortages during the Great Depression and what would eventually become the 'slugburger'. Bread crumbs were added to the ground beef to extend the meat supply. Pretty smart, and the result is actually a crispy texture that marries incredibly well with the smash technique. You'll even save a few cents in the process... 

And that's just hacks for burgers! Sorry for the long ass post, yall know I'm big on details. What are yours, for any food? 

 

 

 

[+Desertrat56]

The hack I use most often because I never remember to buy eggs (as I don't eat eggs by themselves, just use them to cook with and I don't bake very often any more)   - how to make cookies, banana bread or cake without eggs.   For the chocolate chip cookies I make (same old fashioned brown sugar recipe I use for oatmeal cookies and any other cookie) if I have eggs I only add salt and baking soda, if I don't have eggs I also add 1/2 tsp of baking powder.    Other "hacks" I have are habits that I don't think about but I know I use them since I never can write a recipe for someone else to replicate what I have baked.    

Even if you don't like peanut butter you should keep some around as it works better than olive oil for removing sticky substances from things (like stickers on new cook ware or dishes or what ever you buy).   

As for the mayonaise instead of butter, I have seen that in a lot of recipes, never tried it as I love butter, but if I ran out of butter and wanted a grilled sandwich I would try it.   Thanks.

Edited March 21, 2022 by Desertrat56

[CrimsonKing]

2 hours ago, HandsomeGorilla said:

Title is the title

I'm a pretty passionate home cook (wouldn't dare call myself a chef) and I've learned a few things in my three decades of experimentation. 

I've got tons, but I've been on a burger and patty melt kick lately and I've picked up some tips that will not let me do it any other way from here on out. Please spare me the self righteous 'omg that's so bad for you!', this isn't about health, it's about hedonism lol. If it's unhealthy for you, don't eat it. 

First, use mayo in lieu of butter to toast your buns! Actually, this is SOMEWHAT healthier as the mayo sticks to the bun and in the end you use less of a fat source to reach the desired outcome. I prefer stovetop toasting in a heavy bottomed pan. The result is a more substantial crust and arguably tastier crust! 

Second isn't my own idea (none of these are, really), I was inspired by In n Out when I found out the secret to the Animal Style burger is a mustard fried patty. It's as it says, fry the patty as normal on one side, add a few lines of mustard on top, then flip and finish frying. 

For the patties themselves, I have two to share. First one is inspired by Smashburger, and it's obviously the smash. You can either do this before cooking by putting the patty between parchment paper and smashing or you can do it right in the pan with a wide spatula, but I find that makes it more likely to stick to the pan. The result is lacy sides of 'meat candy'; same amount of beef, just two thin patties instead of one big one. Second is inspired by food shortages during the Great Depression and what would eventually become the 'slugburger'. Bread crumbs were added to the ground beef to extend the meat supply. Pretty smart, and the result is actually a crispy texture that marries incredibly well with the smash technique. You'll even save a few cents in the process... 

And that's just hacks for burgers! Sorry for the long ass post, yall know I'm big on details. What are yours, for any food? 

 

 

 

Thanks for this,now I'm hungry!   

[Zebra3]

I've started marinating steaks overnight in Italian dressing. Better than any restaurant steak I've had since I've started doing it. NY thin strip.

[jmccr8]

1 hour ago, Zebra3 said:

I've started marinating steaks overnight in Italian dressing. Better than any restaurant steak I've had since I've started doing it. NY thin strip.

Hi Zebra

I marinade deer cutlets in soya sauce and put them in the over with veggies, being the cook and dishwasher I like to roast steaks with veggies as well.

[HandsomeGorilla]

1 hour ago, Zebra3 said:

I've started marinating steaks overnight in Italian dressing. Better than any restaurant steak I've had since I've started doing it. NY thin strip.

