The Most Important Kitchen Hacks That You Never Knew You Needed In Your Life

Everyone loves a good kitchen hack. Whether you’re looking for ways to make cooking your meals quicker and easier, or you just like to have a bit of fun, there are lots of kitchen hacks for you to try.

This article will explore some of the most unusual kitchen hacks. We’re not talking about some of the most common kitchen hacks, such as adding oil to your pasta to stop it sticking. We’re exploring hacks such as using a whisk to remove seeds, or using bread to pick up glass. Read on to find out how this works, and why it’s so helpful!

Unusual Kitchen Hacks

1. Use a rubber band to hold a spoon in place while cooking

Dropping a spoon into your hot pan or sticky baking bowl is something that we’ve all been guilty of. (If you say you haven’t you’re either lying or you’re living a much more responsible life than us). With this hack though, you’ll never have to worry about retrieving your lost spoon again.

Simply wrap a rubber band around the top of the spoon’s handle, and prop it up against the side of your saucepan/bowl. The rubber will grip to the side, keeping your spoon happily in place.

2. Use a rolling pin to crush hard spices

Grinding spices can be near impossible without a mortar and pestle… Or is it actually really easy? Save your pennies and just use a rolling pin!

All you have to do is put your chopped up spices in a sandwich bag or wrapped up in cling film. Then put your spice package on a hard surface and crush them by rolling them with a rolling pin. Alternatively, you can bash away to have a bit more fun (and maybe relieve some stress).

3. Use a spoon to easily peel a kiwi

Kiwis taste fantastic, but it can be such a hassle to eat them without getting messy. But did you know that there’s actually a really easy way to eat them?

If you cut the ends off of the kiwi, and then use a spoon to carve out the flesh of the kiwi, you can very easily remove the skin. From there, you can cut your kiwi whichever way you fancy! You can then use your spoon to pick up each piece of kiwi to further avoid getting messy.

4. Use a potato masher to mash avocados

Making homemade guacamole or the classic avocado on toast? Most people mash up their avocado by chopping it up into little pieces and then using a fork to mash. “There’s gotta be a better way!” I hear you cry. And there is!

Potato mashers aren’t just great for potatoes; they can mash avocados too. Simply remove your avocado from its skin, pop it in a bowl or on a hard surface, and mash away. You’ll have perfectly mashed avocado in seconds. You’re welcome!

5. Use a straw to easily remove cherry pits

With cherries being so small, it can be a bit fiddly to remove their pits. But if you’re serving cherries to guests, or young people, it’s important to remove them first. Luckily, we know of an ingenious way to remove them.

You can use a straw to very easily remove a cherry pit. Just hold the cherry with one hand, and use your other to slide the straw directly through the cherry. The pit will come straight out!

6. Use a whisk to remove seeds from a butternut squash or pumpkin

This is less a hack for carving a pumpkin, and more for when you’re wanting to remove the seeds ready for roasting. It can be difficult to separate the seeds from all the pumpkin guts, but a whisk makes it easy.

Simply cut open your pumpkin, and use a whisk to twist and pop out the seeds. This technique can also be used for butternut squash and other gourds.

7. Use scissors to easily slice pizza

This is my favourite way of cutting a pizza! It’s quick and easy, and you have a lot more control.

All you need to do is grab a pair of kitchen scissors, and cut out your slices. You can also now buy pizza scissors, that can be used to both cut and serve your pizza.

8. Use a muffin tin to portion cookie dough

This is a game changer for all cookie bakers. It can be really difficult to get cookies that are the same size, and even to get them perfectly round.

To do this, ball up your cookie dough the same as you usually would, and stick each ball in its own section of a muffin tin. Bake as normal, or until it’s baked all the way through, and you’ll end up with chunky little cookies that are perfectly round!

9. Use a can opener to easily open a jar with a stuck lid

There are so many tips and tricks for getting into a hard-to-open jar. Sometimes it seems like an impossible task.

This makes it really easy. All you need to do is use a can opener to pierce the lid. Once it’s pierced, even a little bit, the lid should just pop right off. The only problem with this is that once you’ve done it, you either have to use up everything in the jar, or put it in a new container.

