B-well has partnered with comedian Mel Jones to bring you the easiest-peasiest cooking tips at the intersection of comedy and practicality. Mel Jones, born and raised in Cape Town and a proud resident of Mitchell’s Plain, describes herself as “the favourite” of three siblings. She is a single mother, hilarious stand-up comedian, award-nominated producer and an energetic MC and entertainer. Below are some tips from Mel’s repertoire for the kitchen.
Kitchen simplicity with comedian Mel Jones
Buy containers with matching lids
I used to have storage anxiety. Every time I opened up my Tupperware cabinet, I knew I’d be faced with a baffling array of containers in all shapes and sizes, none of which would have a matching lid. But no more.
These days, I get inexpensive plastic containers in three different sizes to take care of 90 percent of my storage needs. It’s easy to see what’s inside them, they’re flexible – which makes them great makeshift pourers and funnels, they stack super-efficiently, they’re dishwasher safe and reusable, they have tight-fitting tops, and best of all, provided you stick with one brand, they use the exact same lid.
How To Reduce Excess Sugar
There are many ways to limit sugar when you prepare foods. One way is to use fruit such as raisins, dried apricots, dates or bananas – which naturally add sweetness – instead of refined sugar.
How To Peel Garlic Quickly
We all love adding garlic to our dishes, but let’s admit we hate peeling the small buds, and it certainly takes up a lot of time. If you want to make your garlic peeling time faster, put the garlic buds in a container and shake them until the skin comes off. Easy!
ALSO SEE: Mel Jones makes PINK potato salad
Add oil in boiling water
For dishes like pasta or noodles, add some oil to keep the strings detached from each other.
Use heavy-bottomed pots for boiling milk
We all know the struggle of cleaning the kitchen after the milk vessels over boil. So to prevent that from happening, take a heavy bottomed vessel and boil the milk in it. This is also good for making dishes such as kheer.
“I hope these tips help someone who can’t find their way in the kitchen. before I stepped into the B-well kitchen, I couldn’t cook and now I still can’t cook but I can sit at the table with a delicious healthy meal filled with Omega-3 in front of me and appreciate the time and effort spent putting it together”, says Jones.
The next time you are cooking, try these B-well tips and tricks and level up your cooking game in no time!
Also read: The 50 Best Things to do in Cape Town