Have you ever baked a pie shell too long, turning it nearly black, where it tastes unmistakably burnt? Or over-toasted nuts til they're crispy and charred? It happens to the best of us, and unfortunately that burnt flavor permeates like no other. The food is really best tossed in the waste bin.
When I worked in the restaurant industry, however, there was little room for error. My chefs wanted to keep our costs down as low as possible, so making mistakes (and then throwing them away!) wasn't an option. As a young pastry cook working in a busy, busy restaurant, I was often tasked with multiple jobs at once—at any given time I could be keeping an eye on those roasting nuts, baking a batch of cookies, whipping egg whites to make soufflé, heating up an order of cake, and plating up a dessert or two.
All that multitasking meant every once in awhile—just occasionally—something went astray. And instead of facing the wrath of an angry chef who might discover my mistake in the garbage, I learned, as most young cooks do, how to save nearly ruined foods.
The solution for those just-about-burnt nuts: the freezer. When something like nuts, tart shells, coconut, or breadcrumbs were roasting in the oven and went just a bit too far—they reached that deep, dark color and nutty smell that comes right before burning—we immediately plunged them into the freezer to instantly stop the cooking process. This quick change in temperature instantly halts the cooking process, stopping burning in its tracks.
You can easily use this industry hack at home. The next time you bake or roast something a bit too far—when it's almost burnt—try it out. The key is getting the food off its very hot cooking tray onto a cool one, and then getting it into the freezer as soon as possible.
The freezer trick works with anything toasted, including all nuts, coconut, breadcrumbs, tart shells, blind baked pie shells, cookies, bread for toast, and other pasty and baked goods. Keep the item in the freezer until cooled completely, then continue, totally burn free.
