Molly Baz, Instagram Cooking Star, Wants to Teach You How to Use Salt

Cook This Book is a beautiful physical object, almost as though it belongs on a coffee table instead of propped next to a toaster oven. It’s filled with techniques to make tastier food, and the ingredient lists that accompany recipes are organized by areas in the grocery store (produce, dairy, pantry) you know, to actually make the entire process of cooking at home easier. Baz is so concerned with teaching people to cook more confidently that the book is scattered with well-placed QR codes—one moment you’re flipping through glossy pictures of roast chicken, the next you’re watching on your phone as she shows you how to cut an onion, or the famed Molly Baz salt technique. (If you think the technique is simply to sprinkle a dash of salt, think again. You need an “abundant bowl,” a “three-finger pinch,” a high vantage point, and a wagging motion. Basically—Salt Bae was trying to teach us something.)

We grabbed Baz, who’s used to doling out cooking help—she has more than half a million followers on Instagram—for another installment of Glamour’s How I Eat at Home. Grab your microplane; we’re doing this.

“Cook This Book” by Molly Baz

Glamour: What four staples are always in your kitchen?

Molly Baz: Lemons, in abundance. I’m not talking one lemon—multiple lemons. Dill, the go-to herb. Sour cream. And hot sauce. When I say hot sauce I kind of mean the category of hot condiments. The spicy condiment department in my refrigerator is outrageously expansive.

What would you buy with $20 to spend at the farmers market?

It depends what the season is—in the summertime I’ll probably spend 16 of those dollars on tomatoes. And four of those dollars on some kind of beautiful greens that I can’t get in a supermarket. There’s so much out there that isn’t in the supermarket, and I love a beautiful, unique mix of lettuces, because I eat lots of salads along with my food and along with a lot more indulgent things. That’s like a treat for me—a lot of tomatoes and a little bit of lettuce.

What do you listen to while cooking?

Usually my husband curates the sounds in our space! He’s big into music, and I’m usually too caught up in my cooking world to remember to put anything on. He’s the vibes creator, and it’s different every night.

What do you drink while you cook?

There’s always a bottle of wine. I’m not really a cocktail-while-I-cook person, I just love the tradition of opening a bottle of wine with someone. Maybe this is too much, but a bottle of wine kind of feels like the perfect amount of wine for two people for a night. [Laughs.] We keep a lot of fun, interesting wines on hand.

What is your all-time favorite food?

Caesar salad—that’s not hard for me to answer. It’s the greatest; I refer to it as the GSOAT, which is the Greatest Salad of All Time. It’s got it all.

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