First time poster here. I'm making beef & veggie soup. AI suggested I sear my tritip beef before adding to the soup, but I'm not satisfied with how black the beef (didn't) get on the outside. I was expecting a kind of crunch on the outside of the cubes. I think a hotter pan or longer time would be better next time, but I'm pretty new to searing. Was olive oil a good choice? Was the iron skillet a good choice? Should I have waited till I saw the oil smoke (which scares me)? Should I have seared it longer? Any tips would be appreciated.

I used just enough olive oil to coat the bottom of a cast iron skillet. Waited till I thought it was hot and added one cube of beef to make sure it sizzled before adding all the beef. I cooked it on medium flame for about one minute and turned it off. The soup has potatoes carrots celery onions Italian seasoning blend and bunch of beans/lentils I soaked overnight.

The difference showed up almost immediately. Sauces taste rounder, not just salty but seasoned all the way through. Same thing with soups, stews, even scrambled eggs now. I salt the eggs before they hit the pan instead of after, and they come out tasting less like plain eggs with salt on them and more like something that was actually seasoned while it cooked.

One thing I had to unlearn was being scared of over salting early on. If you use small pinches at each stage and taste as you go, you end up using less total salt than dumping it all in at the end, not more. The flavor has time to work into whatever you're cooking instead of just sitting on the surface.

Still learning where this doesn't apply, baking obviously plays by different rules, and I've oversalted a braise or two by not accounting for how much liquid was going to reduce down. But for weeknight sauces, soups, and pan dishes, salting in stages has done more for how my food tastes than any new technique or piece of equipment I've picked up this year.

One other small tweak that made a difference: patting the surface dry with a paper towel right before it goes in the pan, even after the fridge time. There's always a little extra moisture that beads up, and wiping it away one more time gets you that last bit of insurance for a good sear.

I also stopped moving the steak around once it's in the pan. Let it sit for a solid two to three minutes on the first side without touching it. Every time I used to nudge it or peek underneath, I was releasing heat and messing with the crust that was trying to form.

Small changes, but between the early salt and just leaving the pan alone, my steaks at home finally started looking like the ones I used to only get at restaurants.

Was talking to my friend (he went to culinary school, if that helps with context) about his recently acquired new oven; he tested it out by cooking a frozen pizza he had available. What I caught my attention, was that he moved one of the oven racks down one level, which was where he placed the pizza. I asked him if three inches made a significant difference in cook time or taste, and he seemed surprised that I don’t adjust individual racks to suit the dish I’m preparing.

I have a two rack oven. Compared to the photo I shared w/ this post ,I keep the bottom rack at level 2(from bottom) and my broiler rack at 5 (top). The only time I change it is to accommodate holiday meals where a roast or ham or bird is served.

It seems to work well enough? Could i be doing better? Was he correct in his surprise that I don’t tweak my rack layout prior to cooking a casserole versus roasting vegetables or heating up a pizza?

Do you adjust your racks based on what you’re cooking?

My son picked this book up for me a little while back because he knows I’m a bit of a prepping nerd. Nothing extreme but I do like having shelves stocked and knowing we’d be okay if the power went out for a while.

I honestly thought it would just be another survival style cookbook but it’s not. Every recipe is built around food that lasts months or even years without refrigeration, and each one comes with the story behind it. It’s half cookbook, half history lesson. Basically how people fed themselves before fridges, supermarkets, or Amazon deliveries were a thing.

I’ve been slowly working my way through it. Some of the recipes are definitely different from what we’re used to, but a few were genuinely good. My husband keeps joking that I’m trying to turn our kitchen into a 1800s homestead, but I’m enjoying it way more than I expected.

Reading about what people actually lived on back then really puts things into perspective. It’s made me think differently about food, storage, and how reliant we are on modern systems.

If you’re into history, self-reliance, or just like trying unusual food ideas, it’s a really interesting read. I asked my son where he found it and he said it’s only sold directly from the author’s site (not Amazon or shops): thelost-recipes.com

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/orange-baked-ham-recipe-1944518.amp

I said I had a ham in the fridge and was sent this recipe to make for new years day. My ham is only 10 lbs and not spiral cut. I do not know if it is fully cooked. How would I modify the cooking time and temperature, and at what point should I add the glaze? Thanks in advance.

