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Chef John’s Trick for Knowing What NOT to Order at Restaurants

We all know Chef John Mitzewich has superpowers in a restaurant kitchen, but we didn’t know he also has a unique set of skills at the restaurant dining table as well.

In an interview with our favorite cooking personality, we asked the chef for one rare skill he possessed that no one would ever pay him for. His response? “I can look at a restaurant menu and tell which items are made with leftovers and maybe should be avoided,” he shares.

Through his years of restaurant experience, Chef John has developed a keen eye for reading menus that makes him the best person to invite out to eat. But, believe it or not, there’s a trick to this that makes the chef’s secret skill easy to adopt for your own menu hacking. So, if you want to eat by Chef John’s standards (which, don’t we all?), here is the rule to follow.

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I Tried 7 Cottage Cheese Brands and This Is the One I Will Buy Again

I grew up eating my fair share of cottage cheese. That’s because when my mom was out of tuna and bologna, she broke out the container of cottage cheese and a can of pineapple and said, “Lunch is ready!” And I came running.

Ironically this beloved food of my childhood is having a bit of a resurgence in popularity, and I’m here for it. I’m glad others are finally appreciating one of my favorite foods, but if you’re going to eat it, you should know that they’re not all created equal. That’s why I put seven different brands to the test. There were some clear winners and some very clear losers.

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Sara Haas RDN, LDN, is a food and nutrition expert with formal training in the culinary arts. She works as a freelance writer, recipe developer, media authority, public speaker, and consultant dietitian/chef. Sara has over 20 years of experience as a registered and licensed dietitian. She has also been a professional chef for 15 years and a food photographer for 10 years.

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Meet Bubble Pizza: The Best Quick Fix for Your Pizza Craving

After a long week, a pizza night can be the perfect retreat. But then, the thought of dealing with a fussy pizza dough or shelling out way too much money on a delivery pie makes it feel like a not-so-peaceful evening after all. Well, we’d like to introduce you to a pizza night solution. It’ll satisfy all your pizza cravingswithout making you roll up your sleeves (or even run to the store!).

Meet Bubble Pizza. It’s an easy, cheesy, extra-satisfying dish reminiscent of a crispy Detroit-style pie—and best of all, it all comes together in a 9×13 pan. This comforting, casserole-style pizza is guaranteed to please (and have you back on the couch in no time).

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Barilla Settles the Debate: This Is When You Should Salt Pasta Water

Pasta plus sauce equals the ultimate easy dinner: Boil water, add pasta, and open a jar of marinara. There is one more step you need to take if you want your pasta to taste great, however. You’ve got to add salt to the water. But when? Some people say to add it to cold water at the beginning, others say to add it when the water comes to a rolling boil, just before the pasta goes in, with the pasta, or when the pasta is halfway done cooking. And then there are those who insist you should skip salting the water and season your finished dinner to taste. 

Pasta enthusiasts have passionately argued all sides of this debate. That’s why we tapped the ultimate expert of pasta—Barilla—to settle it for us once and for all. We asked Lorenzo Boni, executive chef at Barilla Americas, for some authoritative answers.

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Can You Freeze Sour Cream?

If you’ve ever thrown out a half-used container of sour cream, knowing you wouldn’t need it any time soon, you were probably irritated by the waste of food and money. You might have even wondered: Can I freeze sour cream? By taking the proper steps and precautions, sour cream can be safely frozen and thawed for use in a variety of baking and cooking needs. The texture will change once it has thawed, which means it’s best not to use frozen sour cream in dips or on a baked potato. But it’s perfectly fine to use in cakes, casseroles, and soups. Read on to learn how to properly freeze and thaw sour cream.

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