Hot Tips From Food Network Kitchens’ Katherine Alford:

Green beans don’t need to be trimmed on both ends — just the stem end. For fast trimming, line up a handful of raw beans on a cutting board with the stem ends facing your knife, then push them into a line against the knife and make one long cut.

Hot Tips From Food Network Kitchens’ Katherine Alford:

To cut down on roasting time for dense vegetables like carrots and potatoes, preheat a metal baking sheet or roasting pan in the oven for at least 10 minutes. When the food hits the pan, it will get a blast of heat that jump-starts the cooking.

Hot Tips From Food Network Kitchens’ Katherine Alford:

Drain your pasta when it’s just al dente, then cook it for a minute or 2 more in a skillet with the sauce. This lets the pasta absorb flavor from the sauce and it helps the sauce cling to the pasta. Try it with any simmered sauce (not pesto or carbonara), and if the sauce gets too thick, thin it with some of the pasta cooking water.

(Photograph by Christopher Testani)

Hot Tips From Food Network Kitchens’ Katherine Alford:

Smashing whole garlic cloves is the best way to peel them: Place the cloves on a cutting board, hold the flat side of a chef’s knife on top and give it a firm whack with the heel of your other hand. Use just enough force to split the skin and crack open the cloves; if you pulverize the garlic with a heavy-handed thud, it will be harder to peel.

(Photograph by Lara Robby/Studio D)

Hot Tips From Food Network Kitchens’ Katherine Alford:

Next time you cook a steak on the stovetop, place a cast-iron skillet or other heavy pan on top of the meat while it’s cooking. The extra weight will prevent the steak from curling around the edges and help give it an even sear. If you don’t have a heavy pan, you can use a regular one and weigh it down with a few cans of tomatoes or beans.

(Photograph by Christopher Testani)

Hot Tips From Food Network Kitchens’ Katherine Alford:

To improve your baked potatoes inside and out, brush the skin with olive oil or melted butter before baking; it’ll crisp the skin. And don’t wrap potatoes in foil — just prick them all over with a fork (to help steam escape) and bake at 375 degrees F until tender, about 50 minutes. To speed up the cooking process, start the potatoes in the microwave for 12 minutes, then brush with oil and finish in the oven for 10 minutes, like we did for the Steak With Blue Cheese Potatoes recipe pictured above.

(Photograph by Christopher Testani)

Hot Tips From Food Network Kitchens’ Katherine Alford:

Keep red onions on hand: They’re milder than yellow or white ones, so you can eat them raw. Plus, you can substitute them for shallots in most recipes, like the vodka sauce in this Penne With Vodka Sauce recipe. Use 1/2 small red onion for every large shallot.

(Photograph by Lara Robby/Studio D)

Hot tips From Food Network Kitchens’ Katherine Alford:

Add a twist to sandwiches or tacos with custom mayonnaise: Mix plain mayo with citrus zest or juice, fresh herbs, chopped olives or a condiment like pesto or Sriracha. (We made chile-lime mayo for the tuna tostadas pictured above.) Keep the leftovers in the fridge, covered, for up to three days, but taste before reusing: The flavors can intensify after a day or two, so you may need to mellow it out with more mayo.

(Photograph by Christopher Testani)

Hot Tips From Food Network Kitchens’ Katherine Alford:

Leftover rice comes in handy when you’re throwing together a quick dish, like Food Network Magazine‘s Corn Fried Rice, or when you need to bulk up a stir-fry or soup. Cook a big batch, cool it, then freeze it in a microwave-safe storage container for up to 1 month. To thaw, sprinkle the rice with water and microwave, covered, until heated through.

Hot Tips From Food Network Kitchens’ Katherine Alford:

You don’t need your measuring spoons every time a recipe calls for a specific amount of salt or pepper. Just count how many turns of your pepper mill make ¼ or ½ teaspoon and use that as your guide whenever you’re cooking. Do the same for salt: Count how many of your own pinches add up to each measurement. None of this has to be exact — you can always season to taste at the end.

(Photograph by Lara Robby/Studio D)