4 Cooking Shortcuts That Aren’t Worth The Time They Save–and 2 That Are

Some things are worth the extra effort.

Always make your own vodka sauce. Fusilli alla vodka, made and photographed by the author.

I have a close friend whose life motto (thanks to her awesome dad) is an acronym: DCE. Diligent consistent effort. It’s a beautifully simple mantra that reminds us to commit to putting in the work, no matter what we’re doing, because work is noble, and a job well done is a day well spent. When I’m slogging through a long week, or lamenting that I have to clean the shower *even though it is constantly being doused in soap and water and therefore should simply never need cleaning,* I’ll channel the power of DCE.

Cooking is something I enjoy, so I don’t usually have to grind my way through it. But through lots of trial and error, I’ve learned where I can cut corners without any loss in quality, and where it pays off to put in a little more DCE to reap more delicious rewards.

Here are four cooking shortcuts that I don’t recommend, and two that I do.

THE HILL I WILL DIE ON IS MADE OF CHEDDAR: PRE-SHREDDED CHEESE

Grilled cheese and tomato sandwich, made and photographed by the author.