Lighting a couple of candles while cooking, helps absorb the cooking fumes. This is especially helpful when cooking curry which is very aromatic.

Adding a tablespoon of margarine/butter when boiling rice or potatoes prevents the water from boiling over. Also oiling the rim of the pot will prevent food from boiling over.

Sauces that are curdled can be saved by placing the bottom portion of the pan/pot into cold water immediately after being removed from the heat. This prevents further cooking.

Cutting a 1/2 inch hole in the center of a burger meat allows the burger to cook more evenly from the inside and outside.

The dark pieces of chicken take longer to cook than the white pieces of chicken; so cooking the dark pieces first than gradually adding the white pieces will make both finish the same time.

Adding a pinch of baking soda with butter and milk to mashed potatoes before mashing, makes it more fluffy.

Always read a recipe completely before implementing. This way you can anticipate all preparations and ingredient requirements.

Always wash surfaces of plates or dishes where raw meat, fish, poultry, or egg products have been, with hot soapy water before placing ready-to-serve or cooked food.

You can awaken a few taste buds by learning to cook with various kinds of herbs and spices.

Cookies: Cookies should be lightly browned and removed before they turn a dark brown around the bottom edge. If you want a softer cookie, they should be removed when the cookies look slightly underbaked. For softer cookies, start to check for doneness about 2 minutes before the suggested baking time.

Breads: A visual test for doneness is to check the coloring of the loaf. It should be a nice golden brown color, not pale in color and not too dark. When the loaf is touched it should feel firm but not too hard. The best way to check doneness is to remove it from the pan, turn it over and tap on the underside. The loaf will have a hollow sound to it if it is properly baked.

Pies and Pastries: The best way to check doneness for pies and pastries is to check coloring. When properly cooked, the crust of pies and pastries will have a lightly browned coloring. If not properly cooked, they will look pale in color and their texture will not be crisp and flaky as they are intended to be.

Pasta: asting the pasta is probably the best way to determine doneness. Begin checking for doneness approximately 1 or 2 minutes before the suggested minimum time on the package. If it is not done, continue to check every 30 seconds until the pasta is done. When done, it will be tender but still have a slight bite to it. Cooking pasta to this point of doneness is called "al dente," which is Italian for "to the tooth". If the pasta is overcooked it becomes mushy. The pasta should be slightly undercooked if it is going to be added to another dish, expose to further cooking, or added to a hot soup.