Reducing food waste needs to be on everyone’s radar and is something our chefs often address in their cooking classes to inspire multiple uses out with ingredients. Here are some quick tips to help you reduce food waste in your kitchen!
1. FREEZE YOUR HERBS
Buying fresh herbs for a specific dish that you may not use the whole bunch in one shot? Chop them up and freeze them in a freezer bag or use a ice cube tray and freeze them in olive oil for quick and easy portioning.
2. BUY A SCRUBBER
There are a lot of nutrients in the peels of vegetables so instead of peeling off the exterior, get a vegetable scrubber like this one and reduce your food waste while boosting your nutrients. Bonus!
3. MEAL PLAN
Meal planning is all the craze right now for eating healthy, but it also helps you avoid over buying. By planning out your meals for the week, you know what you need and what you're going to make. It not only helps you use up things in your fridge but also saves you from thinking about what to make during the week!
4. SAVE YOUR SCRAPS
Save all your scraps from veggies, put them in a large freezer bag and use them to make a great stock.
5. KNOW HOW TO STORE FOOD
You can extend the life of a lot of produce by just knowing how to properly store it. Mushrooms, for example, should be stored in a paper bag in your fridge.
6. SAVE YOUR CITRUS PEELS
Citrus is a great air freshener. Save your peels, place them in a cute bowl and let them air dry on the counter for a nice chemical free air freshener.
7. EAT YOUR LEFTOVERS
When you bring something home from a restaurant or have leftovers from homemade dinner, put them in a container and mark the date it was freshly made. This way you know how long it has been in the fridge and helps you track what needs to be eaten sooner rather than later.
8. TOO MUCH? CAN 'EM
Sometimes it happens - you buy too much produce because they were so fresh you couldn't resist. But now they're becoming overripe and you fear you can't finish all of them in time. Can them! Canning is a great way to preserve and utilize produce in a different way. Too many strawberries? Try making jam!
9. UNPACK GROCERIES RIGHT
Make sure when you're unpacking your groceries that you're moving the existing items in your fridge/freezer to the front/top and the items you just purchased to the back/bottom. The FIFO (first in - first out) method helps you use up that cream cheese that was already opened before someone cracks open the new one!
10. TRACK WHAT YOU CHUCK
Try it. Keep a quick log of everything you through out in your kitchen for a month or even a week. See if you keep throwing out half of the salad greens every week so maybe next week you only buy half the amount.
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