You don’t need to use all that much water when boiling pasta. Your pasta does not need to swim. Add enough water for the pasta to swell up, but it takes much longer to bring a big pot of water to boil than it does for half of that amount, and your pasta will still be soft and pliable when you’re done.

If you cook using only recipes from your favorite cookbook, try something new. Getting a few new cookbooks of different varieties is the first step towards diversifying the meals you cook. Experimenting and playing around with your current recipes is the second step towards not just making new meals, but becoming a better cook.

To save time in the kitchen, make two meals at once. On a night or weekend when you have more time, make a dish that freezes well and double the quantity you need. When the extra portion has thoroughly cooled, transfer it to a freezer-ready container, and a second meal will be waiting in the freezer.

When baking or roasting, use olive oil to seal the outside of meats so that juices are less likely to escape during the cooking process. Be sure and cover both sides of the meat that you are cooking before seasoning. The olive oil will coat it nicely and also add some flavor.

Use pita crisps in place of tortilla chips. Rather than using store bought tortilla chips, try making your own pita crisps. Simply split 6 pita pockets, making 12 rounds. Combine 2 cloves of minced garlic with 1/4 cup of olive oil and a little salt and pepper. Brush the mixture over the top of the split sides. Stack and cut into 6 to 8 wedges. Place in a single layer on a baking sheet, and bake at 400 degrees until golden brown and crispy (about 5 minutes). They are absolutely delicious with guacamole, salsa or hummus!

While it is easy to just grab a spoon to scrape prepared, wet cake mix from the mixing bowl to put into pans for baking, do yourself a favor an invest in a good rubber scraper. A rubber scraper is made to be pliant, is curved on one side and straight on the other, just perfect for scraping the bowl of every last drop of cake and brownie mix. Using a rubber scraper gets all of the mix where it belongs in your baking pans and that quantity is what the baking time on boxes of mix are based upon. Too little mix in the pans leads to burnt goods when relying on the stated baking times.

You may be tempted to put oil in your pot of boiling pasta so that the pasta doesn’t stick to the pot, but don’t do it. Not only will the oil keep the pasta from sticking to the pot, but it will also keep any sauce you have planned from sticking to the pasta.

Keep a Parmesan shaker or sugar dispenser filled with flour on your counter or your prep area. You can use the shaker to dust work surfaces when baking or to easily pour out just a tablespoon or two for thickening sauces or gravies without having to drag out the full flour canister.

You need to always season fish and meats as evenly as possible. Sprinkle seasoning like salt and pepper gingerly through the tips of your fingers as if they are snowflakes. This way, the grains don’t get clumped together and the meats don’t wind up without any seasoning in a few areas and too much in others.

When cooking with thick and sticky ingredients like molasses or honey, make it easier with non-stick cooking spray. Simply spray the inside of a measuring cup before adding the viscous liquid. When pouring it will slip out completely and cleanly with no need to scrap the inside of the cup.

Make your own stock for better tasting meals. You can easily make your own stock anytime you cook chicken, turkey, or beef. Retain the juices, and let the fat rise to the top, skim the fat, and freeze. Now next time a recipe you are making calls for stock, you will have fresh stock on-hand.

If it’s all you can do on a weeknight is to pick up the phone and order a pizza, try preparing a week’s worth of meals on the weekend. It is worth spending a little time on the weekend to make weeknight meals a breeze. To make it even easier, find any number of new cookbooks, shows, or blogs that have pre-prepared shopping lists and menus for a week of make-ahead meals.

Try putting your chicken in an oiled roasting pan, instead of on a rack. Slice some thick pieces of onion and put them in the pan under the chicken, so that they will absorb the juice from it. After the roasting, add some stock or water to the pan with the onions to make a sauce while the chicken rests. Cook it for three minutes at high heat on your stove-top.

If a dish seems flat and boring, consider what kind of acidic component you could add. A dash of zest or squeeze of juice from a lemon or lime may be just what your dish needs to wake up. Or, try balsamic, white or apple cider vinegar, buttermilk, or sour cream to add a bit of tang.

Furthermore, many people experience the joy of cooking. From stupidly simple snacks to fantastic food feasts, everyone can appreciate cooking. Using the tips on cooking that are found in the article above, you can increase your cooking skills and make as many tasty and flavorful dishes as you desire.