Bowl stack

The secret to amazing cooking is staying organized, and the secret to staying organized is the useless term mise en place, which is French for “organize everything in prep bowls, by step, in a row, next to your stove.”

Are you throwing carrots & celery in at the same time? Great, they both go into one prep bowl. Ditto garlic, ginger, and shallots. Double-ditto all of your sauces. I have never been able to tell the difference between a dish where I add each sauce in sequence and one where I add them all at the same time. I’m sure there is a chemical difference, and I do not care.

You do not need fancy prep bowls. They should be metal, stackable, and bombproof. I have six small and six large Vollrath. There are many brands that are all just as good. Keep a few Pyrex ones on hand for baking.

Most recipes don’t make it clear what goes in at what step, and what order everything needs to go in. Read the recipe. Read it again. Keep track in your head, or write it on a post-it note. Once you’re done with prep, double-check.