You do not have to be Chef Boyardee to enjoy cooking and be good at it. No one expects you to be amazing overnight, but with some simple tricks, you can get some good results that can take your meat prep from boring to ‘boasy’. You do not need all that million-dollar fancy equipment either, as making dishes is about handling the ingredients with care, paying attention to what you are doing and adding a little love as that final extra ingredient.

Below are some simple everyday hacks to get your creative culinary juices flowing. Bon appetite!

1. Removing the excess salt out of saltfish. You do not need to be wasting your gas with the usual long boiling process that you have been doing. Just add some regular brown sugar to the pot of water and it will cut your boiling time in half.

2. Freeze your herbs. If you are usually busy and on the go, then try this tip. When you have time, say on a Sunday, gather all of your fresh herbs and seasonings and either chop them up fine or blend them. Get an ice tray, fill each section and then add a little olive oil on top of each and freeze it. Whenever you are cooking, all you then need to do is drop a cube into your pot and you are good to go. No need for a long meal prep anymore.

3. Peel your boil

eggs with a spoon. Just add a little salt to your boiling water and afterwards

use a spoon to peel them faster.

4. If you are

grilling fish, especially fillet, they tend to break up or stick to the grill

surface sometimes even when you coat the grill. Avoid all of that by putting the

fish down on lemon slices and then grilling them. They will not break up and

you get an added zesty flavour.

5. When your bread gets stale, put it in the oven. If your bread is kind of old (but has no mould on it), sprinkle some water on it (did not say soak it!) and then pop it in the oven or toaster oven for 5 to 10 minutes, and it should be nice and crunchy again.