12 Guy Fieri's Cooking Tips For Home Chefs

When it comes to cooking, we can't get enough expert advice, especially from celebrity chefs — and they don't come much bigger than Emmy award-winning chef Guy Fieri. Alongside his popular television shows, Fieri's restaurant business stretches across the globe, and he has still found time to forge partnerships with iconic brands such as Litehouse. What the man doesn't know about making great-tasting food could probably fit on a postage stamp and still leave plenty of empty space.

Well that's as it should be, because it's his job, right? For everyone else, trying to make magic at mealtimes can be an uphill struggle. Luckily for us, Fieri has a down-to-earth solution for every problem. Forget stressing out over the stovetop: From the single ingredient that will elevate your leftovers to new heights (even leftover watermelon rinds deserve some innovative uses), to the meat combination that makes mouth-watering burgers every time ... fresh, simple, and quality, here's the best of Guy Fieri's cooking tips for home chefs.

Most carnivores probably agree that the beef steak belongs in the highest tier of foods, but they might be surprised at how often cooking a simple minute steak goes wrong. Many home cooks and professional chefs sear their meat in a hot pan on the stovetop first, to brown the fat and obtain a good color ... before popping it in the oven to finish the cooking process. According Guy Fieri, however, we're all doing it the wrong way.

He prefers the reverse-sear method, telling People magazine: "Start in a low heated oven and slow-roast to your desired doneness, then finish in a hot cast-iron skillet. It gives you better internal temperature control and produces an awesome brown crust." Turns out there's some pretty complex science behind Fieri's method, and it's all to do with the Maillard reaction.

The Maillard reaction covers the changes in flavor and aroma in ingredients, from coffee beans to spice-rubbed steak, after coming into contact with heat — making them taste and smell irresistible. For Fieri, putting the steak in the oven first before getting that all-important crust from a hot skillet makes it less likely to be overcooked. If you like your steak rare, roast for 20 to 25 minutes at 120 degrees Fahrenheit. Medium needs 25 to 30 minutes at 140 degrees Fahrenheit, while for medium-to-well done, give it 35 to 40 minutes at 160 degrees Fahrenheit. 

ICYMI: The mayor of Flavortown is a huge fan of cooking in the great outdoors, and many of the recipes featured in his book "Guy on Fire" were rustled up during his camping trips. Guy Fieri wants everyone else to have the best experience, which is why there's a comprehensive list of recommended tools and equipment at the start of the book.

One of his priorities is investing in a good burner, preferably one with high British thermal units (BTU), because they will heat the grill faster and at a higher temperature. Fieri has no time for the smaller versions, dismissing them as, "good for an omelet station at the Ritz Carlton." The chef also recommends having a grill with more than one setting to create a variety of sizzling dishes and, to achieve maximum flavor, his mother of all grilling hacks is to use charcoal.

Fieri rules out using lighter fluid to ignite the coals, saying it is unsafe and leaves an aftertaste. Instead, he recommends using a chimney — even a coffee can will do — to get those coals good and hot. He also urges readers to bring rubber barbecue gloves (rather than cloth ones) because even in the wild hygiene should be a thing, and Fieri adds: "the use of gloves does not eliminate the requirement to wash your hands — they're not 'magic gloves'."

Is there anything better than a melt-in-the-mouth piece of prime rib on the end of your fork, waiting to be devoured? How about a delicious bite of dry-aged prime rib? The first step toward enjoying this amazing cut of meat begins long before you start to cook, according to Guy Fieri. And that's why a great butcher is a necessity. Fieri calls his butcher a couple of weeks before he plans to cook a prime rib, and asks them to dry age it for him. If you're wondering what that means, the process of dry aging meat, including prime rib, is a way to tenderize it by leaving it in a refrigerator for between 10 and 20 days.

Many cooks use a rub on their prime rib before refrigeration to create a tasty crust when cooking. Fieri recommends adding good black pepper and whatever type of salt you love. After the dry seasoning is on the meat, he urges you to give it as much time as you can afford. But he insists that quality ingredients and finding an excellent butcher are two components that will definitely elevate your cooking game. 

When it comes to superfoods, the egg is king of the hill. Eggs come in different sizes — they can be fried, poached, baked, soft or hard-boiled ... and eggs taste amazing. A single egg contains omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants and 13 essential vitamins and minerals. But they're not just a nutritional powerhouse for Guy Fieri: They are also the perfect way to gussy up a wide range of leftovers.

