Ten tips that actually get used.

Season in thin layers while you cook, then taste at the end. One big dump of salt at the finish line tastes like an apology. Layers taste like cooking.

Food hitting a cold pan sticks and steams. Let the pan get properly hot, then add the oil, then the food. That sizzle on contact is the sound of it working.

Dull blades slip off tomatoes and into thumbs. Sharp ones go where you point them. Sharpen monthly, hone weekly, respect always.

Onions take ten patient minutes. Garlic takes thirty seconds. Add it late, after the onions are done, or it turns bitter and the whole dish tastes of regret.

Wet food steams, dry food browns. Pat meat and vegetables down with a paper towel before they hit the pan or the grill, and that water won't stand between you and a proper crust. This is half of what makes tandoori chicken char instead of just cook.

Give everything room. A crowded pan traps steam and turns sear into stew. Two quick batches always beat one soggy one.

Flavour lives in fat. Thirty seconds of whole spices sizzling in oil pulls out more taste than ten minutes of boiling. That is the entire science of tadka.

Flat dish? It probably needs acid, not salt. A squeeze of lemon, a splash of vinegar or a little tamarind at the end wakes everything up.

Wipe the board, drop tools in the sink, bin the peels while things simmer. Future you, standing in a clean kitchen after dinner, will be genuinely moved.

The five second insurance policy. Every professional kitchen does it and most home kitchens skip it. One spoonful before plating catches almost every mistake.