10. Use a potato peeler to easily create chocolate shavings

Your potato peeler has more than one use! It doesn’t just peel off skins, but it can also be used to easily and effectively create chocolate shavings.

This is the easiest way to create chocolate shavings or curls than other methods. Perfect for your baked goods!

11. Use a pizza cutter to slice soft cheeses

So, you’ve realised that cutting your pizza with scissors is actually a fantastic idea. But what do you do with your pizza cutter now? Cut cheese!

A pizza cutter will easily slice through soft cheeses. Soft cheese can often stick to a knife, or crumble under pressure. But that isn’t the case with a pizza cutter. It can reduce the mess created, and help you make uniform slices.

12. Use a silicone spatula to remove the last bits of a jar of peanut butter

This doesn’t just work with peanut butter. It can work with chocolate spreads, jam, or anything else of similar nature.

Just open your jar, wipe the insides around with a silicone spatula, and lick it off spread it on your bread.

13. Use a toothbrush to easily clean hard-to-reach crevices in small kitchen appliances

Getting into hard-to-reach spots can be frustrating, especially if you can see a build-up of grime. A toothbrush is a fantastic cleaning tool though.

It can get into all kinds of small crevices, including in your small appliances, making cleaning that much easier for you!

14. Use a squeeze bottle for intricate pancake designs

You can make all kinds of amazing art using pancake mix! So whether you’re an artist or just enjoy fun shaped pancakes, this hack is for you.

Pour your pancake batter into a squeeze bottle, and then use this to create intricate shapes in your frying pan or griddle. You can even add different food colouring to your batter to have even more fun.

Another fun idea is to use fun-shaped cookie cutters. Place the cookie cutter on your griddle or frying pan, and carefully pour the batter into it.

15. Use frozen grapes as ice cubes

During the warmer weather ice cubes are great for cooling down your drinks. But, they will also dilute them and lead to them not tasting as great. Freezing grapes can be the answer to your problems!

Pop your frozen grapes into your juice, wine, or other beverages to keep them cold without losing flavour. And the best part? You get a great snack at the end!

16. Use the eggshell itself to remove broken shell in your cracked eggs

Want to know the quickest, least hassle way of removing egg shells from your eggs? Just use your egg shell.

Use the other broken half of your egg shell to break through the raw egg and scoop up the shell. You’ll be able to do this without a mess, and without the little bit of shell running away.

17. Use a colander to prevent boil-over and splatters

Colanders work as a great barrier from hot splatters and messy boil-overs.

Just place it over your pan, and it’ll prevent your water from boiling over, or your fried egg from splattering all over the place. The holes will also allow steam to escape. Perfect!

18. Use a slice of bread to pick up small, hard to see shards of glass

Broken glass can be really dangerous. Especially when it’s broken up into little tiny pieces! Even the smallest shard can be really sharp.

A slice of bread can pick up small, hard to see shards of glass. After sweeping up the bigger pieces, take a slice of bread and press it into the floor where the glass broke. All of the smaller dust-like particles will stick to the bread! Be sure to safely throw the bread away immediately after.

19. Spray cooking oil into measuring cups when measuring sticky substances

Measuring sticky substances such as honey is so difficult. That’s because half of it ends up getting stuck in the measuring cup! We’ve come to save you from these sticky situations.

Spray a little cooking oil into your measuring cups before using them to measure. This way the sticky substance will slide out a lot easier, and you’ll actually get an accurate measurement.

Conclusion

These kitchen hacks offer creative and easy to remember solutions to common cooking challenges. They make tasks easier, reduce mess, and introduce a touch of ingenuity into your kitchen. From securing a spoon with a rubber band to grinding spices with a rolling pin, these unconventional techniques showcase the versatility of everyday kitchen tools.

These hacks also promote safety and cleanliness, like using a colander to prevent boil-overs and a slice of bread to pick up small glass shards.

In a nutshell, these lesser-known kitchen hacks can transform your cooking experience, making it more efficient, enjoyable, and resourceful. So, don’t hesitate to give them a try!

If you have any other kitchen hacks for us, let us know the comments!