Food Hacks: Page 22

Ever wonder why when you defrost meat, there's all that pink liquid at the bottom of the plastic bag? That liquid is called "purge," and it's not good.

A lot of fruits start to turn colors once they've been cut due to an enzyme called polyphenol oxidase that turns the fruit colors when it's exposed to oxygen. You can prevent this reaction in apples with a honey-water bath, but what about avocados?

Volume markings on large pots and mixing bowls make life so much easier. They cut out the step of measuring and save you the trouble of washing measuring cups. However, there aren't many containers out there that actually have volume markers in them.

Letting wine "breathe" isn't just something that happens in restaurants in '80s teen comedies with snooty maître d's. It's really a thing, and you should learn how to do it at home, because it'll make just about any wine—including Two-Buck Chuck—taste much, much better.

Why are people so afraid of risotto? Contrary to what a lot of home cooks seem to believe, it's really not a difficult dish to make yourself. Sure, there's a lot of stirring involved, but it's not nearly the culinary beast it's made out to be.

Part of the reason bacon tastes so good is because of its high fat content, but that also means that it shrinks significantly when you cook it. How much it shrinks depends on how fatty it is and what method you use to cook it. Bacon cooked on the stovetop shrinks quite a bit more than bacon that's baked in the oven.

Last week, I showed you why your refrigerator is one of the best tools in the kitchen when it comes to saving money and preserving food at its tastiest. But did you know your freezer is another underutilized ally in the cooking game?

Both professional and home cooks have been rinsing raw chicken and turkey before cooking it for what seems like forever. It's one of those divisive practices—either you do it or you don't, and people tend to be rather opinionated on their stances.

You probably already know that cooking involves a ton of chemistry. Bread rises because of the reaction between the flour and leavener, and the delicious crust on your steak is formed by the Maillard reaction. Understanding the chemistry going on behind the scenes is one of the best ways to improve the quality of your food—it's much easier to fix a problem when you know what's causing it.

What would you say if I told you it was entirely possible—even desirable—to cook anything from a simple dinner to a great loaf of bread without using measuring cups, spoons, or a scale?

Woks are good for more than just tossing Friday night's chow mien with beef and broccoli. In fact, you can use a wok to impart a deep and delicious flavor into foods through smoking. But how exactly do you smoke foods using a wok? Watch this video from CHOW to find out.

Americans consume over 1.2 billion pounds of potato chips each year, making it one of the most popular snack foods in the United States.

Cheese is one of the most loved foods in the world, and there are hundreds of different types. Some prefer super expensive gourmet cheeses, others are fine with the cheaper processed stuff.

Too little counter space has been the biggest annoyance in every kitchen of every apartment I've ever rented. They've all been either super small or awkwardly shaped, which means choosing between appliances and prep space. You either live with it or learn to adjust.

Baking powder and baking soda are two staples almost everyone has around that seem to last forever. But a lot of people don't know that they eventually start to lose their potency after enough time on the shelf. If you can't remember when you bought it, it's probably time for a new box.

The original Kit Kat was a mutton pie served at a political club in London during the 18th century, which is quite different than the chocolatey version we're familiar with today. Kit Kat bars have been around since 1911, are produced in 13 countries, and have been sold in over 200 flavors in Japan.

I don't know many meat eaters who don't appreciate a good burger, but unless you eat it plain, it usually gets pretty messy. Toppings falling off and sauce running down your arms seems like it's all just part of the process.

I was just 16 when I poured my first beer. It was my first restaurant job and a customer ordered a pint while the bartender was busy. I'd seen her do it hundreds of times, and she made it look so easy. Besides, it couldn't be that different from filling a cup from the soda machine, right?

Most recipes don't specify what type they mean when they call for onions. While using whatever kind you already have won't necessarily ruin a dish, using the best one for what you're cooking will definitely make your food taste better.

