Tips to make following recipes and cooking that little bit easier!

In our house I'm the one that cooks the meals so I've had to get savvy in order to save time. I  do love cooking, but sometimes it can get a little too tedious which has meant I've wanted to find some short cuts. Here are a few of my tips to spend less time in the kitchen and more time enjoying your food.
Four tips to spend less time in the kitchen!

1. Get everything prepared and ready before you begin. Basically pretend you are on a cooking show. Get lots of little bowls and plates out so that you can prepare all your ingredients ready to throw into your recipe. This means you won't get half way through your recipe and realise you've forgotten something!

2. Get your measuring spoons out ready next to your spices. Line up your spices behind the spoon relating to how much you need. It makes it much easier than having to peer at your recipe each time you pick up a spice then having to find the right spoon!

3. Clean up as you go. Get the sink full of soapy water ready to wash dishes as you go. As well as this make sure to chuck packets and extra bits of food in the bin so you have less to clean up at the end. It makes sense really as you will have time to chill whilst your food is cooking away because all the clean up will be done.

4. Take the easy way out. Okay who else cries when they cut onions, have fingers smelling of garlic for days after touching one and huge vegetables get the better of their strength? Well I know I can answer ME to all those! I've found supermarket products that make my life so much easier. For years I've been using frozen onion, but only now have I discovered other kitchen hacks. You can buy garlic and chillies already chopped from Very Lazy which is so much quicker and easier than cutting it yourself! Then just recently I found butternut squash cut and frozen! My life was made as I always struggle to cut them and then having to scrape out their seeds.

Hopefully, I've made your life a little bit easier with my tips? Some you probably already know and do, but oh well! It's nice to spell it out sometimes!

Do you have any good tips for me?