Steak is so simple but folks make it so complicated. First, it needs to be brought to room temperature before it even hits the pan. Preheat the pan to the desired temperature. Salt and fresh ground pepper all around, a smidge of butter just to keep it from sticking. Fairly high heat, put it on for a few minutes, flip, another knob of butter, maybe slap it with some rosemary or garlic. Have tongs handy to pick it up and sear the fat on the sides. Any butter in the pan is basted on the steak. Done. You won't get a better steak anywhere you go, no matter how much you pay... Because it's exactly how they cook them. Some sear and then finish in the oven, not much different and just as good. A piece of meat that would cost you $100 at a higher end steakhouse, all yours for ~$20, or whatever you paid for the slab of meat 

[rashore]

I gotta whole lot of hacks. Some fats.. 

Compound fats. Usually butter for most folks, like garlic butter. But butter mashed up with all sorts of different seasonings and kept in the freezer. I portion mine into a couple tablespoons/ounce blocks. Anchovy, herbs, roasted garlic, wild chive, citrus and honey- sometimes spiced or not. That last one is extra good with breakfast breads or the butter in a hot butter drink. But smears on steaks, the butter for eggs, scalloped anything, dressings for pastas and sauces with some fresh veggies.. Right now I have some excellent ramp butter in the fridge. So good. Hard fat/oil mix like melted butter and olive oil + italian blend or steak/burger mix. The ratio of hard and oil makes pulling it from the freezer to spreadable fat faster for garlic bread or a smear on the meat before hitting the fire. IMO the little bit of efforts into making compound fats is so worth the small effort and really overlooked. 

Save your bacon grease, don't throw it away. Filter or not depending on your cooking methods and if you want stuff in the jar. Always keep it in the fridge. Don't keep it on the counter like mama/gma did. Because it's gross and also don't use/eat it up so fast that it won't ick on the counter. That's bad for ones health. Beyond just eating bacon, lol. A laugh between a sister and I is the price of bacon grease. They saw a 8 oz jar of commercial cleaned up and market on the shelf for around 8 bucks- for that price we could pick up bacon on sale and get the meat for the jar price and get the grease "free" after working up the bulk buy and cooking bacon up. Pork belly and stock market jokes

Yes, the using mayo for grilled cheese is tasty. MAYO, not miracle whip or other dressings. A flavored mayo like aioli or kewpie is good too. Dilly mayo is good for a tuna melt, and kewpie nice for ham and swiss... go full ruben or not, mayo is good there. I also happen to like butter, so it's not unheard of me to also butter the pan before laying down my grilled. A baking hack for some. Forgot to soften butter to grease a pan before flouring? Take mayo to grease up the pan instead. Particularly for bread loaves or muffin cups.

Cooking hack that's a gardening hack. Keep a box of herbs growing. Windowsill, beds, containers, patio... whatever. If you can keep any greenery alive and you are cooking, try to keep an herb box. And use them, don't be afraid to toss a lotta fresh in. It can really gratify the chef in us, and make us keep cooking to keep using up the growing herb box. 

 

[CrimsonKing]

7 hours ago, jmccr8 said:

Hi Zebra

I marinade deer cutlets in soya sauce and put them in the over with veggies, being the cook and dishwasher I like to roast steaks with veggies as well.

Ahhh venison,steak of the gods! 

Got a whole deep freeze full from this past hunting season,even though winter is about on its way out here I'm making a large batch of chili tomorrow with about 2 pounds of ground venison...just gives it a richer earthier flavor that goes well with chili spices than store bought ground beef could ever offer! 

[rashore]

Eggs. If you like ramen eggs, they are really easy to make. Soft boiled eggs, shelled. Marinate them in soy, rice wine and/or vinegar, and seasonings as you like for a few hours to overnight. The marinade chemically sets the yolk further. Halve and set into your hot ramen broth, and that makes the jammy egg perfect. 

If you like deviled eggs, you can use a ziplock bag to mash your yolks mix in and then snip off the corner to pipe into your whites. You can also divide your yolks to make different flavors of eggs. Or take the eggs with you camping or picknicking- and keep the whites in a separate bag from the yolks. Makes transport a breeze- no special containers needed, just a plate to put the whites on pipe into. If you like egg salad sandwiches, you can toss the whole hard boiled eggs into a bag and mash up and pipe out when you want. 

