Desi Kitchen Hacks (Totkay)

Add a little water or tomato puree to increase the gravy. 1 to 2 tbsp of whisked yogurt also makes the salt less noticeable. Raw potato chunks soak up some salty gravy as they cook, but adding more gravy is the real fix.

Stir in whisked yogurt, a little cream or 1 tsp sugar. Keep the heat low when adding yogurt so it doesn't split. Serve raita or plain yogurt on the side.

Cook uncovered on high heat for 5 minutes so the water evaporates. Or mix 1 tsp gram flour (besan) into a little water, stir it in and cook for 2 minutes.

Turn off the heat at once and transfer the top part to another pot without scraping. Leave the burnt layer behind, or the burnt smell will spread through the whole dish.

Remove the lid and keep it on the lowest heat for 5 minutes to let the steam escape. Then spread the rice on a plate to cool. Use less water next time.

Trim the roots and stand the coriander in a glass of water like flowers, then keep it in the fridge. Or wash it, dry it fully, wrap it in tissue and store it in a box. It stays fresh for about a week.

Snap off the stems and store the chillies in a dry box lined with tissue in the fridge. Chillies start rotting from the stem end first.

Mix 1 tsp salt and 1 tbsp oil into the paste and keep it in a dry glass jar in the fridge. If you have a lot, freeze it in an ice tray as cubes.

No. Gases from onions make potatoes sprout sooner and the onions rot faster too. Keep them apart in a cool, dark place.

Keep them on the bunch and wrap the stem in plastic or foil. Ripe bananas kept in the fridge get a black peel but stay fine inside.

Wash the rice 3 to 4 times and soak it for 30 minutes. Add a few drops of lemon juice or 1 tsp oil to the cooking water, and don't stir while it steams.

Knead the dough with lukewarm water and rest it covered for 20 minutes. Once cooked, wrap the rotis in a cloth inside a hot pot. You can also add a little milk to the dough.

Sprinkle the roti lightly with water and warm it on a hot tawa for 10 to 15 seconds on each side. Or wrap it in a damp cloth and microwave for 20 seconds.

Rub a little oil over the dough and keep it in an airtight box in the fridge. It stays good for 1 to 2 days. Take it out 15 minutes before using.

Put 4 to 5 dried bay leaves or a few whole dried red chillies in the rice or daal container, and keep it airtight.

Lay a wooden spoon across the top of the pan. It breaks the foam and makes boil-overs less likely. Still, keep the heat at medium.

Keep the milk lukewarm, warm enough that you can hold a finger in it for 10 seconds. Add the starter, then wrap the pot in a blanket or put it in a closed oven with the light on.

Place the egg in a bowl of water. If it lies flat at the bottom, it's fresh. If it stands upright, it's older, so use it soon. If it floats, throw it away.

Take the eggs out of the fridge 10 minutes early. Add 1 tsp salt or vinegar to the water. Even if an egg cracks, less white will leak out.

Hang the yogurt in a muslin cloth for 15 minutes to drain the whey, then whisk it with a little milk. Sour yogurt also works very well in raita or kadhi.

Fill the karahi with hot water, 1 tbsp baking soda and the juice of half a lemon, and leave it for 15 minutes. Then scrub, and the grease comes off easily.

Put a small bowl of baking soda in a corner of the fridge and change it every month. Always cover leftover curries.

Rub lemon juice on your hands and wash, or rub your hands on a steel spoon under running water.

Sprinkle salt and a little oil on the tawa and scrub it with half a cut potato or a cloth. Then wash it, dry it immediately and rub on a thin coat of oil.

Sprinkle salt on the board, scrub it with half a lemon, leave it for 5 minutes, then wash and dry it in the sun.

Keep pots covered while cooking, soak daal and chickpeas in advance and use a pressure cooker. Don't let the flame spread beyond the base of the pot.

Cool the oil, strain it through muslin or a sieve and reuse it once or twice in curries. If it turns dark or smells, don't reuse it.

Blend coriander stems into chutney or curry. Cauliflower leaves and stalk make a good sabzi. The soft inner layer of pea pods can be cooked too.

When they're cheap, make tomato puree and freeze it in an ice tray. For sourness in curry, yogurt or a little amchoor (dried mango powder) also works.

Serve what you need, then cool the rest quickly, cover it and put it in the fridge. Cooked food left out for long spoils faster. Turn it into something new the next day.

Mix 1 tbsp raw papaya paste into 1 kg of meat, leave it for 1 hour, then cook. Don't leave it overnight, or the meat turns stringy and mushy. A pressure cooker also saves time and gas.

Wash the meat well and drain it. Marinate for 30 minutes in yogurt, ginger garlic and a little vinegar or lemon. Bay leaves and black cardamom in the pot also cut the smell.

Squeeze the water out of the mince, add 1 to 2 tbsp roasted gram flour or breadcrumbs and chill it for 30 minutes. Then shape the kababs with wet hands.

Don't cook chicken for long on high heat; it cooks quickly. Resting it in yogurt and salt for 30 minutes before cooking keeps it juicy.

Move the meat from the freezer to the fridge the night before. Don't leave it out for hours or thaw it in hot water, as bacteria grow. Don't refreeze thawed meat.

Drop half a spoon of chilli powder into a glass of water. Real chilli settles slowly. If the water turns bright red at once or a gritty, sand-like layer settles, it may be adulterated.

Don't pour a burnt tadka into the daal; it will turn the whole pot bitter. Discard the oil and start a fresh tadka. Add garlic last, as it burns fastest.

Skim off the foam that rises at the start and add a few drops of oil. Don't fill the pot to the top, and leave the lid slightly open.

Wash a turmeric stain on fabric straight away with cold water and soap; hot water sets it. Then dry the cloth in the sun, which fades turmeric colour.

Store them in small airtight glass jars away from the stove. Grind garam masala in small batches and use it within a month.

Add the pakoras only when the oil is properly hot; cold oil gets soaked up. Keep the batter thick and fry fewer at a time so the oil doesn't cool down.

Whisk the eggs well with 1 tbsp milk or water. Cook on low heat with a lid on top, and the omelette will puff up soft.

Knead the dough a little softer and rest it for 20 minutes. Cook parathas on medium heat; on high heat they burn outside and stay hard inside.

Rub enough ghee or oil into the flour that it holds its shape when squeezed in your fist. Knead a stiff dough and fry the samosas slowly on low heat.

Don't boil the tea leaves for too long or again and again. Boil the leaves in water for 2 to 3 minutes, add milk and take it off after one or two boils.