Attending culinary school is no easy feat. Believe it or not, cooking is way more than just throwing stuff in a pot — when you are studying it and trying to become a professional in the food industry, it can be really intense. There are so many technical skills you need, as well as good taste (duh).

But believe it or not, even after putting your blood, sweat, and tears into culinary school, there are some things you end up learning just by living your every day life. Culinary school may teach you how to properly chop an onion, but there are some things you just learn on your own, like the importance of cleaning up after yourself.

These pro chefs spilled the deets on some of the most helpful cooking tips they know — and they learned it themselves, not through culinary school.