The Foolproof Hack To Make Sure Your Aluminum Foil Is Nonstick

It's a tale as old as time: You line your baking tray with foil, arrange your potatoes or chicken or veggies, and bake, only for the aluminum foil to unceremoniously stick to everything, ruining your dinner. It's a tragedy when your foil foils your plans. Luckily, there's an extremely easy way to make sure your aluminum foil is nonstick. And no, you don't have to buy special nonstick foil.

All you have to do to prevent sticking is crumple up your sheet of aluminum foil before placing food on it. Then, lay it out flat again but with the crinkles intact, spray with cooking oil, and arrange your food as you normally would, making sure not to completely flatten out the foil in the process.

You'll notice that your food doesn't stick nearly as much as it used to. That's because the texture created by crumpling up the aluminum foil creates air pockets for more even cooking and less surface area for the food to stick to. Now your food won't be impossible to lift up with a spatula when it's ready. It's easy, cheap, and there's really no downside to giving it a try. This is just one of many clever aluminum foil hacks to use around the kitchen.

Many agree that crinkling aluminum foil before cooking is the way to go. "I bought fish filets recently that recommended this trick and I haven't looked back. It works great," wrote one Reddit user. Another explained, "The crinkled foil not only keeps you from dirtying a pan but also catches excess oil in the low parts, keeping the food from getting soggy and improving airflow and crispness." You can't really beat a hack that cooks your food well and makes cleanup a breeze.

Crinkled foil also has many uses beyond becoming a nonstick cooking surface for your dinner. You can use a small ball of foil to clean your grill in place of steel wool, or to scrub particularly sticky grime off dishes. You can also save your messy roll of tin foil with a tiny ball of rolled up tin foil. Rub that along the tube of tin foil to create a new, even opening you can pull your sheet of foil from. 

There are so many ways that aluminum foil can make prepping, cooking, and cleaning processes way easier. It has so many unexpected uses, from being used as a piping bag to decorate cakes to mimicking a roasting rack in a pinch. You probably have it in your home right now; have fun discovering the possibilities.