1. Eggs aren’t dairy.

Yes, they're in the dairy section at the grocery store, but they're not dairy, people. Dairy comes from milk. Eggs do not.

2. Nutrition labels' ingredient lists are in order.

Wait, what? When you grab that box off the shelf, check out the ingredients list. Whatever is listed first means that ingredient is used the most. If your granola bar has sugar listed before granola, put it back on the shelf. That bag of microwave popcorn with salt listed first? Pass.

3. Doughnut holes are actually just cut-out centers of doughnuts.

Some of us just figured this out, okay?! We know they're literally called doughnut holes, but it's not common sense!

Hand-made doughnuts are just big balls of dough until the middles are cut out. The doughnut becomes a ring and the middle part becomes... doughnut holes. Doughnuts at large chains like Dunkin' Donuts and Krispy Kreme use machinery that makes the doughnut and doughnut holes separately.

4. Butter is not a carb.

Mean Girls brought this up years ago, but it's still a question on people's minds. The answer was and always will be: NO. It's a fat.

5. The difference between extra virgin olive oil and olive oil is important.

Extra virgin olive oil is made from pure olives that have been ground into a paste and then squeezed to get the oil out of them. The reject oil, that isn't as fine or pure as it should be, is re-purposed as just olive oil. Regular OO will do just fine in all your cooking needs. Save EVOO for salads, marinades and other uncooked things.

6. When cooking on a stove, open the lid away from your face.

When you're boiling pasta water or steaming vegetables, save yourself from the heatwave of steam and open the lid away from your face. No one wants to burn their eyebrows off while making mac and cheese.

7. Cut produce flat side down.

Start by cutting your produce in half and then place the FLAT side on the cutting board. This will ensure that your produce won't slide while you're cutting it and ultimately prevent bad accidents.

8. Don’t put a grease fire out with water.

THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT.

Imagine: You've somehow started a grease fire on your stove. You panic and think "water puts out fire" and throw some on it. To your surprise, the fire gets bigger. That's because the water and the grease do something science-y (remember, oil floats on water!) and it goes POOF. Instead, contain the fire by cutting off the oxygen. Cover it!

Also, if the cheese that dripped off your pizza and has been sitting on the bottom of your oven for weeks finally caught on fire... close the oven! The fire should go out on its own if cut off from oxygen.

9. Don't put metal in the microwave.

This one is kind of "duh," but just to be clear... please don't put aluminum foil, metal cups or bowls in the microwave. Trust us on this one.

10. The handle of a hot pan should be turned inwards.

Come on! If you're cooking something on the hot stove and you leave the handle out into the open walking space for anyone to walk into, why? Turn that handle inwards.

11. Don’t cut meat on a wooden cutting board.

Please no. Wooden cutting boards have a million nooks and crannies that bacteria from raw meat can get trapped in. Nobody wants bacteria growing in their cutting board.

12. Never bake with salted butter.

Using unsalted butter allows you to use the exact amount of salt needed in a recipe. No one wants a salty cake.

13. ALWAYS salt pasta water.

For the love of God... please salt your pasta water. And by "salt" we mean really salted. One pound of pasta should have one to two tablespoons of salt in the boiling water. And always put the salt in before the pasta!

14. Don’t put wood in the dishwasher.

Wooden cutting boards, spoons and other wooden kitchen tools should be very lightly rinsed. Wash them immediately and lightly with soapy water, but never soak.

15. The difference between a bulb and clove of garlic.

^^^^^That is a bulb.^^^^^

^^^^^Those are cloves.^^^^^

The cloves are the pieces IN the bulb. Don't make the mistake of putting three bulbs of garlic in your pasta sauce instead of three cloves.

16. A vinaigrette is always acid and oil.

Balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Apple cider vinegar and avocado oil. Rice wine vinegar and sesame oil. Get the picture?

In its simplest form, vinaigrette consists of oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. More elaborate variations can include spices, herbs, shallots, onions, mustard, etc.

17. There are different kinds of salt.

Yes. There are tons of different salts, but the main ones you should know are table salt (or NaCl for all you science geeks), kosher salt, sea salt and Himalayan pink salt.  

- Most table salt is labelled "iodized" which just means the salt has been mixed with a tiny amount of the mineral iodine to help prevent iodine - deficiency. This should be your go-to cooking salt.

- Kosher salt is not always kosher and doesn't have to be used in kosher cooking.

- Sea salt comes from sea water and is thicker and chunkier than table salt.

- Himalayan salt (pink salt) is labelled as the "purest" salt in the world, coming from the Himalayan Mountains in Pakistan. This salt is perfect for adding flavor to cooked foods and as a garnish.

18. Honey never goes bad.

As long as you keep your honey sealed, you can enjoy it until the end of time.

19. Hate cilantro? It’s in your DNA.

Apparently, the fact that you either love or hate cilantro is in your genes!

20. Water can help you test an egg's freshness.  

The fresher the egg, the faster it will fall to the bottom of a bowl of cold water. Any eggs that float should be discarded. Eggs should last up to 5 weeks after you bring them home from the store.

21. Water won’t help if your mouth is spicy.

Don't grab the water when you've had a bite of something a bit too spicy. The water will just swish the spice around your mouth. Stick to dairy and, if you're of age, hard liquor (not beer).

22. Baby carrots aren't really baby carrots.

They're just normal carrots that have been shaved down into the shape of baby carrots.

23. Rub your hands on stainless steel to get rid of garlic or onion smells.

Have you been cutting onions/garlic? We can smell. Soap and water won't do the trick, but rubbing your fingers on stainless steel (a spoon, the bottom of your sink, a bowl, etc.) under cold-running-water will take the smell out!

24. Why do people swirl wine?

#1: It makes you feel fancy. #2: Swirling wine brings oxygen into the wine and brings out the aroma of the wine.

25. Prunes are just dried plums.

And raisins are just dried grapes. The world is a crazy place.

Related Links:

Instant Pot Do's and Don'ts

8 Recipes Every Real Live Grown-Up Should Master

30-Minute Dinner Recipes