In a hurry to cook dal?
Add a little oil and turmeric powder to the dal before placing it in the cooker. It will get done in 10 minutes flat.

To preserve ginger-garlic paste: Fry them in oil before grinding and store in the same oil.

Soak some fenugreek seeds in water for sometime, grind it to a smooth paste and add it to the dosa batter to get crisp dosas.

Before cutting vegetables or any meat, dip the knife in hot water and you will be amazed to see the ease while cutting.

If you are cooking cabbage add a small piece of ginger for a different and enhanced taste.

If poppy seeds are used in grinding, soak it in hot water for 10 to 15 minutes before grinding in a mixie.

Masala tea: Lightly roast dried ginger, cardamom peels, cloves and grind them. Store them in a bottle. Add to the boiling water with the tea leaves.

If you have added too much salt: According to the dish you are preparing, you could add a few pieces of cooked potato, breadcrumbs, cooked tomato, maida, rice flour or chilli powder to solve the problem of too much salt.

To make fluffy chapathis: Use warm water when kneading the dough for chapathis. Flip the chapathi over three times before you pour ghee/oil on it so that the chapathi is soft and fluffy.

Always soak cauliflower in warm salted water for some time to get rid of tiny insects which may be hidden deep inside the florets.

Making dosa - When you make dosa, grease the pan with an onion. It helps to get it crispy and remove from pan easily.

Prevent Noodles from getting sticky - When boiling noodles, add some oil to it. It helps to protect stickiness.

To get rid of bad smell from utensils - Wash with a few drops of vinegar.

Want finely mashed potatoes? - Always mash potatoes when quite hot so that you get finely mashed potatoes.

Want to chop finely mint/green coriander? - Use kitchen scissors instead of a knife to chop finely, green coriander, green chillies, mint or tulsi.

Storing green chillies fresh - Wash and trim stem from each chilli and store in freezer bags. Will keep fresh for a number of days.

Retain food values in vegetables: Wash well before chopping, slicing or dicing. Do not wash after they are cut.

To prevent okras from sticking to pan: Add a spoon full of yogurt while cooking.

To prevent potatoes from discoloring after cutting: Keep the chopped potatoes in water. Squeezing juice from fresh lemon: Dip lemon in hot water for a few seconds and then cut it. You will get more juice that way.

If you have high blood pressure: Cook with low sodium salt and do not add raw salt at meal times.

Add a handful of rice flour to bajji batter for crisper and less oily bajjis.

Use tissue papers for reheating fried snacks. For example, samosa, vada, kachori, bajji, etc. The paper will absorb the excess oil and moisture and keep the snack crisp. Reheat on high for 1-1 1/2 minute.

Always use a clean pair of kitchen scissors to trim edges of bread. Much neater and less messy edges as compared to those trimmed with a knife.

* To make samosas crisper add some corn flour to the maida for dough.

If you are making potato or cauliflower curry and you do not want any change in the colour, then do not fail to add a few drops of vinegar for the natural colours to be retained even after cooking.

If you are cooking cabbage, add a small piece of ginger for a different and enhanced taste.

To make fluffy chapathis: Use warm water when kneading the dough for chapathis. Flip the chapathi over three times before you pour ghee/oil on it so that the chapathi is soft and fluffy.

To make fluffy pooris: Use a little ghee while kneading the dough.

For coconut to break exactly into two, sprinkle some water on it before breaking.

While preparing sambar or rasam, always soak tamarind in hot water to extract the essence easily without any wastage.

To ensure that the griddle (tawa) is hot enough before spreading dosa, sprinkle a little water over it. If it sizzles immediately, then the griddle is hot enough. Wipe with a clean rag, proceed.

Add a tiny piece of crushed ginger to tea, while boiling, for the extra zing especially during winter.

To determine whether an egg is fresh, immerse it in a pan of cool, salted water. If it sinks, it is fresh, but if it rises to the surface, throw it away.

Don't store potatoes near onions! Potatoes rot quickly if stored near onions.

Yam fry: Peel the yam and slice it into thick squares. Wash it thoroughly. Mix together salt, turmeric, chilli and coriander powder with water and make a fine paste. Apply this paste on the yam slices. Transfer it to a microwave-proof vessel and microwave it for four minutes. Remove. Heat oil in a kadai. Fry cooked yam pieces till done.

Operating the mixies: Run the mixie at the slowest speed for a little while and then run it at the maximum speed.

Pressure Cooker: The weight of the cooker should be placed only after the steam rises out.

As soon as you open the cooker lid wash the gaskette (rubber) in cold water and keep it in the reezer. By doing this you can use the rubber for more than a year.

To remove the odor from the refrigerator, place half a lemon in the fridge.

To easily slice boiled eggs, dip the knife in water first. The slice will be smooth and no yolk will stick to the blade.