9 Tips to Save Time in the Kitchen

After a long day at work, coming in your front door should feel like a relief. But then you think about the dinner you have to cook either for yourself, the two of you, or your hungry family of three or more.

That’s when a bit of stress kicks in and you start looking for a way out.

You know it’s healthier to cook meals than just dial that takeout number on speed dial, or grab a frozen something from the freezer. However, the last thing you want to do is spend an hour cooking after you’ve spent the day getting the energy sucked out of you.

What if I were to tell you that you cooking can become quick, easy, and something you can even start to look forward to? It could even become a passion if you let it.

These 10 tips to save time in the kitchen will help you get to that place. You’ll see that cooking doesn’t have to be a daunting, time-consuming task. That’s just your brain telling you that it is, because it’s tired from your long day.

Tip #1 Turn on Some Music

Who says cooking dinner (or any meal) has to be work? Make it enjoyable or even fun with some music.

Upbeat music especially can help to speed things along, and ultimately save time in the kitchen. You’ll find yourself keeping your tempo in the kitchen equal to that of the music.

However, slower, more relaxing music can help too, by putting you in a fantastic mood and melting that stress away. This helps to make the task of cooking seem much easier for your brain to handle, making you more less stressed and more efficient.

In fact many studies have shown the positive effect of music on stress. Here’s a quote directly from: Music Therapy for Stress Reduction: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis summarizing this:

“Music listening is strongly associated with stress reduction by the decrease of physiological arousal as indicated by reduced cortisol levels, lowered heart rate, and decreases in mean arterial pressure (e.g., Burrai et al., 2016; Koelsch et al., 2016; Kreutz et al., 2012; Linnemann et al., 2015). Music can also reduce negative emotions and feelings, such as subjective worry, state anxiety, restlessness or nervousness (Akin & Iskender, 2011; Cohen et al., 1983; Pittman & Kridli, 2011; Pritchard, 2009), and increase positive emotions and feelings, such as happiness (Jäncke, 2008; Juslin & Västfjäll, 2008). 

Martina de Witte, Ana da Silva Pinho, Geert-Jan Stams, Xavier Moonen, Arjan E.R. Bos & Susan van Hooren (2022) Music therapy for stress reduction: a systematic review and meta-analysis, Health Psychology Review, 16:1, 134-159, DOI: 10.1080/17437199.2020.1846580

I’ve been listening to Mandolin Orange and Iron and Wine records lately while cooking. It’s made cooking something I really look forward to, even on busy days.

What music will be your “go-to” cooking music?

Tip #2 Elicit Some Help

Asking someone in your household to give you a hand can both save time in the kitchen and make cooking more enjoyable. It takes the pressure completely off you when you have a bit of help.

Sharing a task with someone makes your brain realize it’s not all on you, so the task at hand seems a little easier. Even if it’s only a little bit of help like gathering some of the ingredients from the refrigerator for you, or putting on a pot of water to boil.

Any bit of help decreases the number of things you feel like you have to do while you’re cooking (and cleaning up), even if it’s just taking it from 12 tasks down to 11.

It’s a really great way to connect more with that person too.

Plus, if you elicit your partner, roommate, or child’s help often, they start getting in the habit of helping, making it more likely that you won’t even have to ask in the future. They’ll just offer.

Tip #3 Choose Recipes With 10 Ingredients or Less

It’s so easy to find a recipe to try based on how yummy it sounds or looks in the photos. When you aren’t paying attention to the ingredients list though, you could end committing to a recipe that takes way more time than you want it to.

If you stick to recipes that generally have 10 ingredients or less, it will save time in the kitchen in these ways:

• You’ll be more likely to have all of the ingredients already and not have to make an extra trip to the grocery store.
• If you do have to go to the grocery store, you’ll have less items to shop for.
• You’ll have less to chop, measure out, mix in, etc.
• You’ll have less items to take out and clean up.

Of course you should also take a look at the estimated prep and cook time (but add 10-15 minutes, because most recipes are underestimates) to make sure it isn’t more than you want to take on.

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Tip #4 Read the Recipe Instructions Ahead of Time

If it’s a new recipe you’re trying, you’re going to want to read through the full recipe instructions ahead of time. This doesn’t take long (I promise) and you’ll be very glad you did.

