credit: cookingmatters.com
I just finished watching a special on Food Network called The Big Waste. I watched because I’ve been trying to reduce the amount of food waste that occurs in my own home. I’ve been making an effort to buy only what I need so that food doesn’t get thrown out, but I have to admit that there’s still room for improvement.
After watching the show and seeing the unbelievable amount of food that has to be discarded every day by farmers, restaurants and grocery stores because we, as a nation, have become accustomed to expecting perfection in the food we buy, it inspired me to try even harder to monitor my food waste, and also to spread the word to those here in Oxford who may also have concerns about the amount of food they’re putting in the trash bin each week.
If you want to catch the show, it will run again on January 14 at 3:00 p.m. Central Time (click here for more details).
In the meantime, below is a summary of tips for reducing food waste, provided by CookingMatters.com (click the link for more info).
1. Buy what you need and eat what you buy.
2. Buy fresh produce one week at a time.
3. Cook with canned/frozen vegetables if you don’t think you can use the fresh in time.
4. Stock your pantry.
5. Adapt recipes to use up what’s in your fridge, including leftovers.
6. Freeze leftover bread, vegetables and fruit before they go bad.
7. Combine fruit in cereal or smoothies to use it up.
8. Add vegetables to soups, casseroles, pastas, etc. before they go bad.
9. Transform leftovers into something new, such as stirring mashed potatoes into soup to create a creamy texture.
10. Use ingredients more than once over multiple meals.
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