And how to fix them.
Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed
Using a serrated knife to only cut bread.
Besides bread, a serrated knife is really useful for cutting through soft foods like tomatoes because it'll slice cleanly without crushing them down. To do so: Grip the blade with your thumb and index finger, palming the handle — and bear claw the ingredients to keep them in place. Get more tips from the NYT Cooking guide to Basic Knife Skills.
Above: Practice your chopping with a veggie heavy recipe like these oil-free rainbow roasted vegetables. Check out the recipe on the Simple Vegan Blog.
Spiralizing zoodles — but tossing out half the zucchini because you're afraid to get your fingers near the blade.
The simple solution to not wasting any food, and keeping your fingers in tact? A fork. If you stick a fork into the end of the vegetable, you can twist the fork and spiralize the whole thing without getting your fingers close to the blade. Alternatively, if you don't want to deal with a hand-held spiralizer, just use a peeler for quick, ribbon-like veggie strands.
Above: Make this vegan sweet potato spaghetti from Cotter Crunch, then add some protein with these vegan meatballs.
Emily Shwake / cottercrunch.com
Using a Crock Pot to cook dairy, pasta, small veggies, or cooked beans for several hours.
Dairy curdles, pasta overcooks, vegetables shrivel, and beans turn to mush when cooked for too long. Add them to the slow cooker at the end of the recipe — just long enough to cook them through. For more tips, check out 17 Need-To-Know Hacks If You Own A Slow Cooker.
Above: Get the recipe for this veggie-packed pork lo mein on Damn Delicious.
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