Test Kitchen Top 3: Noodles, Dishes, and Dancing

We were all a big, noodly mess after a day in the test kitchen this week. Most of the day was spent testing recipes for our Noodle Soups contest, which meant lots of bowls, lots of noodles, lots of dishes to do, and lots of slurping. When we weren't chopping or stirring or debating which bowl went best with which soup, we were dancing. Want to learn some new moves? Read on, and stay up-to-date with our test kitchen hijinks via our Instagram account. 

A noodle by any other name: When you venture into a Japanese grocery store because your recipe calls for ramen, and you're faced with three different types, which do you buy? All three, of course. We were excited to try fresh ramen for the first time -- although some of us are still partial to the crispy squiggles of noodle.

"Light Work" -- sort of: Some of our favorite recipes just require one pot. Some demand a bit more industry. Between making stock, cooking noodles, and prepping all sorts of vegetables and garnishes, we had some serious dishes to do -- this is just a fraction of the day's load. Luckily, we learned how to take turns at a young age, and we all pitched in. Many hands do make light work, but we'll still be reaching for this at the office today.

When in doubt, dance. When looking for some creative inspiration, where do you turn? In search of ways to make raw chicken look beautiful, Kristy asked Addie for some advice. Our Head Style Consultant (have you seen that dress? The girl's got taste.) took an alternative approach to finding a solution: dancing. It worked so well that we're considering implementing this strategy on a weekly basis.