A marinade is a seasoned liquid that you use to soak food like meat, fish or vegetables before cooking. That way, you can add extra flavour to the food or make it tender. The key parts of a marinade can include acid or enzymes like vinegar, citrus juice, wine, yogurt or ginger to help tenderize meat. Other key parts are oils and spices, with oils helping to hold moisture and spices adding extra flavours. Food can sit in a marinade for a few minutes or several days depending on your recipe and preferences.

Gravy is a savoury sauce that’s made from meat or vegetable juices that are mixed with a thickener like cornstarch and a liquid like broth. The main ingredient in gravy include butter, oil or the fat left in a pan after cooking meat (like beef, chicken, turkey or pork), a thickener like flour or cornstarch to help form a paste called a roux, a liquid such as broth, stock, bouillon or water may also be added, along with seasonings like salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and more.

If you have a runny sauce, the fastest and easiest way to thicken it is to use a cornstarch or flour slurry. A slurry is a mixture of cornstarch or all-purpose flour and cold liquid that quickly thickens finished sauces without creating lumps. Mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch or all-purpose flour with 2 tablespoons of cold water in a small bowl until it’s smooth. Bring your sauce to a simmer and whisk the mixture into the pan a little bit at a time. Simmer for 1 to 2 minutes to cook out the raw starch taste and reach the thickness you want.

Keeping a versatile mix of acidic, spicy, creamy and umami-rich sauces in your kitchen makes it easy to build quick sauces, marinades, dressings and glazes in your pan. Some umami and salty sauces to keep for cooking include soy sauce, fish sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Spicy and tangy sauces to consider include hot sauce, Dijon mustard and sriracha sauce. Creamy and sweet sauces you can use when cooking include mayonnaise and ketchup.