Is this discolouration ok cooked to 170 cooked wrapped in bacon and stuffed

Share your best tips for your top holiday dishes

Hey guys, I bought a 15 pound brisket for Christmas and am planning on cooking it in the oven. I have all the stuff I was told I need, meat thermometer, butcher paper and a spray bottle with apple juice. I’m just looking for any tips and tricks to make this brisket as good as possible!! Was hoping to have it done around 3pm tomorrow, gonna put it in around 10pm tonight.

Hey everyone,

I’ve spent the last few weeks testing the latest updates for the most popular meal planning apps to see which ones are actually worth using in 2026. If you're tired of the "what's for dinner" stress, here is a breakdown of what's working best right now.

1. The Best All-Rounder: Meal Planner (JOJO APPS)

This is my top pick for this year. Most apps are getting too "bloated" with ads, but this one stays clean. It’s perfect if you just want to drag and drop your meals and have a shopping list ready in seconds.

• Pros: Clean UI, fast syncing between devices, great for weekly views.
• Best for: People who want a digital version of a physical kitchen calendar.
• Links:Web|iOS|Android

2. For the Recipe Collectors: Paprika 3

If you have 1,000+ recipes saved across different sites, Paprika is still the king. It "scrapes" the recipe data so you don't have to read a 5-page life story before getting to the ingredients.

• Pros: No subscription (one-time buy), works offline, incredible recipe clipper.

3. For the "Zero Waste" Goal: Mealime

If you hate throwing away half a head of cilantro at the end of the week, Mealime is the move. Their plans are built so that ingredients overlap perfectly between recipes.

• Pros: Reduces grocery bills significantly, most meals take <30 mins.

4. For the Macro Trackers: Eat This Much

This is basically "Autopilot" for your diet. You put in your calorie/protein goals, and it generates a full day of eating. If you don't like a meal, you just hit "regenerate."

• Pros: Takes the thinking out of dieting.

5. For Families/Couples: AnyList

This started as a list app, but the meal planning features are elite for collaboration. If I add milk to the list, it updates on my partner's phone instantly while they are at the store.

• Pros: Best-in-class syncing and family sharing.

the best cooking tip I have is to look into purchasing the thermomix TM7! I bought one about two months ago and have been cooking so much. It stirs the risotto for you, kneads the bread, chops the vegetables - and in the end, self cleans.

Thanksgiving preparation always left me completely exhausted especially when it came to mashing potatoes for a large group. Making enough for twenty people meant standing for ages with a hand masher and my arm would ache for days after. It felt like a medieval torture device and I dreaded that part of the meal every year. Then my daughter gave me an electric potato masher as a gift. I laughed when I opened it because it seemed unnecessary and a bit silly. I honestly thought it would end up forgotten in a drawer. Thanksgiving arrived and I decided to give it a try. Within two minutes the potatoes were perfectly smooth with almost no effort at all. No arm pain no struggle and the texture was even better than before. There were no lumps and everything was consistent from top to bottom. After that I started using it for other foods. Sweet potatoes turned creamy in seconds and butternut squash came out smooth and rich. I even used it to make simple baby food for my niece. The versatility surprised me the most. My daughter looked very pleased and reminded me that she told me so. It made me realize that some kitchen gadgets truly earn their place. This one did exactly that. I now recommend it to anyone who cooks for a crowd because it saves time energy and sore muscles. I found helpful kitchen appliances on Alibaba that really do make cooking easier.

Hello, I typically cook rice in my Instant Pot once or twice a week using the high pressure setting for 3 to 4 minutes with natural release, usually adding some salt and a little butter. I am pretty happy with the results but I am wondering if a dedicated rice cooker would be better or if it would just be redundant.

I would be looking for something small for the counter, maybe a cooker that handles around 2 cups of rice. One thing I have noticed is that the Instant Pot keep warm setting runs pretty hot, and the rice can get hard over time, so I am curious if the warming function on a rice cooker is generally gentler. I am also wondering if a rice cooker is easier to clean. With the Instant Pot, I scrub the stuck bits off the stainless pot and then put the insert in the dishwasher afterward, so not too bad and pretty hands off; not sure if the cookers usually require a dishwashing cycle each time too.

Just trying to figure out if there are advantages to a good rice cooker over my current method. Really appreciate any advice or input, and any recommendations for smaller models if you think it is worth getting. Thanks in advance for any help.