Kitchen Hacks: Snack Bag How-To and Peeling Ginger with a Spoon
Shandra Martinez
| 3 min read
When it comes to food and working in the kitchen, we are all about how to make things easier and faster so we can enjoy all the delicious foods we’re fixing. Today, we’ve got two simple kitchen hacks to share that will make you think, “How did I not know about these before?”
Hack #1: Create your own snack bags
If your plastic storage bag collection looks anything like ours, then you’ve got handfuls of big Ziplock bags, some quart-size pouches and lots of small ones, even some fold-and-close top bags. But somehow in this jumble, there are times when you can’t find just the right size bag for those snack-size portions. Something small enough for a few baby carrots, a cluster of grapes or just a few crackers. We’ve got a fix for that. Here’s how to create your own slim snack bags with the hot blade of a big kitchen knife:
- Select a chef’s knife, or any knife with a long, wide blade.
- Pick the plastic storage bags you want to cut in half. They should have Ziplock or press-and-seal tops.
- Place the bags on a cutting board.
- Heat the knife’s blade over the flame on your stove, being careful to heat the entire length of the blade.
- While the blade is still hot, slice the bags in half. The heat from the blade will seal the cut edges and create two new, smaller bags.
- Reheat the knife blade as needed.
Hack #2: Peeling ginger with a spoon
Buying fresh pieces or “hands” of ginger in your grocery store’s produce area is always a good idea. This sweet-spicy root vegetable adds flavorful depth to dishes and sauces, and is wonderful steeped in a pot of tea. But when it comes to peeling these woodsy little nubs, some people are all thumbs. They reach for a sharp knife or even a vegetable peeler. But both of those can strip off the inside flesh as well as the tough outside skin – leaving you with a lot less ginger than you paid for. So grab a spoon, and watch the video for the best way to peel ginger.
- Firmly hold a piece of fresh ginger in one hand.
- In your other hand, hold a spoon with the bowl of the spoon facing upside down, the edge of the spoon pressed against the piece of ginger.
- Using short, quick strokes, scrape the outside skin off the ginger, leaving the yellow flesh showing.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