Here’s why:

• You don’t want any surprises. Surprises = more time and more frustration.
• You can choose a few tasks you can save for when the food is in the oven, simmering on the stove, etc.
• It tends to go more quickly if you already have an overview of the recipe.

I’ve made the mistake of not reading through a new recipe beforehand, and it resulted in dinner being served much later than I intended. It only takes a minute on average to read the instructions and you’re guaranteed to save time in the kitchen.

Tip #5 Get Out All Ingredients and Put in Order

A cooking habit of professional chefs is to get out all the ingredients ahead of time and oftentimes put them in order of when they’ll need them.

This helps streamline the prepping and cooking process, while minimizing unnecessary movement around the kitchen.

It also helps to create the habit of doing things the same way each time you make that meal, which will of course help you save time in the kitchen.

Additionally, if you get all of the ingredients out ahead of time and line them up on the counter, it makes for a more enjoyable process, since it will go so much more smoothly.

That way, you are more able to enjoy the music you’re listening to, the conversation with whoever is giving you a hand, and maybe even that glass of wine you like to treat yourself to on occasion.

Tip #6 Set Out All Equipment and Utensils Ahead of Time

After you’ve gotten out your ingredients and put them in order you’ll need them, get out everything else you’ll need for prepping and cooking.

Items you need for the recipe such as your cutting board, measuring cups, spoons, bowls, pots, colander, cheese grater, etc. should all be set out ahead of time. If you want to go one step further, put them in order just like your ingredients.

The benefit doing this is the same one as having the food ingredients out ahead of time. It just streamlines the whole process. This is where reading the recipe instructions ahead of time helps too. You’ll see exactly what you need.

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Tip #7 Master a Few Recipes First

Tips #5 and #6 help you with this tip of mastering a few recipes first. Once you get in the habit of pulling out the ingredients you need as well as the items for prepping and cooking, you’ll start naturally cutting down on the time it takes to prep and cook that meal.

The more you practice, the quicker and easier it gets, and you’ll start to master that recipe.

Constraining to mastering a few recipes first will help you to practice more. If you are trying too many new recipes at once, it will be so much harder to get the practice you need to master those few, so they are on autopilot.

Once you have mastered a few recipes, then you can add another, master that, then add another.

Soon, you’ll have a repertoire of recipes that you no longer need to even look at, in order to create. This is a massive way to save time in the kitchen.

It’s also truly when cooking no longer seems like a task, but rather something so enjoyable. You won’t have to put in much effort to think or do, because it will be on autopilot. (Just make sure to turn off the stove/oven when done, and be careful with that knife while chopping.)

Tip #8 Designate a Bowl for Scraps

Hopefully you don’t have too many scraps, but it’s almost inevitable that you’ll have some. So rather than making multiple trips over to the garbage can, just have a small bowl on the counter that you can use instead.

Another option is to bring the garbage can over to you.

Such a small thing to do, but helps to simplify the process and save a bit of time.

Tip #9 Double Up The Recipe

Do you like cooking every single night of the week, every day of the year? I didn’t think so. (Even as someone who has learned to enjoy cooking, I don’t either.)

So double or even triple the recipe, so you have enough for leftovers another night of the week. This is especially useful if you know you’ll have a night where you’ll be home late.

Or, if you know you’re going to be working late, you can always pack some of the leftover dinner to take with you to work, so you’ll have dinner instead of going hungry or ordering takeout.

• Related (blog post): 5 Quick and Healthy Work Lunches for the Week
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Some people don’t like having the same dinner two nights in a row, but who said you need to eat the leftovers the next night? That’s why I suggest looking at your week and seeing what day you’d benefit from having those leftovers available.

Final Notes

These tips will absolutely help you save time in the kitchen, but maybe even more importantly, help you to WANT to cook meals instead of eating a bowl of cereal for dinner or ordering unhealthy takeout again.

Even if the meals you are cooking aren’t the “healthiest,” that’s okay. Any home-cooked meal with real ingredients will be better than a pre-packaged frozen dinner or takeout food that has mystery ingredients, and oftentimes too much salt and unhealthy fats.

Plus, just getting into the habit of making your own meals is the start to a path of healthier eating habits. That’s all it takes, just a start.