Kitchen Tips How To Kitchen Tools and Techniques How to Flip Food Like a Chef See how to flip food in a frying pan like a pro! By John Mitzewich John Mitzewich John Mitzewich — aka Chef John — has produced more than 1,500 cooking videos for Allrecipes. He's the actor, director, and screenwriter whose hands and voice confidently walk you through techniques. Allrecipes' editorial guidelines Published on February 2, 2022 Trained chefs do it all the time. They grab a hot skillet by the handle, give it a quick, effortless flick, and the food flips perfectly. Now, Chef John is ready to reveal the patented "push and pull" technique for turning food over in a pan. Watch the video, then give it a few turns, you'll soon be flipping food like a trained chef! How to Flip Food Like a Trained Chef For the purposes of practicing (and snacking), I recommend using cheese balls instead of messy hot food. Cheese balls are a good choice for practicing because they're light and require a deft touch to keep them from flying all over the place. And they will fly out of the pan when you don't do it right. But that's okay, they won't create a big mess. Once you've dumped your cheese balls into a cold skillet, you're ready to roll.The secret to successful food-flippage is a simple "push and pull" motion. What you are definitely not attempting to do is to throw the food up in the air and then catch it with the pan. That's the biggest mistake people make in flipping food. The motion is not up-and-down, it's back-and-forth. Horizontal not vertical.The other secret to success? Keep the skillet touching the cutting board or counter surface as you push forward and pull back — and, of course, when you graduate to flipping on the stovetop, you'll want to keep the skillet touching the heat source. But for now, practice this back-and-forth motion on a cutting board or a countertop. Get a grip on the skillet handle, push the skillet forward, pull it back, push forward, pull back, all without lifting the skillet. The move is all about feel. Practice that simple motion, and you'll eventually get the feel of it.Watch the video above to see the flipping technique performed by an old pro. And pay particular attention to the slow motion portion, which really shows in detail the cheese balls rolling up the curved edge of the skillet with the sudden pullback motion, getting airborne momentarily, and then, with another slight push forward, gently landing back in the pan. If nothing else, that shot is just a great moment in cinema. Ready to put your newfound food-flipping expertise to delicious use? Check out our complete collection of Chef John's Recipes. Related: Chef John's Best Italian Recipes Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit