This Is Anne Burrell's Most Important Food Tip For New Cooks
Chef Anne Burrell, who is a mentor on Food Network's Worst Cooks in America is accustomed to dealing with novice cooks who don't quite have it all figured out in the kitchen. Her quick and easy tip for new cooks is simple — make sure that you have everything prepared ahead of time (via Food Network). Fans of culinary shows may have seen this practice referred to by the French term, "mise en place." The term simply means "to put in place," and it involves having everything chopped and ready to go before you actually begin making your dish (via Reluctant Gourmet).
According to Burrell, incorporating this practice will help any home chef navigate the cooking process with more ease, as it eliminates the need to go here and there in the kitchen, gathering supplies and ingredients as you go (via Food Network). It's also a lot less stressful than trying to frantically dice some carrots while you keep half an eye on the onion sweating in your pan.
Mise en place is something that's very common in restaurant kitchens (via Delishably), but if you're a home cook who thinks it wouldn't possibly be helpful in your own kitchen, you might not be thinking about this concept the right way.
How would you incorporate it at home?
When chefs do their mise en place in a restaurant kitchen, it's tailored to that particular style of cooking — each individual focuses on their own station, and there's no issue with having a few extra dirty containers if it means service runs smoothly (via The Spruce Eats), as there are other staff members responsible for that. When you're cooking at home, you likely don't want a bunch of extra dishes to do at the end of your meal simply because you pre-portioned every single ingredient.
For home cooks, as The Spruce Eats explains, mise en place may simply mean gathering your ingredients and chopping a few in advance. Or, as MyRecipes puts it, this could also involve carefully reading the recipe to figure out what the preparation process will look like, ensuring you're not taken by surprise at any point.
While you may be concerned that you'll dirty more dishes during prep, it might actually help you become a cleaner cook. As Real Simple explains, mise en place means you can more easily clean as you go. Instead of chopping your second ingredient while your first is browning in the pan, you can deal with any mess in the small time gaps available. It's a simple concept that doesn't require any new gadgets.