People Reveal Cooking Secrets They Swore To Take To Their Graves In This Viral Online Thread (34 Pics)

#1

My husband says he doesn't like much garlic. I ALWAYS use a hefty amount in my cooking. He loves it. I just don't tell him. And he often says "it smells so good in here!" Yeah, I just added the garlic to the pan...

#3

I add salt to hot chocolate. It somehow makes it more chocolate-y Everyone always says my hot chocolate is the best, but I just use prepackaged with milk and a dash of salt.

#5

I'd never tell anybody how much fresh garlic I put in n anything.. Garlic is actually crack and I can't get enough. Also I don't tell people when I use Greek yogurt in place of sour cream or mayo in some things. I feel like it grosses people out to think there's probiotics in the mashed potatoes or the pasta salad lol

#7

Always brown the butter. No one ever takes the time to brown the butter

#9

I use jello vanilla pudding powder in all my cookies. It keeps them super soft for days and gives them almost a cake interior. Shhhh...

#11

When making homemade mac 'n' cheese, I season with a secret ingredient — mustard powder.

#13

Squeeze a lemon in your pot of chicken soup. Adds a nice brightness.

#15

I worked in a high-end restaurant that was well-known for its cheesecake. It was just cream cheese and marshmallow fluff blended together, then placed in store-bought graham cracker crusts.

#17

I tell everyone, but citric acid in bread dough. Making it a bit acidic makes the yeast go nuts and even "heavy" breads rise more than you'd expect. You could use lemon juice or vinegar I suppose but citric acid (in granules) is easy to find (Indian section of supermarkets, or "gourmet" store), and will hang out happily in your cupboard forever.

#19

Stop using corn starch or flour to thicken stew. Grab a pouch of instant mashed potatoes (I use Idahoan buttery herb or roasted garlic flavor). Add that, stir it in, and thank me later.

#21

My snickerdoodle recipe. People love them. They are chunks of Pillsbury sugar cookie dough, rolled in cinnamon and sugar. Stupid easy. I will never tell.

#23

I've never been the type to have a secret like this, but if people knew how much cinnamon I used they might have questions. I add it to a lot of dishes to add some earthiness and depth, but not in amounts where you can actually taste cinnamon.

#25

Instead of milk, I use full fat vanilla or plain yogurt in my bathing mixture for French toast. It turns out perfectly every time.

#27

I add a dash of cinnamon sugar into any red meat dish or red sauce. Or tomato soup for that matter.

#29

My wife came back from Norway in love with a MAGIC spice we searched for everywhere. It's MSG.

#31

I make my potato salad for most family gatherings and there’s a few secrets: Onions are often argued about with potato salad, but a quarter of one that’s minced til it’s basically water (or grated I guess) is what I use and no one is ever any the wiser. That plus the chives garnish makes it delicious even to people who hate onions. Use huge potato chunks and over cook them, so that when you mix they disintegrate a bit into the mayo and stuff, and you’re left with now-regular sized chunks. Takes some time to find the perfect amount of overcooked, but you learn quick. Two benefits: the potatoes seem to soak up more of the sauce (so make sure you fridge it and then add more the next day) and the sauce tastes more integrated. Plus now your chunks are normal sized and feel more naturally shaped. That plus horseradish to balance out the savory without thinning the salad and you have a winner

#33

If I cook anything that requires bread crumbs, I use chicken-flavored StoveTop stuffing instead