While showing actor Matthew McConaughey how to whip up an omelet with just two eggs and a splash of milk, the Hollywood star says, "Any leftovers you've got from last night's dinner or yesterday's lunch or whatever that's still fresh, you can put them in eggs, scrambled or an omelet." Fieri agrees and says it would work perfectly.

Eggs aren't the only ingredient that can absorb leftovers, according to the Fieri. Big occasions like Thanksgiving and Christmas require planning, not just for the showpiece meals themselves, but also to ensure every scrap of leftover food doesn't go to waste. He recommends stocking your cupboards and pantry with ingredients that can be combined with leftovers to create delicious new meals, like soups or made into flavorful dishes like crab cakes. 

It might come as a surprise but Guy Fieri and the Barefoot Contessa herself, Ina Garten, have a joining line: They both believe in practice making perfect when it comes to throwing the best dinner parties or cooking for family and friends.

He advises home cooks to try out a couple of their planned recipes ahead of the big day — even if it shakes up the usual round of weekly evening mealtimes. Fieri recommended brining and roasting a full turkey to understand how long the whole process will take, enabling people to either avoid or learn from any pitfalls. The star added that said people didn't necessarily need to cook a full Thanksgiving or Christmas menu, but doing a dry run on some dishes would make the real deal less stressful.

For Fieri, preparation is everything. He suggests getting as many jobs as possible done the day before, and choosing foods that either needed a quick cook or meals that could be thrown in a crockpot or smoker and left to do their thing. Finally, don't forget fresh ice. "You do not want to take the ice out of the cooler that is around the cans because those cans have had things on them. They may look clean, but that ice is not to be consumed that way," he explained to Parade.

If you're a home chef — and you have kids — make a habit to cook with them. While Guy Fieri has achieved incredible success as a restaurant owner, best-selling author, and Emmy Award winning TV presenter ... it all pales by comparison when it comes to his family. He has such passion for teaching children to cook, a theme he explores in his book "Guy Fieri Family Food."

Fieri said he learned to cook as a child and his father wrote the foreword to the book, though there's still some dispute about whether the youngster learned to cook just to get out of doing the dishes! However, the main inspiration for "Guy Fieri Family Food" was his own kids, and the bonding opportunity it offered while making sure his eldest son Hunter had enough recipes to eat well at college.

"It's such a life skill," he told presenter Kennedy on Fox Business. "It's one of these things that when you give kids this education about food, that education could be a variety of things, it can be eating good food, making good food, being aware of good food, then they get to make better choices as young adults and as adults."

TV chefs become famous by whipping up delicious recipes using a wide range of ingredients, sometimes taken from heavily stocked pantries — but Guy Fieri knows not everyone has that luxury. One of his go-to methods for creating food on a budget is investing in seasonal ingredients that can be cooked in a variety of ways, and whose leftovers are just as flavorsome and flexible.

One of Fieri's favorites is Brussels sprouts. He told CNBC that he buys in three times the amount that he needs and that Brussels sprouts are vegetables that kept on giving after they had been roasted off. As well as providing tasty greens for an evening meal, he could also use them the next day in a veggie burrito or even a pasta dish the day after.

Whole chicken is another excellent ingredient Fieri cited for multiple low-cost meals — from the meat itself to using the bones to create a stock for use in many other dishes. Likewise pork butt — which provides meat for pulled pork burgers and enchiladas — can be turned into sugo tomato sauce with the leftovers. "These are fundamental, 101 culinary pieces but there's a lot out there," he said in the CNBC video. 

One of the greatest things about home cooking is having the freedom to mix things up. Substituting ingredients in a tried-and-tested recipe can lead to happy surprises — but if you really want to ramp up the flavor, then Fieri has the solution: Use fresh ingredients wherever possible.

In his book "Guy Fieri Food," he explained that fresh ingredients were the priority at his former restaurant Johnny Garlic's, with dry goods shelf space given to lemon juice, sugar, apricot preserves, pasta, and tomato sauce. Everything else that was served was made from scratch, a culinary standard that any outlet featured in his TV show "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" was measured against.

As well as helping food taste better and potentially make meals healthier, fresh ingredients are great for breathing new life into well-worn recipes. He told Business Insider: "My mom used to make the best granola when I was a kid, and I just look for the texture. I like granola made with honey, and I like there to be nuts in it, but just a little bit of yogurt, just to kind of add a little moisture and kind of smooth it out a bit, and then some fresh berries."

