Ask anyone what takes the longest when cooking at home and the answer is usually the same: the prep. Peeling, chopping, slicing and cleaning up afterwards can easily take longer than the cooking itself. The good news is that a few simple habits make a big difference, especially on busy weeknights.
1. Plan two or three meals at once
If you know what you are cooking for the next few days, you can prep shared ingredients together. Onions, garlic and peppers show up in a lot of recipes, so chop enough for two meals and keep the rest in a sealed box in the fridge.
2. Set up before you start
Chefs call it mise en place, which simply means "everything in its place". Take out every ingredient, bowl and tool before you turn on the stove. It feels slower at first, but you stop running back and forth and you never burn the onions while you look for the cumin.
3. Keep a scrap bowl next to your board
Instead of walking to the bin with every onion skin, drop peelings into one bowl and empty it once at the end. A small change, but it keeps your counter clear and saves a surprising amount of time.
4. Use the right tool for small jobs
Finely chopping garlic, ginger or chillies by hand is fiddly and leaves your fingers smelling for hours. A small electric chopper does it in a few seconds. Our Wireless Mini Chopper is cordless and charges by USB, so you can use it anywhere on the counter and rinse the bowl straight after.
5. Slice evenly so food cooks evenly
Potatoes, cucumbers and carrots cooked at different thicknesses come out half soft, half hard. A mandoline gives you even slices every time. The 4-in-1 Mandoline Vegetable Cutter switches between slices, strips, julienne and dice with a turn of the knobs, and the push-to-cut design keeps your fingers away from the blade.
6. Clean as you go
While the pan heats or the rice simmers, rinse the board, the bowl and your tools. By the time dinner is ready, most of the washing up is already done.
7. Store prepped vegetables properly
Chopped onions and peppers keep for two to three days in an airtight box in the fridge. Sliced potatoes go brown quickly, so keep them in a bowl of cold water and use them the same day.
The bottom line
You do not need a big kitchen or expensive machines to cook faster. A little planning, a clean workspace and one or two small tools for the jobs you do most often will give you back time every single day.
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