Now that our pantries are clean and in order, lets take a look at one of the world’s most expensive problems – Food Waste.
In my previous life as a chef, I did think about food waste from time to time, but not overly.
These days as a society, we’ve become much more fancy with our meals. We are buying ingredients we normally wouldn’t use to try new things and we’re presenting meals in smaller or more detailed ways. Or we’re serving large portions and tossing out the remains without a thought.
Food travels thousands of miles, and it seems we are spoilt for choice.
I find this crazy when in other parts of our world humans are hungry and dying of starvation.
I’ve learned some great tips travelling on this path. Tips so valuable in fact that I began saving hundreds of dollars each month on our groceries. I also found my rubbish bin was not filling up with packaging or food waste by the time collection day arrived.
Start with my favourite tips. I’d love to know which ones you like the most!
Become a friend to your fridge
It sounds a little silly but is really important. Check the seals and temperatures regularly – these alone are key in preventing and delaying food spoilage. Ideal temperatures are 4 deg.C for the crisper, and between 0-3 deg.C for the remaining shelves.
Usually the top shelf is the coldest, so produce such as meats and cheeses are best stored higher up.
Freezer compartments are best kept at around 18 deg.C
Wipe the shelves and get organized. Having a usual spot for certain ingredients will help you find what you’re looking for more quickly.
When you know what’s in your fridge, it’s easier to avoid buying duplicates or letting items spoil.
Check your fridge every few days to use up fresh ingredients before they spoil.
Know your dates
Know the difference between a ‘use by’ date, and a ‘best before’ date.
If products are stored well, they will reach and possibly still be fine a few days after their expiry.
A ‘best before’ is exactly that – a product in its best condition before the recommended date.
I tend to freeze fresh meats a day before their use-by if I haven’t already used them. Always test and check. You’ll be surprised.
Use up day
Challenge yourself to make a meal based on what you have in the pantry and fridge at least once a week.
I started a day called Use Up Day, where once a week before I go gathering, I will make a meals out of what I have left in my fridge.
This can look like making a green smoothie to use up herbs, avocados and fruit. Or I make stock from food scraps, stalks and peelings. Sometime I make a massive stovetop chili with all of my aging veggies thrown in.
We have a ‘use up’ bowl which is a glass bowl stored in our fridge. Anything that needs using up first (cut tomatoes, avocado halves, zested lemons etc) go in there and then used before anything else.
My teen is enjoying the challenge of making something to eat using ingredients from our ‘use up’ bowl.
Get creative!!
Food storage
Invest in good food storage.
I have found (the hard way!) that flours, grains and nuts can go mouldy or get weevily, even in airtight containers. Maybe its a coastal thing? It remains a mystery, and it is a total pain when large amounts of food is spoiled. To combat this, I began freezing all of those items and the problem has vanished.
Go for glass and airtight storage where possible, that have good product warranties. Dating and labeling is very important too.
Be skin smart
Instead of discarding fruit and vegetable peels and creating waste. Find ways to use the whole item. For example you can roast veggies with their skins on – sweet potatoes, potatoes, pumpkins and beetroots are all amazing with their skins left on.
Or Zest citrus skins before using the flesh and or juice. Zest is great in salad dressings, over roasted veggies, in sauces, cakes and custards.
Make fresh juices using the whole fruit or vegetable.
If you do end up with fruit or veggie peels, pop them in the freezer to include the next time you make stock.
Savour Seeds
Like the tip above, find ways to use seeds instead of discarding them. I remember being very small and my gran drying out her pumpkin seeds on her window sill. She would toss them in a pan to toast, and we would munch and crunch on them.
Re-imagine remains
Get great at turning leftovers into further fabulous dishes!
Being time poor helped me here. If I was going to spend time cooking, I would make sure that the food I was making could be used another 1-2 times.
Cooking meals in bulk and freezing is also a great habit to get into. Reaching into the freezer rather than to the phone for takeaway will save you many dollars and your health!
Practice preservation
Preserving foods the way your gran used to allows them to be stored successfully over longer periods of time. It also means they’re available for use when they’re not in season. This is great for using up bulk produce and eliminating food waste.
Food swaps
If you have excess produce, herbs, preserves or even a few bulk meals stored up, why not food swap? We became part of local food swap MamaBake. It is a great way of meeting new people, sharing skills and foods, and creating variety in your diet.
Make sure to use good old cardboard boxes to transport food. I didn’t see value in this until the day I opened my car to have 6 glass jars roll out and smash onto my driveway. Using boxes to transport foods protects them against damage during travel.
It prevents soft foods squishing, glass rolling around and eggs breaking. Cardboard boxes are free and available, whereas eco bags still have to be made using additional energy and don’t necessarily guard against damage.
Plan meals
This sounds a little boring but meal planning is vital to reducing cost and food waste. There is no need for fancy spreadsheets. I use the back of an opened envelope most times. It is easy to pen out a few meals with a quick glance into the pantry and fridge.
Shop little and often
Perishables such as meat, dairy and produce often go to waste because of our failure to get to them in time. Keeping less on hand, and knowing where each ingredient is going to be used is a great step in reducing often expensive purchases from being wasted.
Love local
Develop a relationship with your local, independently owned produce store, or farmers market stall. Ask for fruit and veggie ‘seconds’ and check to see if they throw food out on best before dates. Not only will you help your local grocer minimise their food waste, you will be reducing your food costs too.
This is quite a comprehensive list.
You may be drawn to certain food waste tips, and dread the thought of others. The fun will be in the experimenting to see what works for you! If you do end up with spoiled food, you can always re-invest it in your compost or bokashi bin to create better soil for your garden.
Photo by Lenka Dzurendova on Unsplash
