If you’re like my colleague Caro, you’re probably a kitchen expert and you find many creative ways to salvage your ugly food. However, if you’re like me, you cook very little and every recipe you try has a high potential to fail, you probably don’t really know how to go about reducing your food waste further. Here are 3 tips to reduce your kitchen’s ecological footprint without having to cook more.
1. Make a grocery list
Having your list ready when you go to the grocery store helps save time, money and is a must to choose your food wisely… without wasting it.
For me, unless there is an extraordinary-fantastic-never seen before discount, I just follow my list. Why? Because if I let myself be tempted by a 10 LBS bag of potatoes or the family pack of croissants, there is a good chance that my family will not be able to eat it all in time and that we will have to throw away the rest.
Also, if I need a particular food for a recipe that will impress my mother-in-law, I go to bulk stores like Bulk Barn or Vracs et Bocaux to buy the ingredient in small quantities rather than buying it at the grocery store and avoid wasting the rest.
2. Think about your weekly menu on Sunday
For weeknight recipes, I follow the example of what my best friend has always done: a weekly menu! I love seeing her little slate with the beautiful dishes planned for the week displayed in her kitchen. It also allows her to calculate her portions to estimate the leftovers available to freeze or bring in lunches.
When you’re in the whirlwind of routine, dinners have to be thought out in advance. I admit that I don’t have a small slate in my kitchen, but I make sure to use all the food in my fridge to create recipes each evening. Thinking about my menu on Sunday evening also allows my family to eat out a lot less.
3. Use your refrigerator and freezer to their full potential
We are big spinach eaters at home. We especially love to put it in our smoothies in the morning and we always make sure to have some in the fridge. However, in the past we found ourselves wasting some because it gets soft so quickly. I started pureeing it in the blender as soon as I get home from the grocery store and I make ice cubes with it, then have a big bag in the freezer. In addition to giving a great texture to my smoothies, I make sure to never waste any more. You can do the same thing with a lot of other leftovers like broth or herbs.
The fridge is also a great ally in reducing food waste. I discovered that my avocados tripled their lifespan when I put them in the fridge once they were ripe. Am I the only one who discovered this trick unfortunately much too late in my life?
Also, to make sure I don’t forget anything in my fridge and to use up everything fresh before buying other foods, I make sure not to fill my fridge too much at once. This allows me to not waste anything!
By Stéphanie Bourque, Director of Communications and Partnerships at Still Good
