• To increase shelf life of coffee powder, store it in an air-tight container and place it in the refrigerator.

• To keep cottage cheese fresh, wrap it in a muslin cloth that has been dipped in lemon water.For a sweet and spicy flavour, place a small piece of star anise in the cavity of the chicken or duck before roasting or braising.

• You can use the leftover royal icing to pipe clusters and stars. Put them on a sheet of waxed paper to dry and then store them for use when required.

• When putting meat joint in the fridge cover it with foil to prevent it from drying.

• Do not waste egg whites if you have recipes which call for yolks only. They freeze very well and can be stored in batches of 3 or 4 egg whites at a time. In fact when thawed, frozen egg whites make much better foam.

• If leaving white sauce to stand for an hour or two, rub the surface of the sauce with a lump of butter so that it melts to form a thin coating.

• Fresh coconut milk turns rancid fairly quickly, to prevent this, add a pinch of salt to the coconut milk to help preserve for a few hours.

• Butter is best kept in the refrigerator, but as it easily absorbs other flavours, it should be well wrapped and kept away from strong.

• Lemon halves shrivel in the fridge when unused. Hence freeze them in polyethylene bags so that they are handy for making cold drinks whenever the need arises.