The four microwave hacks I swear by as a top chef to make cooking a breeze – and some might surprise you

A top chef has shared his four useful tips on using the microwave that can make cooking much easier.

Dean Sheremet, a renowned TV chef from the US, uses the microwave to make squeezing lemons, steaming vegetables, peeling garlic and drying herbs easier.

“If you understand how the microwave works, you’ll discover some pretty incredible things that you might not have known about,” he said.

He said chefs in professional kitchens are constantly using microwaves to make some tedious food preparation tasks more efficient.

The culinary professional’s tips and tricks impressed thousands of people who were eager to try them out for themselves.

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Dean uses the microwave to quickly steam vegetables with a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt. He also dries fresh herbs in the device and says they last up to three months

Dean said the microwave can be used to dry fresh herbs so they don’t go to waste and last up to three months.

He zaps them on a paper towel on high for three minutes.

“I hate going to the store, buying a bunch of nice fresh herbs, forgetting I have them and throwing them in the trash at the end of the week,” the chef said.

‘This is the best way to preserve those precious herbs for up to three months.’

Dean’s second tip was to microwave a whole lemon for 20 seconds to get more juice out of it.

“After twenty seconds, the membrane of the fruit is more relaxed, allowing more juice to be extracted,” he explains.

You can also use the microwave to steam vegetables ‘perfectly’ by heating them on the highest setting for two minutes with a dash of olive oil and a pinch of salt.

The chef put a whole lemon in it for 20 seconds to extract more juice. He also quickly zapped a clove of garlic, making it easy to separate from the skin

“Contrary to what you might think, you actually retain more nutrients in vegetables by cooking them this way because you don’t leach those precious vitamins into the cooking water,” Dean said.

Finally, the chef said that the microwave can be used to make peeling garlic much easier and faster.

He places a clove in the microwave for just 20 seconds on high and it should slide right out of the skin.

“I hate peeling garlic and this made it crazy easy to peel them right out of their skins,” he said.

Dean shared the pro tips online video impress thousands.

“Where have these tips been all my life?” one viewer asked.

‘I never thought about putting the herbs in the microwave to keep them dried. I’ve used them fresh from the fridge, but drying them will extend their lifespan. Thanks chef!’ said another.

‘I immediately jumped out of bed to try the frozen vegetable hack and it really works! So very useful, thank you!’ a third replied.

“The one with garlic just upset me because considering the amount of garlic I cut I should have thought of this,” one person added.