Great Kitchen Secrets is a book that promises over 5,000 tips and tidbits to make things go more smoothly in the kitchen. There are some pretty clever things to try, but is it worth the cost?
Overview
The kitchen is a special place for many, it’s where a lot of time is spent both with the family and also by yourself. It’s good to know as much as you can about how to prepare foods, get pots and pans clean, and avoid some of the things that make people go crazy or just plain get annoyed in the kitchen.
It’s nice if you had a parent that loved to cook and spent lots of time in the kitchen and ended up passing down their knowledge to you, but if you didn’t and have always wished you knew more than you do about how things work this might be a way to get past that learning curve and get up to speed with a daily briefing by reading a few pages a day.
The Claim
The folks behind Great Kitchen Secrets claim that they’ve assembled one of the largest collections of kitchen tips and tricks all in one place, and that you can’t get this from online booksellers like Amazon. They say you’ll be able to get tips on how to cook and clean, tips like how to get a pot with charred on crust to shine again using a fabric softener sheet.
The Hype
The book is said to be from Chef Tony, a guy you might recognize from a dozen or so different infomercials for products ranging from container lids to cutlery sets. He says the tips and tricks in the book came from his grandmother and that they’re included in the book because they actually work. Whether or not this backstory is true, and whether Chef Tony actually wrote the book is up for you to decide, but
The Cost
The cost of the book is shown as $10 but once you add the $7 shipping you’re up to $7 and they send an additional booklet on cleaning secrets for an additional $7 so you’re looking at $24 for the set. When you consider that hardcover books go for upwards of $20 it’s not such a bad price, and since you can’t buy it in stores yet if you want it you’re pretty much stuck with their offer.
The Commitment
The tips in this book should make life in the kitchen easier. It’s easy to see how an easier life in the kitchen would translate to an easier life overall, since so much trouble and strife can originate there.
Evaluation
The thing about Great Kitchen Secrets is that they give you plenty of good tips right in their promo, including putting a layer of plastic wrap between the lid on the carton of ice cream to avoid having those ice crystals on it. They also say you can add vinegar to the oil when you’re frying foods to have the foods absorb less of the fat. He also says that if you store sour cream upside down it won’t get all separated and gross looking the way it sometimes can if left for long periods. They also say it’s a good idea to cook a turkey upside down. He says that his grandma would make “herb cubes” so she could keep fresh herbs indefinitely in frozen form.
But some of the best tips they’ve saved in order to entice you to buy. They say you’ll be able to cut an onion without any tears, how to make light and fluffy pancakes, how to make a tomato sauce less acidic. Because many of the tips will tell you how to store and prepare food in a smarter way, they say you’ll be able to save money because you won’t be throwing out as much wasted foods. That can really be important if you’re looking to stay on budget or stretch dollars in the kitchen.
If you’ve always felt at a disadvantage because of your lack of ability or know-how in the kitchen this would be recommended as a one-stop source to show you just what you need to know. It can be addictive to read the tips, and once you see them you’ll wonder why you didn’t think of it on your own.
Final Great Kitchen Secrets Review
Great Kitchen Secrets is getting our Solid Buy rating based on the number of tips and the potential savings in both time and money that are at stake here. It comes in hardcover format so it’s something you can tuck into a spare shelf in the kitchen for easy reference. It’s not really a book that you’d read from cover to cover unless you wanted to be a kitchen pro. Learning tips like these can really build your confidence in the kitchen and can help you be a better and more efficient cook.
Our Recommendation
This makes for a good buy for those that might feel a little lost in the kitchen, or overwhelmed with how much there is to learn or know. It makes a great go-to product for those times when you ask yourself if there’s a better way to do something, or if there’s a solution to a particular problem you’re having. Of course it’s also possible to search things out on the Internet when you are in need, but having this in one place with ideas that actually work is a little more reliable than trusting what’s online.
