Even Ina Garten Has To Do This Crucial Step Every Time She Uses The Oven

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Anyone who watches "Barefoot Contessa" on Food Network knows that when host Ina Garten pulls something out of the oven, it is cooked to perfection — whether that be the roasted chicken dish she's known for, a luxurious chocolate cake, or her simple beef short ribs. Of course, the magic of television ensures these results, but Garten admits that, if it weren't for one crucial step, she'd often forget when to retrieve her dishes from the heat of the oven. Every time she places a tray or pan to bake, she sets a timer.

The author and television host has been vocal about how she advises home cooks to follow recipes to a T. In fact, she even follows her own recipes exactly, and that includes how much time a dish is supposed to be in the oven. Anyone who cooks knows how easy it is to put something in to bake, get distracted by the next kitchen task, and simply forget about the now out-of-sight pan. This is precisely why Garten sets timers — to alert her when a dish is done or is at least ready to be checked. She has multiple timers in her arsenal, preferring the Lux Minute Minder brand. It's an old-school mechanical timer that you spin to set your preferred minutes, and it emits a long ring when the time is up.

Growing up, my mom had a manual timer very similar to Ina Garten's. Because I often helped her in the kitchen, I learned to use it, too (which wasn't rocket science). When chocolate chip cookies went in the oven, I set the timer to 12 minutes. When rice was simmering, it was 15 minutes. Dried spaghetti took 10 minutes. And on Thanksgiving, that little timer was going off all day. 

Mom had that same timer for decades. Only recently did she part with it, and not because it didn't work anymore (it was as good as new), but because of major downsizing due to a move. While these manual timers are one of Ina Garten's favorite kitchen tools for good reason, you don't necessarily need to run out and purchase one. The important thing with cooking is to set some kind of timer.

Most ovens come equipped with timers; this is often the one I use when I place a dish in the oven. But because I regularly need multiple timers, my next go-to is Alexa on my Echo Show. A quick, "Alexa, set timer for 10 minutes" is all I need to say for "her" to confirm that she's got it from there. Similarly, Siri can handle your timing needs as well, which brings me to the timer on a smartphone or watch. What I love about this option is that you can label the timer. Recently, I had four different timers going at once, and, in an effort to keep track of which timer was set for what purpose, I labeled each one. When my phone timer went off, I knew precisely which dish was done.