Cooking is not as easy as it seems.
Many of us make mistakes in the kitchen, whether it’s burning toast, overcooking pasta, or breaking poached eggs. But there is a way to correct all these errors.
Michelin-trained chef Poppy O’Toole revealed that the important thing is to slow down and be more confident. She believes that flapping and doubting yourself is a recipe for disaster.
Not only can it cause you to overcook ingredients by hesitating, but it can also cause you to make a mistake when preparing a recipe. Poppy told us exclusively: “I think one of the biggest mistakes people make in the kitchen is not having the confidence to do it.
“For example, when people see ‘pan fry for eight minutes,’ they get a little bit scared and want to touch it and flip it, but we’re after that caramelization, so it’s just about having the confidence to go out on your own.”
Poppy also says to give yourself enough time to do things right, even when you’re “busy,” as rushing is never going to produce high-quality results.
The professional cook also has to repeat this advice to herself often, and revealed a recent instance where she took the time to do everything correctly. She made a bechamel sauce and let it simmer for 30 minutes, rather than rushing it like she normally would.
As a result, she had the “best” béchamel she had ever made. It was “beautiful,” “perfect,” and “silky smooth,” so putting a little extra love into the process definitely paid off.
Poppy O’Toole has teamed up with McCain to launch its new range of air fryer fries, which are exclusively backed by Ninja and come in Deep Ridge Crinkle Cut and French Fries formats. The air fryer range is available now for £3.20 at Tesco, Asda, Iceland and more.
