# Really quick 1-2 cooking rules of thumb **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [December 24, 2020, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777 "2020-12-24T00:02:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2020, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/81 "2020-12-28T14:27:49Z")
> [@Dead\_Cat](#): > > It just goes to show that even if you make something big and bold, some idiot will still contrive to ignore it. If it makes you feel any better, I learned this recipe from our esteemed @Qadgop_the_Mercotan years ago in another thread. My version is a smidgen simplified from his, but **QtM** deserves all the credit. The very first reply to my post in that thread was somebody fussing at me / **QtM** for exploding eggs all over their microwave. Yup. No 50% for him either. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2020, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/82 "2020-12-28T14:35:55Z")
Too late to edit previous post … > [@Dead\_Cat](#): > > - Place a small bowl of water in the microwave and run it on 50% power for 5 minutes while eating the eggs and toast. > - Scrub the inside of the microwave to remove egg splatter. Though thank you for this neat trick on how to steam clean a mess out of a microwave more easily. The last thing I blew up in mine was re-heating a bowl of chili that blorped a mighty blorp about 5 seconds before time was up. Talk about pissed! And yes, I’d consciously dismissed the idea of using a cover. I keep a paper plate on top of the microwave for just that reason. But will I use it every time? Noooo. Some people are slow(er) learners. FYI, at 50% power and with yolks pierced with my recipe I’ve never had an egg blorp over years of cooking one nearly every day. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2020, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/83 "2020-12-28T15:11:07Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > yolks pierced THIS is the key to microwaving poached eggs. I’ve never blown one up since I adopted this practice. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2020, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/84 "2020-12-28T15:22:51Z")
I’ve found that simply hitting the “Rice” button on the Instant Pot (isn’t that available on all models?) works pretty well, and I don’t have to enter times or anything. Just put in about one and a quarter or one and a third times the water in volume, maybe a little less. I find I need a bit less water that stovetop methods. Hit the button, walk away, and get on with whatever else you’re cooking. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2020, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/85 "2020-12-28T15:24:56Z")
> [@jnglmassiv](#): > > Tap the rim of a metal lid with a butter knife handle on a stuck glass jar. I’ve always just stuck a butter knife between the glass jar and the lid and given it a twist, perhaps in multiple places if needed. That’s literally always worked for me. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2020, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/86 "2020-12-28T15:32:01Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > And yes, I’d consciously dismissed the idea of using a cover. I keep a paper plate on top of the microwave for just that reason. But will I use it every time? Noooo. Oh yeah? Well, I’ve got a really, really nice perforated plastic cover that I never use either! ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/87 "2020-12-29T03:52:52Z")
I have several perforated plastic covers. I use them all the time, they have made microwaving easier. I also use them to keep cats away from food left on the counter. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/88 "2020-12-29T03:57:00Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I also use them to keep cats away from food left on the counter. Oh they’ll figure out the ole flip-up-edge-of-lid technique. Just _give them time_. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/89 "2020-12-29T04:43:35Z")
I’ve been using them for years. They may not be adequate to keep a hungry cat away from tuna. But they work really well to keep the cat from investigating the cookies, and even seem to keep the cat off the roast chicken until I get around to carving it. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/90 "2020-12-29T04:55:06Z")
> [@Guest-starring\_Id](#): > > > [@LSLGuy](#): > > > > And yes, I’d consciously dismissed the idea of using a cover. I keep a paper plate on top of the microwave for just that reason. But will I use it every time? Noooo. > > Oh yeah? Well, I’ve got a really, really nice perforated plastic cover that I never use either! - Best microwave cover ever: it sticks to the oven ceiling with magnets so it’s always partially in place, even if you forget to lower it over the plate: [https://www.amazon.com/Magnetic-Microwave-Plastic-Cover-slots/dp/B078HS4B8R/ref=asc\_df\_B078HS4B8R/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=241905613337&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=5911014825044019515&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9061301&hvtargid=pla-470043294453&psc=1](https://www.amazon.com/Magnetic-Microwave-Plastic-Cover-slots/dp/B078HS4B8R/ref=asc_df_B078HS4B8R/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=241905613337&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=5911014825044019515&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9061301&hvtargid=pla-470043294453&psc=1) ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/91 "2020-12-29T05:19:34Z")
^ Neat. Thanks. To think how scungey _that_ would get, then, considering it would also go just as uncleaned as without, but at least the thing’s pop-offable to deal with. Final toast thing, I swear - if toast isn’t toasted enough (even at the highest burn setting) just flip them upside down or switch them backwards (or sometimes both moves - whatever’s required) and pop back down for twenty-five atomic clock steamboats, and should end up good to go, with almost perfectly uniformly even dark-without-being-burnt toast. I wish I could have said that in less words. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/92 "2020-12-29T05:50:21Z")
> [@Guest-starring\_Id](#): > > To think how scungey _that_ would get, then, considering it would also go just as uncleaned as without, but at least the thing’s pop-offable to deal with. Right, just toss it in the dishwasher now and then. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/93 "2020-12-29T10:50:16Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > The very first reply to my post in that thread was somebody fussing at me / **QtM** for exploding eggs all over their microwave. > > Yup. No 50% for him either. That was me. {_curtsey_} I laughed out loud at @Dead_Cat 's post as soon as I recognized myself in it. Sad thing was, I missed the large/bold 50% in your post this time around, too. I gotta quit skimming recipes the way I skim paperbacks. ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/94 "2020-12-29T10:58:33Z")
We have one of those plastic covers with vents. I took it out of the microwave before putting the eggs in. Not enough headsmack emojis in the world for this one. Another quick and obvious (to most) cooking tip: with any new recipe, read it all the way to the end, twice, before starting. That way, not only are you less likely to miss crucial steps like this one, you’ll also discover if you are lacking the ability/equipment for any key steps. For example, of course all good recipes list the ingredients at the start, but not all list the utensils. Annoying to get to step 7 and find the pan you didn’t expect to need is in the dishwasher. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/95 "2020-12-29T14:29:06Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > Prep every component you can before you start cooking. > [@Grestarian](#): > > This is called _mise en place_ and it’s absolutely critical in wok cooking Cooking is fun if you have everything ready. I also like to clean as I go. When I finish cooking a meal, most of my tools/measuring devices/etc are already washed and draining. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/96 "2020-12-29T15:33:16Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I also like to clean as I go. When I finish cooking a meal, most of my tools/measuring devices/etc are already washed and draining. Ditto - I don’t even bother with a dishrack - just dry every item immediately after it’s cleaned, so that after the meal, all I’m looking at are a nice, already-cleaned-up sink and counter. ETA: Waiting for a hot meal to cool down is also a good time to capitalize on cleaning any mess. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2020, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777/97 "2020-12-30T10:58:15Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > > [@LSLGuy](#): > > > > … > > Yup. No 50% for him either. > > That was me. {_curtsey_} I laughed out loud at @Dead_Cat 's post as soon as I recognized myself in it. > … And that “him” was the first gendered pronoun I’ve used on SDMB in about 2 months. So of course I get it wrong. :smack: I consciously recognized what I was doing but thought, Naah, I think it scans better as “No 50% for him” instead of 'No 50% for them". Well in this case it turns out to be “No soup for me.” 😉 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/really-quick-1-2-cooking-rules-of-thumb/928777.md?page=4)