Make multiple grilled cheese sandwiches at the same time by baking them in the oven between two baking sheets. The even distribution of heat from the baking sheets ensures each sandwich comes out perfectly melted and golden brown.

To peel garlic in one mess-free step place a whole garlic clove under the flat side of a wide knife and crush it with the heel of your hand. The motion makes the entire skin come off in one go.

Re-purpose your pizza cutter as an herb slicer next time you're in need of freshly chopped herbs. Simply roll through herbs with the pizza cutter and you’ll find them perfectly diced in no time.

Making a large salad with your favourite vegetables and storing it in an airtight container keeps the salad fresh for days. When you're in need of a dose of greens, just add dressing.

Toss cooked chicken breast into a stand mixer with a paddle attachment and you’ll get evenly shredded chicken for salads, casseroles and tacos in seconds.

Place peeled potatoes in a microwave safe dish, cover and microwave for 8 minutes for thoroughly cooked potatoes ready for mashing.

Place a mug of water in with your food next time you heat something up in the microwave. The steam from the water helps distribute heat and moisture more evenly to avoid hard and chewy parts and heat food faster.

Use a kettle to boil water before pouring it into a pot on the stove for a faster rolling boil.

It might seem obvious, but chopping meat and vegetables takes longer when your tools are working against you. Sharpen kitchen knives regularly to make sure you’re always running at peak performance.

As crazy as it sounds, steaming vegetables in an airtight container in the dishwasher is an effective way to get evenly cooked veggies. Because the container is sealed shut, you don’t have to worry about any dirty dish contaminants getting mixed up in your dinner.

From honey-garlic stir fry sauce to Béarnaise, a good sauce can make a simple meal taste like it came straight from the kitchen of your favourite restaurant. Save time by freezing your go-to sauces so that they can be re-heated and enjoyed in a pinch.

There's nothing quite like getting home and having dinner already made for you. If you can find time to do a bit of meal prep in the morning, using a slow cooker to get dinner on the table can cut evening dinner prep down to a whopping zero minutes.

Discover our must-try slow cooker recipes.

Grating garlic is a super-fast way to get finely minced garlic without any of the tedious chopping work.

Setting packaged frozen meat in a mixing bowl with cool water is a quick and safe way to defrost even the toughest cuts.

The fuss-free satisfaction of a one-pot meal is exactly what busy weeknights call for.

Get the recipe for One Pot Beef Stroganoff

Always have fresh green onions at the ready by cutting off the green tops, dicing into small pieces, funnelling into a water bottle and putting the bottle in your freezer. Next time a recipe calls for green onions all you have to do is pour out as much as you need.

Get the recipe for Grilled Pink Snapper with Caramelized Pineapple-Green Onion Butter and Relish

Unlike regular ginger, frozen ginger is incredibly easy to grate without any mess. Keep a stalk of ginger in your freezer for hassle-free freshly ground ginger whenever you need it.

Claudia McNeilly is a food writer living in Toronto.