Seven Small Kitchen Habits That Make Every Recipe Easier

People often ask me for my secret, and they look a little disappointed when I tell them there isn't one. Good cooking is mostly a handful of small habits, repeated until you stop thinking about them. These are the seven I teach every grandchild who wanders into my kitchen.

1. Read the whole recipe before you start

Read it twice if you can. It is the easiest way to avoid discovering halfway through that the chicken needed to marinate overnight, or that someone finished the eggs.

2. Get everything ready first

Chop the onions, measure the spices and open the cans before the pan goes on the stove. Cooking feels calm when you are not hunting for the cumin while the garlic burns.

3. Keep your knife sharp

A sharp knife is safer than a dull one, because it goes where you guide it instead of slipping. A few strokes on a honing steel every week makes a big difference.

4. Heat the pan properly

Most food sticks because the pan was cold when it went in. Give the pan a minute or two to warm up, then add the oil, then the food. Listen for it: a good sizzle means a good start.

5. Give the food some space

When too much goes into the pan at once, it steams instead of browning. Cook in batches. It feels slower, but the flavor is worth every extra minute.

6. Taste as you go

A recipe is a map, not a law. Tomatoes, chilies and lemons change from season to season and shop to shop, so taste at every step and adjust the salt, the sourness and the heat until it is right for your family.

A pinch of salt at the start is worth more than a spoonful at the end.

7. Clean as you cook

Fill the sink with hot, soapy water before you begin and wash up while the soup simmers. When dinner is ready, the kitchen is too, and nobody has to face a mountain of pans after a lovely meal.

None of these habits take long to learn. Pick one this week and add another next week. Before long, you will be the one people ask for the secret.