Homemade burgers always seem like a good idea: A juicy, perfectly cooked beef patty nestled between sharp cheddar, fresh tomato, lettuce, and pickles, all wrapped in a soft, delicious bun. If your attempts to grill the perfect burger end up in a crumbled mess of ground beef, don't worry. Fieri's got your back.

It all starts with the meat: He recommends a blend of 80% lean beef with 20% regular beef, which you season with salt and pepper before shaping into a tight ball, just a little smaller than a baseball. For his Straight Up patty burger, he seasons the ball as he puts it on the hot skillet, then smashes it, flips it and moves it to another part of the skillet, and seasons again. A medium-rare burger should hit 140 degrees Fahrenheit in the middle, but you can cook the ½-inch thick burger to your taste.

Add a slice of American cheese, before Fieri's next tip: splashing chicken stock or water around the patty before covering it with a lid allows the cheese to melt without overcooking the meat. Slide the burger onto a pre-toasted brioche bun, top with tomatoes, some tasty, sliced pickles and super-thinly sliced onion for an acidic kick, as well as shredded iceberg lettuce, before chowing down.

It doesn't take a Costco stan to know that buying in bulk can be a great way to save money — and many people have one or more 10-pound cans (also known as #10 cans) in their store cupboards. These amazing, reusable tins can hold cups and cups of foods, from rice and freeze-dried beef to salt and strawberries.

For Guy Fieri, they're also the perfect receptacle for one of his tastiest recipes: trash can nachos. He showed Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest on "Live Kelly and Ryan" how to make them, first by getting Ryan to fill a tray with evenly spread out nachos chips. The presenters then sprinkled grated cheddar, pureed beans, melted cheese, smoked brisket and a drizzle of Fieri's barbecue sauce on top, before putting it in the oven.

"It wouldn't be too pretty to serve this way, so I'm going to show you how we're really going to make it beautiful," he said, before the nachos were whipped from the oven and poured into a bottomless metal jug. Ripa and Seacrest added more cheese, Mexican dip pico de gallo, jalapeños, cilantro, pickled onions, soured cream, and a little lime zest. Then, the jug was slowly lifted to unveil tumbling layers of chips, cheese, meat, and salad. How's that for the best thing to ever come out of a #10 can?

A lot of the fun in cooking comes from the actual work itself: the peeling, chopping, dicing, and shredding. But did you know that 128,000 people are hospitalized every year because of foodborne illnesses, often caused by cross contamination? Guy Fieri and Matthew McConaughey covered this important issue in a just keep livin' Foundation video.

Raw proteins, such as chicken, beef, or shellfish, can contain harmful bacteria like Salmonella, E. coli, Listeria monocytogenes, and Campylobacter, informs Healthline. Although they are most often destroyed in the cooking process, they can still cause havoc at the food preparation stage. For Fieri, the easiest way to avoid cross contamination is to use two chopping boards: one strictly for meats and the other for everything else.

"If that raw chicken touches the same area that that the cheese is and we eat that cheese raw, then we have a cross contamination. You might as well eat the piece of raw chicken. Trying to keep the raw foods away from foods that are going to be eaten immediately is a good idea," Fieri told McConaughey. He also reminded viewers to wash their hands after handling raw protein, even if it had been in a brine, and any marinades for raw meats should not be kept for later use.

It's a common misconception that eating healthily means giving up the one thing we love the most about food: how it tastes. Matthew McConaughey raises the issue when he helps Guy Fieri put together a delicious dinner of pork chops with apples and green beans. As the mayor of Flavortown demonstrates, using a brine to infuse the meat guarantees it will taste great and still be good for us.

Brines are most commonly used for Thanksgiving turkeys, but they're perfect for almost every cut of meat. A basic brine is composed of salt and water and, when meat or poultry is immersed in a bowl or brine bag for several hours, they absorb the liquid, making for juicier, more tender meat. You can play around by adding other ingredients such as bay leaves, peppers, and fresh or dried herbs like rosemary and thyme, to enhance the meat's flavor profile in endless different ways.

In their video for the just keep livin' Foundation, McConaughey crushes garlic for Fieri's brine, which also includes 1 tablespoon of salt and sugar, 1 teaspoon of peppercorns, and water. "We're going to submerge the pork into this liquid and change the liquids that are in the pork with this seasoned liquid," Fieri said. explaining the concept of osmosis for cooking.