What Do I Do If . . . ?

posted August 19, 2006
by Lauren Braun Costello, The Competent Cook

Have you ever had an accident in the kitchen? Of course you have. You’re only human. We all have been there. There are so many things that can happen, whether they are your fault or not. Lids from spice bottles can come loose. An ingredient can spill right before it gets to the pot and you have no time to replace it. Here are some easy answers to some very common problems.

Too Much Salt in the Soup
This is probably one of the most frustrating accidents in the kitchen. Oversalted anything is so unappetizing. Solving the problem is easier than you think. The obvious answer would be to dilute the sauce or soup with more liquid. Although this may counterbalance the saltiness, it may also weaken all the other flavors and affect the texture and thickness. A trick that really works is to add a peeled potato in a few thick slices to the pot. Let the potato simmer in the liquid until it becomes translucent. The potato should absorb most of the salt. Just be sure to throw it away before service.

Usually such an accident occurs because the cook has decided to shake the salt container directly over the vessel. The lid pops off, the spout opens too widely, or the speed of the released salt is too quick to control. For this reason alone, it is far better to add salt in pinches – big or small – from a bowl filled with salt. This way you will always have control. You can always add more seasoning, but correcting something that has been overseasoned is a far more difficult task.

Thin Sauces that Need Thickening
If you make a sauce that is just too thin, ask yourself one question: have I been truly patient? If you really did let the sauce reduce for the correct amount of time and to the proper volume, then you should ask yourself one more question: what do I have on hand to solve the problem? There are several thickening agents that will help to add depth to a sauce. If you have cornstarch or arrowroot on hand, combine an equal part with warm water, then add it to the sauce. Stir slowly over low heat. Your sauce will thicken within seconds without any lumps.

If flour is all you have in the cupboard, add an equal part to melted butter in a clean pot and cook for one minute to make a roux. Then pour the thin sauce over the roux and stir constantly until thickened. Sometimes mounting a sauce with just a pat of butter right before service adds a velvety sheen, just slightly thickening an otherwise thin sauce.

Too Much Spice Is Not So Nice
When something is so hot and spicy that all I taste is the heat, I am usually turned off. I like spice, but only as a background element, not a mask of the other flavors. If you make something that you think is just too spicy, add honey. Sweet counterbalances heat. If you are making a dish with chipotles, for example, and it’s just a bit too hot for your taste, add some honey, a bit at a time, until the heat balance is where you want it to be. This trick works well with red pepper flakes, cayenne and hot paprika. A little bit of honey goes a very long way.

I Ran Out of This and That
I urge everyone to read a recipe at least once in its entirety before beginning the preparation and cooking process to avoid the problem of lack of ingredients. Nevertheless, everyone at one time or another has thought they had enough of an ingredient only to realize at a critical moment that they do not have what they need. Here are a few helpful substitutions to get you through those rough spots:

1 tsp baking powder = ¼ tsp baking soda + 1/2 cup buttermilk or ½ tsp cream of tartar
1 cup buttermilk = 2/3 cup plain yogurt + 1/3 cup sweet milk
1 tbsp cornstarch = 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 cup cream = ½ cup butter + ¾ cup whole milk
1 cup honey = 1 ¼ cups sugar + ¼ cup water
1 cup molasses = 1 cup of honey
1 cup sour cream = 1 cup of yogurt
1 cup brown sugar = ¾ cup of granulated sugar + ¼ cup molasses
1 cup granulated sugar = ¾ cup honey or ½ cup corn syrup
1 cup powdered sugar = 1 cup granulated sugar + 1/8 tsp cornstarch (blended in food processor)

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Visitor Comments

RE: too sour comment by georgia at 2006-08-22 20:30:32
what should you do if you make something too sour? what would balance out the acidity?

RE: Response to "too sour" comment by Chef Lauren at 2006-08-24 00:55:30
When there is too much acid, usually diluting the product or sweetening will help, just like with too much heat. Think of it like the PH balance scale in school; to counteract the acid you need a base.

RE: Too Sweet comment by Lori at 2006-08-31 18:08:39
I made some BBQ, but accidentally doubled the brown sugar. How can I make it less sweet? Thanks

RE: Response to "Too Sweet" comment by Chef Lauren Braun Costello at 2006-09-03 11:30:21
Just like with something too spicy, you want to counterbalance. So, in the case of BBQ that is too sweet, you need to add some acid (vinegar would be ideal) and perhaps some more spice (cumin, cayenne, etc.). If you are referring to the meat itself, this is the very best way, If you are referring to a sauce, then you could just dilute the sweetnes by simply maing more of it with less sugar to even it out.

RE: How to made it taste more home made? comment by Spagetti Sauce too Tangy! at 2006-10-03 23:09:12
I have Spagetti Sauce from the can but it is just too, too Tangy! what can I put in it to make it taste more home made?

RE: Response to "Spaghetti Sauce Too Tangy" comment by Chef Lauren Braun Costello at 2006-10-06 18:37:19
This is interesting, because most basic marinara sauces from the jar are invariably perceived as too sweet (sugar is added to bring out what should be the natural sweetness in tomatoes). Also, the issue of something beeing too tangy is a different consideration from making it appear more homemade in flavor. And every sauce is different, but nevertheless I would recommend adding some chopped fresh herbs, such a s basil and oregano. Roasting some garlic in a bit of olive will add a mellow, sweet depth of flavor to the sauce.

