In the kitchen, there are many ways one can cook up some magic. From impressing that special someone to making a nice dish for a pleasant evening, there are various reasons for looking up a recipe. For all the planning, there is one corner of the mind that drives you to finish a cooking marathon as fast as possible. To save time in the kitchen, take the help of these magic mantras.

• Add a pinch of turmeric to dal to make it cook faster.

• Peel the skin of garlic easily after a 10 minute soak in water

• Keep frozen tomato puree in the refrigerator for quick soups and gravies

• Buttering the rim of the milk boiling dish will prevent spilling from boiling

• To repair a salty dish, either add a spoon of sugar or chunks of potato

• To revive stale chapatis, throw them in the pressure cooker for 2 whistles

• Coating lemons with coconut oil makes them last longer

• Adding lemon drops to cooking rice prevents the rice from sticking together

Armed with these tricks, cooking may finish sooner than expected, leaving more quality time for the planned event.

(AW: Sruthi)