While some people know about these little tricks, the majority do not. These are small tips to help you improve the foods we commonly eat – most are recommended by top chef.以下所要介绍的烹饪技巧绝大多数人都不知道这些哦！这些小贴士可以让一些我们熟悉的食材变得更美味，大部分都来源于顶级厨师的推荐哦！
1. Strawberries and Pepper 草莓和胡椒粉
Strawberries (fresh) are usually served with a sprinkling of confectioners sugar, but the addition of very finely ground pepper heightens the flavor.
人们通常会在新鲜草莓上撒上一层糖霜，不过如果再加上一层研磨得非常细的胡椒粉会更美味！
2. Apples and Vanilla 苹果和香草
Apples are very acidic and normally require some sugar in their cooking. Most people add nutmeg or cinnamon to their apple dishes, but vanilla extract adds a deep layer of flavor that most people won’t recognize but will certainly appreciate.
苹果很酸，所以烹饪时通常会加入一些糖。很多人在烹调含苹果的菜肴时会加入肉豆蔻或者肉桂，其实加些香草精能够增加菜肴的层次感。人们不会意识到加入了香草，但绝对会感到好吃！
3. Chili and Chocolate 辣椒和巧克力
Add chocolate to chili. It deepens the meaty flavor of the chili while giving a strong base note to the peppers. This is a trick well known in the South where Chili bake-offs are common.
在辣椒酱里加入一些巧克力。这不仅能增加辣椒粉的基调，还能加深辣椒酱的肉味。这是美国南方出了名的技巧，那里经常举办辣椒酱烹饪大赛。
4. Potatoes and Nutmeg 土豆和肉豆蔻
Add nutmeg – just a little – it adds a depth to the potatoes that people won’t recognize, but will definitely like. This is true of virtually every potato dish.
在土豆中加入一点点肉豆蔻来增加风味。人们不会意识到加入了肉豆蔻，但一定会喜欢这种味道的。这个技巧几乎对所有土豆菜肴都适用！
5. Cooking tomatoes and Foliage 番茄和它的叶子
Throw in a tomato branch – the branch contains all of the flavor that we love in tomatoes – pick a leaf and smell it and you will see what I mean. Simply throw in a small stick of the tomato plant and it will give your cooked tomatoes a much stronger tomato flavor.
番茄的枝桠含有我们所喜爱的番茄的所有味道，摘片番茄叶子闻闻看吧，你会懂得我所说的。所以烹饪番茄时扔一段番茄的枝桠进去吧，这会大大增加番茄味！
6. Meat and Aniseed 肉类和茴香
When stewing meat, throw in a star anise – you can’t taste the aniseed but the flavor adds a deep richness to the meat. This is a trick used in all meat dishes by Heston Blumenthal the owner of the Fat Duck (3 Michelin stars) 。
炖肉时扔一个茴香进去吧！你几乎尝不出茴香的味道，但却能大大地增加肉的口感。这是Heston Blumenthal烹饪肉类时的小绝招！他可是米其林三星餐厅的主人！
7. Chocolate and Coffee 巧克力和咖啡
When baking with chocolate, add a little coffee – it strengthens the chocolate flavor without adding a strong coffee flavor.
当你烘焙巧克力时，试着加一些咖啡吧。这会增加巧克力的风味，当然，你不必担心会有浓烈的咖啡味。
8. Tomatoes and Sugar 番茄和糖
Use sugar, not salt. Tomatoes are already acidic and the addition of salt just increases that acidic flavor. Sugar sweetens and increases the tomato flavor. Tomatoes are fruits after all.
烹饪番茄的时候不要加盐，而是要加糖！番茄本身就有酸酸的味道，加入盐只会增加它的酸味。而糖可以让番茄变甜变好吃。番茄毕竟也是一种水果嘛。
9. Coffee and Salt 咖啡和盐
Add a touch of salt to coffee to heighten the flavor – this is a very common use of salt as it is used in virtually all dishes (including sweet dishes served for pudding). Just a pinch is enough to make a brilliant espresso.
在咖啡中加入一丁点盐能变得更好喝！加些盐来提升美味是一种普遍做法，几乎对所有菜肴都适用（像布丁这样的甜点也不例外）。少量的盐就可以变出一杯完美的意式浓咖啡哦！
10. Carrots and Sugar 胡萝卜和糖
While it may seem strange to add sugar to vegetables, it is a very common method of preparing carrots in France. The technical term for this dish is Vichy Carrots, in which you combine Carrots, Salt, Pepper, sugar, and Vichy water (a sparkling water from the Vichy region) and cook them down until the carrots are glazed. The sugar heightens the flavor of the carrots and the end result is a stunning dish of brilliantly orange vegetables.
虽然把糖加到蔬菜里显得很奇怪，但在烹饪胡萝卜时加入糖却是法国人的习惯做法。这道菜的学名叫维希胡萝卜。烹饪这道菜时，法国人会把胡萝卜、盐、胡椒粉、糖和维希水（法国维希镇出产的苏打水）一起炖煮，直到胡萝卜完全入味。糖的加入衬托出了胡萝卜的美味，令这道橙黄的蔬菜变得绝妙无比。
