Does the microwave destroy nutrients?

And, is that chain email grandma sent me actually true?

In a world wrought with misinformation, how do we know what to believe, anymore?

Well, as the great Spock once said, "Insufficient facts always invite danger."

Sometimes, you just don't have it in you to finish that loaf of bread.

Yet, the persistent voice of the people urges you to store it in the fridge and make it last longer.

The thing is, it'll actually do exactly the opposite.

Storing bread at a cold temperature that's above freezing will actually cause the starch in the bread to crystallize faster.

This means that wrapping it up and keeping it at a room temperature is your best bet, besides freezing it entirely.

If you like to cook using alcohol, and no, I don't mean having a fine glass of box wine in a plastic cup, cause that's just fine.

I'm talking about the myth that alcohol burns off entirely during the cooking process.

Studies have shown that anywhere from 4 - 78% of alcohol used in cooking still remains after basic recipes.

Now, for some, that might be a good thing, but not for those with an opposition to alcohol.

So, bear that little fact in mind next time you make vodka sauce.

Does adding salt to water actually help it boil faster?

Nope.

In fact, it actually increases the temperature needed to achieve a boil.

We placed two pots of water on the stove right next to each other, one with salt, one without.

We clicked them on at the same time and let it rip.

As you can see, the unsalted water clearly boiled first.

So, if you see someone putting salt in the water to make it boil faster, drop some knowledge on 'em, and quit watching that pot, because then it'll never boil.

If you have something against frozen vegetables, then it's time to put old beefs aside.

Once a vegetable is picked, it immediately begins to decay.

And if you work in the time it takes to ship, label, and get placed in the store, many of your cherished veggies are already on their way out when you buy them.

On the other hand, vegetables that are frozen immediately after being picked, typically measure higher levels of vitamin E, calcium, and many more.

Another great benefit is not having to worry about your veggies going bad.

You can just pull 'em from the freezer when you're ready to eat 'em.

Do you really need a large pot of boiling water just to make a bit of pasta?

Absolutely not.

You can actually use less water and do away with the whole waiting for a boil thing.

But, how?

Simple, add enough cold water to cover your pasta, and click the stove up on high.

The cold water prevents sticking in the early stages, but you also need to make sure you stir it frequently as it warms up.

We added pasta to a full pot of boiling water, and then we barely covered another pot with cold water.

We gave both ten minutes to cook.

The results were almost exactly the same in consistency and flavor, so not only did we save time, but we also conserved water.

Just imagine if everyone followed this methodology.

A huge thanks to all of our subscribers, new and old.

Here's a couple other videos I think you might like, if you enjoyed this one.

We'll see you next time, on Household Hacker.