The first thing I do when I wake up in the morning is run to the kitchen to make coffee, and I know I'm not the only one. According to a survey by the National Coffee Association (yes, there's such a thing), 83% of Americans drink coffee, and I'd bet most of that consumption happens in the morning.

If you look at the label on your favorite processed snack, there's a good chance you have no idea what half the ingredients are. It's nothing new, but with natural and organic foods becoming huge trends, we're hyper-aware of all the "chemicals" we eat.

Some food jars seem like they're actually designed to prevent you from enjoying every last bit inside. The remnants of sticky foods like Nutella and peanut butter are almost impossible to scrape out with a knife or spoon, and it's a shame to throw out something that tastes so good—especially when it's the best part.

The bread at your local supermarket will most likely always be fresh, but how do you know which loaf is the freshest out of the bunch? You can squeeze and inspect them like an annoying TSA agent, but there's actually a much simpler way to do it.

We will show you with easy step by step instruction how to create a beautiful edible apple swan. This swan is easy to create and can be done in under 5m. Makes for a great centre piece during a special dinner.

Baked goods are always a popular gift during the holidays. Whether you love to bake or just don't know what else to give someone, homemade goodies are almost always well-received.

Despite its deliciousness, the pomegranate is one of the hardest fruits to eat. Once you cut it open, the seeds are stuck behind a bitter-tasting white membrane, and trying to pull them out with your fingers just results in a huge mess.

This is a simple way to scramble an egg inside of its own shell using a tennis ball and some string. It's way more effective and easier than using a shirt sleeve—and no batteries required.

There are plenty of good reasons to always make sure your knife is as sharp as it can be. Obviously a honed blade cuts better, but you're also less likely to hurt yourself with it. And have you ever tried to slice a tomato with a dull knife? You may as well just skip the extra step and crush it with your hands.

Fall is the season of obnoxious food trends. You can't go out to eat or to the grocery store without seeing something pumpkin spice- or candy corn-flavored. Less annoying, but equally prevalent is the butternut squash.

Using fresh herbs can make a huge difference in almost any dish, but they're not always available everywhere. Depending on where you live, you can't always get them during the colder months. Personally, the problem I run into the most is not being able to use fresh herbs before they go bad.

A lot of people hate chopping onions, and understandably so. Their shape and layers make them difficult to handle if you don't have much practice, and even if you know exactly what you're doing, it's a task that usually ends in tears.

Unless you're a pretty avid home cook, you probably don't know a lot about sous vide. Sous vide is a low-temperature cooking method where food is cooked in vacuum-sealed plastic bags in a water bath for a prolonged period of time.

There are so many kitchen gadgets that only do one thing. You can buy a special tool to strip the kernels off an ear of corn, de-stem your strawberries, or cut bananas into perfectly uniform slices, but that's all it'll do. It's easy to get carried away, and before you know it you find yourself designating an "everything" or "miscellaneous" drawer.

Vacuum seal your food without a vacuum machine. Use a microwave and a ziplock bag to make leftover food last longer. Watch this how to video to learn how simple it is to vacuum seal food.

Every home cook has their most-hated kitchen task. For me, peeling hard-boiled eggs and garlic are pretty high up there. Actually, peeling just about anything is, but for every annoying job, there's a shortcut to make it easier.

Even as someone with super pale skin that burns instead of tanning, I don't use sunscreen nearly as often as I should. Or, uh...ever. My skin cancer prevention routine mostly involves hiding from the sun as much as humanly possible.

To prevent sliced fruits like apples and pears from oxidizing and turning brown before serving, start by juicing one lemon.

How to hack an Oreo, i.e. dunk an Oreo in milk perfectly.

Cereal may be the most popular of breakfast choices, but one thing that has always bothered me about it is the crumbs.

Over 56 million Americans decided to skip breakfast this morning. That's 18 percent of the population. You're probably sick of hearing that the first meal of the day is the most important, but it's true—studies have shown that those who skip it consume more calories and fewer essential nutrients than regular breakfast eaters.