Times are tough, inflation is high, and many of us are more conscious of spending (and eating) habits, food waste, and trying to be more frugal.
I’ve come up with 10 ways to minimize food waste at home, whether you live on your own, or have a family of 5.
(This post contains affiliate links.)
Also see my other post: “13 ways to save money on groceries” if interested in saving more money and minimizing food waste even more!
#1 Save veggie scraps to make veggie broth
My scrap bag usually contains all these things: onion ends and peels, garlic scraps, carrot peels, celery scraps, zucchini scraps, sweet pepper scraps, and green onion scraps. I add salt, pepper, bay leaves and whatever herbs I feel like.
Once you broth is ready and you have strained it, you can use it right away to make soup, rice or drink as is. Alternatively, you can freeze it for later( in jars, cubes or even in ziploc bags).
#2 Package your food in single portions
Also ensure to store it properly to preserve freshness.
When your food is displayed in an appetizing manner in your fridge, you are more likely to eat it. I like to make “grab-and-go” type portioned containers so it is easy for myself, or my partner, to get a snack.
Alternatively, when you freeze your food, it is best to freeze it either in a single portion or a portion that makes sense for your family for 1 meal. This means that freezing an entire value pack of 10 chicken breasts in the same bag makes no sense if you live on your own. You’ll need to thaw the entire pack and unless you plan on cooking the whole content, chances are some of that chicken will go bad before you get to eating it.
I use glass containers for everything. I LOVE the Rubbermaid Brilliance ones, although we also have glass containers from Costco as well (They’re not mine, and I don’t like them as the lid is hard to clip on sometimes?!).
My favorite format is the 3.2 cup container. I find it is a perfect portion for 1 meal. CLICK HERE for the link.
I also like the 8 cups size to use as a meat thaw bin, marinate stuff in or put pizza left-overs. CLICK HERE for the link.
#3 Don’t plan meals too far ahead in the week.
Follow a “rolling wave” method instead.
The reasoning behind this is to allow for more flexibility as the week goes on. You may be tempted to pull out all the meat from the freezer but if you change your mind, this meat may continue to sit on your shelf and go bad before you decide to eat it.
#4 Freeze leftovers in portions.
This is one of the easiest ways to minimize food waste. Kinda going back to #2 but instead of portioning raw meats, portion your leftovers so they are easy to grab-and-go. Your “future-self” will thank you.
I freeze leftovers in silicone molds (see #9), pop them out when frozen, and then may or may not vacuum seal them, depending on what the food is and how long it’s going to sit in my freezer.
#5 Prep your produce properly (strawberries, grapes, celery, greens, etc.) so they last longer.
You can find all kinds of tips and tricks online on how to prep your fruits and veggies.
I currently use THIS VEGGIE SOAP. I’ve also used THIS ONE.
Here’s a simple breakdown of those I use:
Rinse, dry and bag your greens between paper towels.
Wash and chop celery. Store in container filled with cold water. Change water every few days to extend life.
Wash and chop carrots (Those to snack on). Store in container filled with cold water. Change water every few days to extend the life.
Strawberries: Wash and soak in water/white vinegar to kill mold spores. Pat dry. Cut tails. Store in container with paper towel.
Grapes: Wash with salt or baking soda and scrub grapes gently to remove anything that coats them. Rinse and pat dry. Store in container with paper towel.
Green onions: Put them in a glass with an inch or two of water to keep them alive longer.
#6 Be flexible with recipes.
Swap ingredients to use up what you already have. For example, you can use yogurt instead of sour cream in most recipes. This way, you use your ingredients so they don’t go to waste, and save a trip to the store, to buy a useless ingredient (which you’ll most likely buy too much of).
#7 Make an inventory list for your freezer.
If you don’t keep track of what you have, chances are you’ll forget and some stuff will end up wiht freezer burns. And chances are, that stuff will end up in the trash.
You can write down a list on a sheet of paper and stick it on the top of your chest freezer. You can draw a layout with bins and write down what is where. You can also add how much you have left, if you want to keep better record.
I recommend using a dry-erase magnet board you can stick on your freezer.
#8 Most foods can be frozen.
One of the easier ways to minimize food waste is just to freeze food. It’s a good way to put it “on pause” if you haven’t figured out what to do with it.
Especially if you have a large amount. I’ve put an entire box of tomatoes in the freezer, as is, and pull them out as I need, or just enough for a recipe. The texture changes but if it is for a soup of a sauce, it doesn’t really matter.
Some other food’s texture will also change. I can tell you about yogurt and sour cream. They are ok to be used in recipes though, like baking, cooking and smoothies.
Don’t freeze noodles in broth or soup, however. The noodles will swell when they thaw.
#9 Use souper cubes molds to freeze portions.
They freeze your food in perfect 1 cup or 2 cups portions, and they turn soup into perfectly “vacuum-sealable” cubes.
#10 Get a vacuum sealer.
It can be a small investment, but they come on sale quite often at Costco and Canadian tire.
You can stretch your food’s shelf life in the freezer by eliminating (or greatly reducing) the risk of freezer burns. I love using my vacuum sealer, especially with meat.
I don’t recommend vacuum sealing meat with bones, nor shrimps with tails on or anything with poky ends. They could pierce the bag and void the vacuum seal. I’ve tried bagging shrimps with tails before, not thinking about the tails at all, and first thing you know there was air in the bag, and then frost started to appear.
There you have it! 10 easy ways to minimize food waste at home.
I hope you have learned a few new tricks and get to save more food and money in your kitchen!