The baggie trick also works for transporting other salads/spreads like tuna salad, chicken salad, or hummus. If you are a hot backpacker, use freezer bags and you can heat up chili or soups in a pot of water over the fire. Then you don't need to clean your pot, and you got hot water to drink. Or if you don't have potable water, you can still use non-potable water to safely heat your food. Don't get too hot- though freezer bags are safe to around 135 or so and can be used sous vide style- you will melt your bag if the water gets too hot.

[+Desertrat56]

5 minutes ago, rashore said:

Eggs. If you like ramen eggs, they are really easy to make. Soft boiled eggs, shelled. Marinate them in soy, rice wine and/or vinegar, and seasonings as you like for a few hours to overnight. The marinade chemically sets the yolk further. Halve and set into your hot ramen broth, and that makes the jammy egg perfect. 

If you like deviled eggs, you can use a ziplock bag to mash your yolks mix in and then snip off the corner to pipe into your whites. You can also divide your yolks to make different flavors of eggs. Or take the eggs with you camping or picknicking- and keep the whites in a separate bag from the yolks. Makes transport a breeze- no special containers needed, just a plate to put the whites on pipe into. If you like egg salad sandwiches, you can toss the whole hard boiled eggs into a bag and mash up and pipe out when you want. 

The baggie trick also works for transporting other salads/spreads like tuna salad, chicken salad, or hummus. If you are a hot backpacker, use freezer bags and you can heat up chili or soups in a pot of water over the fire. Then you don't need to clean your pot, and you got hot water to drink. Or if you don't have potable water, you can still use non-potable water to safely heat your food. Don't get too hot- though freezer bags are safe to around 135 or so and can be used sous vide style- you will melt your bag if the water gets too hot.

What do you do with the plastic bags when you are done with them when camping? 

[rashore]

24 minutes ago, Desertrat56 said:

What do you do with the plastic bags when you are done with them when camping? 

Dispose of them responsibly. Just like you would any other garbage you might produce while out camping. 

[HandsomeGorilla]

Oh, and here's a general one and one that always grinds my gears...

Stop using olive oil as a cooking oil! It drives me insane! I don't care what Gordon Ramsay or your favorite TV celebrity chef said! 

It's a low smoke point oil and completely loses any health benefits when brought up to sautee temperatures. Not to mention, it tastes terrible when heated. Sure, it's a very healthy oil by itself, as a salad dressing, for instance, but it's complete ***** when used to fry or sautee. Stick with a neutral oil like peanut, or better yet, avocado or macadamia nut oil. If you want more flavor, combine that oil with real butter, not margarine. Margarine is manufactured garbage and terribly unhealthy! The outdated obsession with olive oil as a frying oil drives me crazy... 

[+Desertrat56]

1 minute ago, HandsomeGorilla said:

Oh, and here's a general one and one that always grinds my gears...

Stop using olive oil as a cooking oil! It drives me insane! I don't care what Gordon Ramsay or your favorite TV celebrity chef said! 

It's a low smoke point oil and completely loses any health benefits when brought up to sautee temperatures. Not to mention, it tastes terrible when heated. Sure, it's a very healthy oil by itself, as a salad dressing, for instance, but it's complete ***** when used to fry or sautee. Stick with a neutral oil like peanut, or better yet, avocado or macadamia nut oil. If you want more flavor, combine that oil with real butter, not margarine. Margarine is manufactured garbage and terribly unhealthy! The outdated obsession with olive oil as a frying oil drives me crazy... 

So what do you use?   Corn oil, peanut oil and many others are poison, some people don't like to use butter or lard.

[HandsomeGorilla]

Avocado oil is my favorite. Macadamia nut oil is the best, but can be expensive. One of the biggest issues with olive oil is that it isn't olive oil, it's often a little olive oil mixed with a lot of NOT olive oil. It's become a huge racket, unfortunately. High quality olive oil can be pricey, so I tend to stick to avocado oil, macadamia oil and real butter. I use bacon and beef fat, as well, in moderation, for flavor depth

Edited March 22, 2022 by HandsomeGorilla