RE: molasses comment by jinxharley at 2006-10-19 09:57:26
I ran out of brown sugar making cookies. So I substituted the regular sugar and molasses instead. I haven't baked the cookies yet, but i can smell the strong molasses smell . Is there any way to mask that strong taste and smell of the molases?

RE: Response to Molasses comment by Chef Lauren Braun Costello at 2006-10-21 17:24:37
I would bake the cookies first before judging the taste. As for the smell, it probably will just be stronger. Processed brown sugar definitely does not have the strong odor of straight molasses. A substitution is after all just that - a workable solution but not exactly the same.

RE: spagetti sauce too sweet comment by mbs at 2007-09-03 20:32:25
HELP! I made homemade spagettin sauce and made it too sweet. what can I do????

RE: Too sweet spaggetti sauce comment by Matthew at 2007-10-07 17:34:05
Dilute it. add something starchy that you can remove later.

RE: cake baking comment by jady at 2007-11-15 10:44:47
if cake is not sweet, what should i do

RE: added seasoning twice comment by double seasoned at 2007-11-22 00:36:00
What do I do if the seasonings were accidently added twice to a shepards pie type dish. Tastes very salty, and seasony.

RE: too sweet, sweet potato casserole comment by Laura at 2007-12-24 12:39:28
I added way to much butter, what to do?

RE: Baking Soda. comment by Fran at 2008-01-06 10:37:57
Added way to much banking soda to my spagetti sauce. What do I use to tone it down.

RE: baking soda comment by hoi yah at 2008-07-09 23:24:08
....never tried baking soda in spaghetti sauce.What is the purpose of this?

RE: too much baking soda in sauce comment by nancy at 2008-09-07 16:40:36
i did the same thing, what do i do to tone it down? Help!!!

RE: too much cinnamon comment by clara at 2008-09-10 13:45:38
i put too much cinnamon in a pasta sauce what do i do?

RE: too much salt in cookies comment by paysons mom at 2008-09-29 16:57:00
My son and I are making cookies and he misread my handwriting and put in 3 tsp. of salt instead of 1 tsp. What can we do now?

RE: comment by Food emergency at 2008-12-24 12:34:28
We tried a new recipe for a dinner party last night and right before guests started to arrive we realized the meal was unedible! In hindsight, it was a mistake to try something new in this instance but what do you recommend as a quick "go-to" meal, should you be in need of serving something on the fly?

RE: Cinnamon Question comment by tjw3471 at 2009-01-23 21:56:09
What's the answer to the "too much cinnamon" question? I did the same thing and don't know how to counterbalance it. Thanks.

RE: what to do when too much cinnamon was added to sauce comment by Ree at 2009-02-04 11:31:15
please respond to the too much cinnamon questions

RE: Cinnamon comment by CDKitchen at 2009-02-05 09:20:10
Really the only thing you can do with too much cinnamon is to add more of the other ingredients. For the example of the pasta sauce, add more tomato sauce or tomatoes, and some of the other herbs or spices called for (other than cinnamon of course!). You'll need to experiment so start slowly adding more of the most predominant flavor first. The best way to remedy it, of course, is to make another batch without any cinnamon and combine the two, but that isn't always an option for the home cook.

RE: added too much sugar comment by Mary at 2009-03-10 15:34:54
was helpful

RE: too much cinnamon comment by Diana at 2009-03-26 02:36:25
Thanks for the advice...I wish there was a quick fix instead of making another batch! Still trying to salvage dinner...ha ha!

RE: Runny Quiche comment by Gianna at 2009-06-11 22:22:12
Im making a quiche, and it baked for the full time twice now, but it is still liquidy on top! What do I do????

RE: Too tangy BBQ Sauce comment by Dawn at 2009-07-16 11:04:11
What can I add to BBQ Sauce that is just too tangy? I need to tame it down some...

RE: too much oregano comment by Vicki at 2009-07-25 11:45:19
I am making Stifado and put far too much oregano in i used dried oregano. What can i do to reverse this

RE: Thank you, Chef Costello! comment by Karen in GA at 2009-10-13 15:21:36
Thank you so much for your column. I wrote several of your notes in my computer cookbook. I needed the 'too much cinnamon' dilemma answered today. Thank you for saving my Apple Butter. ;)

RE: too much clove comment by Mykul at 2009-10-28 18:13:02
how do i tone down the taste of cloves, i added to much spice on accident

RE: too much butter comment by AandJ at 2009-11-08 15:09:27
What do i do if i put to much butter in the cookies i was making?

RE: Too much oregano comment by Barb at 2009-11-12 15:06:22
I'm making minestrone soup and instead of 1 teaspoon I added a tablespoon of oregano. What can I do to tone it down?

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author bio

Lauren Braun Costello

Occupation: Chef
Specialty: Catering, Food Stylist, Cooking Instructor
Education: Colgate University, French Culinary Institute
Lives: New York City
Weekly Column: The Competent Cook
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