10 Kitchen Tips to Make Food Prep Easier

Are you looking for 10 kitchen tips to make food prep easier?

Having some tricks to use in the kitchen can make mealtime prep go faster.

This post contains affiliate links, and I may be compensated if you purchase through my link. See full disclosure HERE

If you’re trying to make healthy from scratch meals, they can sometimes take longer to prepare. But have no fear!

Using tricks to cut corners makes things easier in the kitchen. Some may seem like more work but it’s just upfront work that will save you time during multiple meal preps.

10 Kitchen Tips to Make Food Prep Easier

1. Meal Planning

• This is at the top of my list because it is by far the best tip for ease of meal prep
• When you know what you are preparing and have all the ingredients, that’s half the battle
• You can read about my meal planning HERE at Living Large in A Small House

2. Crushed Garlic

• Do you use a lot of garlic? We do! Crushed Garlic in a jar is something I always have on hand in the refrigerator. I typically only use fresh garlic for a recipe that really calls for it.
• When I do have a whole head of garlic, I typically only use one clove so the rest gets peeled, crushed, and put right into my jar in the refrigerator.

3. Garbage Bowl

• Having a bowl to put all of my food prep remnants in is so handy. You can add the tops to vegetables, the skins, and just about anything food-related that is not going into the recipe.
• Then those scraps can go into the garbage all at once or in our case into the chicken coop or composter.

4. Using the right tools for the job – There are some must-have tools in my kitchen

• I have good knives.
• My food processor is used almost daily.
• A few good whisks are a must as well as prep bowls.
• I love my juicer (I use a lot of lemons and limes – they add tons of flavor to many meals).
• I’m also a huge fan of my cheese grater.

5. Freezing Staples

• Put chopped basil into ice cube trays, cover with oil, and freeze. You can also use this will other herbs like oregano, thyme, and rosemary. The olive oil cubes can go right into your pan for the start of many Italian dishes.
• Chop up chives and freeze them for salad dressings, egg dishes, and a baked potato topping.
• Chopped onions in the freezer work if you put them in a freezer bag so you can break off just what you need to use.
• Freeze leftover buttermilk for dips and dressings.

6. Easy Peel hardboiled eggs in a glass or jar

“Handy” actually taught me this trick. All his time on his iPad has had one benefit.

The trick is to put your hardboiled egg into a glass ball jar add a little bit of water (about 1/2 way up the egg) and then shake the jar back and forth for about 20 seconds or until the shell has cracked all around. I put one hand on the bottom and the other covering the opening when I shake it.

Take the egg out of the jar and the shell just slides right off.

7. Bread Crumbs from Leftover Bread

We don’t eat a lot of bread so there is always bread that needs to get used or thrown. I occasionally also buy hamburger buns and there are always 2-3 left over.

Don’t let it go to waste. Throw the bread into the food processor and let it spin for about a minute and you have breadcrumbs. Put them in a container and store them in the freezer. No more penicillin bread in your bread box and you have homemade breadcrumbs on hand to use in a recipe.

8. Double the Recipe

When I do this, I’m so grateful that there are freezer meals available for busy weeks. The trick is to remember to double your recipe. It’s the ultimate way to make food prep really easy. Here are a few that freeze well.

• Lasagna
• Meatloaf
• Swedish Meatballs
• Italian Meatballs
• Ham & Potato Bake
• Chicken Noodle Soup
• Chili
• Marinara Sauce
• Tortellini Spinach Soup

9. Clean while you work

• When I clean up while I’m cooking it just makes everything easier.
• Empty the dishwasher and have a tub of soapy water in the sink.
• As you cook, when things are simmering or water is boiling, it is a great time to wash dishes or put them in the dishwasher.

10. Keeping your Refrigerator & Freezer Organized

We made a trip to the store last night just for meatballs to add to the spaghetti sauce. When I cleaned out the freezer today I found, you guessed it, another bag of meatballs.

Having your refrigerator & freezer organized helps with your grocery list, easy access to your ingredients, and not finding out your milk has expired right before you plan to use it.

Bonus Kitchen Tip

Make sure to keep basic staples on hand. If you become a friend of Small House Kitchen you get a checklist of the things I always have in my pantry or refrigerator.

If you have any tips that help you out in the kitchen, please share them in the comments below and I will add them to my kitchen tips.

A little prep work upfront makes getting dinner on the table on a busy night so much easier. It also is a great way to prevent waste. It’s a win-win.

Enjoy and Have Fun in the Kitchen,

A great way to remember this recipe is to save it to your Pinterest boards. You can find the pin button when you hover over the photo below. Also, don’t forget to follow me on Pinterest