Adding Salt Makes Water Boil Faster
Here’s one that drives professional chefs absolutely crazy. You’ve probably heard this kitchen wisdom countless times, but adding salt to water does not make it boil faster – in fact, it increases the boiling point of the water, which means it takes slightly longer to reach boiling temperature. Food scientist Morrine Omolo explains that “The added salt ‘fights’ to hold onto the water molecules, so it takes more heating to ‘release’ the water vapor into the atmosphere”.
The only time salt would meaningfully speed up boiling is if you added an absurd amount – over 20% concentration, which would instantly ruin a dish by causing the food to become extremely salty and unpalatable. So why do chefs still add salt to boiling water? It’s slowly absorbed by your food while cooking, producing a more complex overall flavor and ensuring your entire dish is evenly seasoned.
Searing Meat Seals in the Juices
This myth is so deeply ingrained in cooking culture that many people still believe that a sizzling-hot sear creates some kind of seal that holds in a meat’s moisture, but this is considered a myth by those in the know. The myth dates back to 1847, when German chemist Justus von Liebig suggested that exposing meat to high temperatures would form a protective layer or crust, preventing the juices from seeping out.
You can debunk this just by looking and listening to a steak as it sears – squeeze it downwards, and juices still seep out, and that hissing sound is water (i.e., juices) evaporating. When Serious Eats tested this myth by searing and then roasting meat versus roasting first, the meat seared first ended up with 1.68% less juice. According to food scientist Harold McGee, searing meat actually forces it to lose moisture, but the best way to seal in juices is to rest your meat for five minutes before slicing.
You Should Rinse Raw Meat Before Cooking
This practice might seem logical for cleanliness, but it’s actually dangerous. Recent USDA research has found that rinsing raw meat or poultry increases the risk for spreading bacteria to your sink, hands and cooking equipment. When you rinse raw chicken or other meats, water droplets containing harmful bacteria like salmonella can splash up to three feet in all directions around your sink.
Professional chefs know that proper cooking temperatures are what kill bacteria, not rinsing with cold water. The heat from cooking is far more effective at eliminating pathogens than any amount of washing. Instead of rinsing, pat your meat dry with paper towels before cooking – this actually helps achieve better browning and texture.
You Must Add Oil to Pasta Water to Prevent Sticking
You don’t add olive oil to your pasta pot to keep pasta from sticking together – simply keeping the water boiling and occasionally stirring the pasta will keep it from sticking. Although oil helps keep the water from boiling over, it prevents any sauce from sticking to the pasta. This is actually counterproductive because you want your sauce to adhere properly to create the perfect bite.
Italian chefs would be horrified by this practice. The starch that naturally releases from pasta as it cooks is what helps sauces cling properly. When you coat pasta with oil, you’re essentially creating a barrier that prevents this crucial bonding. Never rinse pasta after cooking, as doing so rinses off the starches that give pasta its “special mouthfeel”.
Alcohol Completely Burns Off When You Cook With It
Many home cooks assume that when they add wine to a sauce or rum to a cake, all the alcohol evaporates during cooking. Heat does reduce alcohol’s potency, but the alcohol doesn’t completely cook away – it will if you heat it long enough, but that would take up to three hours in most dishes. This means dishes with alcohol still retain some of their alcoholic content, which is important for people who avoid alcohol for health or religious reasons.
The amount of alcohol that remains depends on cooking time, temperature, and cooking method. A flambéed dish might retain about 75% of its original alcohol content, while a stew that simmers for hours will have much less. Understanding this helps you make informed decisions about serving these dishes to children or guests who don’t consume alcohol.
Cooking Vegetables Always Destroys Their Nutrients
This myth is only true with boiling – the trick to retaining most nutrients, especially vitamin C and B vitamins, is to use as little water as possible and cook for minimal time, with steaming and microwaving retaining the most nutrients. When compared to boiling, far less water-soluble nutrients leach out of vegetables during microwave cooking, and cooking vegetables in the microwave gives better retention of texture and color.
Different cooking methods affect nutrients differently. Roasting, grilling, and stir-frying can actually increase the availability of certain nutrients like lycopene in tomatoes. The key is understanding which method works best for which vegetables and nutrients you’re trying to preserve.
Mushrooms Absorb Too Much Water When Washed
Contrary to popular belief, washing the grit and dirt off mushrooms using water is harmless – unless you plan to leave mushrooms in water for an extended period of time, washing them briefly will not cause them to leach out nutrients or be diluted in flavor. This myth likely persists because people worry about mushrooms becoming waterlogged due to their porous structure.
Harvard Professor Brenner suggests you can test this theory yourself by weighing mushrooms before submerging them in water for various lengths of time, then weighing how much water the fungi retains afterwards. Quick rinsing and gentle brushing are perfectly fine for cleaning mushrooms before cooking.
Fresh Eggs Are Easier to Peel When Hard-Boiled
This is completely backwards from reality. To ensure easily peeled hard-boiled eggs, the American Egg Board suggests that you buy and refrigerate them a week to 10 days before cooking, as this brief “breather” allows the eggs time to take in air, which leads to membranes separating from the shell. Fresh eggs are actually the worst choice for hard-boiling because their shells will stick tenaciously to the egg white.
The science behind this involves changes in the egg’s pH level over time. As eggs age, their pH rises, making the shells easier to remove. Professional chefs always plan ahead when they need perfect hard-boiled eggs for dishes like deviled eggs or egg salad.
High Heat Cooks Grains Faster
High heat won’t actually speed the cooking of rice and quinoa – the water needs to simmer so it can permeate the grains, and high heat causes water to quickly evaporate, resulting in undercooked grain that may burn. This is one of those myths that seems logical but completely ignores the science of how grains actually absorb moisture.
Proper grain cooking is about gentle, sustained heat that allows the starches to gelatinize properly. When you blast grains with high heat, you create an uneven cooking environment where the outside burns while the inside remains hard. Patience and proper technique always win over shortcuts when it comes to perfectly cooked grains.
Chicken is Safe When It’s No Longer Pink
Chicken is only safe when cooked to an internal temperature of 165°F, as recommended by the USDA for food safety. Color alone is not a reliable indicator of doneness. Some chicken can remain slightly pink even when fully cooked, while other chicken can appear white but still harbor dangerous bacteria if it hasn’t reached the proper internal temperature.
Professional chefs always use instant-read thermometers rather than relying on visual cues. Factors like the age of the bird, its diet, and even the cooking method can affect the final color. The only way to guarantee food safety is by measuring the internal temperature in the thickest part of the meat, avoiding bone contact which can give false readings.
The persistence of these cooking myths shows how kitchen wisdom gets passed down through generations without scientific scrutiny. Understanding the real science behind cooking not only makes you a better cook but also ensures food safety and better results. Next time someone confidently shares one of these “tips” in your kitchen, you’ll know the truth behind the myth.
