Each year, tons of food – literally 1.3 billion tons – end up in the trash, adding to the ever-growing greenhouse gas emissions and putting a strain on our planet’s resources.

In the US, we waste 40% of all our food – which hurts both our wallet and the planet. If food waste were a country, it would be the third largest emitter of greenhouse gasses behind the US and China.

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So how do we prevent this? Learning how to store your food properly and meal plan is half the battle.

But there are even more ways to reduce food waste. Here’s a guide to stop wasting food (and save money in the process).

utilize your leftovers

Sometimes we make too much food or can’t finish the food we ordered. Here are a few tips for preventing having too many leftovers, on top of what to do with them when you have them anyway.

dine out mindfully

Try to only order what you know you’ll finish. Knowing your body and personal tastes helps a lot here. For example, I know I love pizza and Mexican dishes so I’ll try to stick with those.

Asking about portion sizes and being aware of side dishes with entrees is helpful too. For example, many Mexican restaurants will give you a side of beans and rice – if this is too much for you, simply tell them ahead of time.

If you’re at a buffet, remind yourself that your eyes are bigger than your stomach. Take only what you like and can finish. And if you want to try something new, opt for a small portion just in case it’s not for you.

When you absolutely cannot finish your plate, get it to go so you can eat it another day. Even better if you bring your own metal tiffin for storing it.

have a leftovers night

Dedicate one night of the week to finishing the leftovers in the fridge. You can mix and match to plate up something tasty. For example, make yourself a plate of mac and cheese from Monday night, broccoli from Tuesday, and chicken cutlets from Wednesday.

think ingredients, not leftovers

Most of my leftovers tend to be side dishes (think rice, cooked veggies, etc.). Which means I always have some ready-made ingredients on hand to whip up a new meal.

Some ideas include:

• Turning extra pasta or cooked vegetables into a frittata
• Creating burritos with leftover rice, beans, meat and vegetables.
• Blending a can of tomato sauce up with leftover vegetables to create a veggie-packed sauce for pasta
• Using fried rice as a base for your next stir fry.
• Turning the last bits of roast chicken into chicken salad. Combine the chopped meat with mayonnaise, salt and pepper, celery, and chopped onions. You can put it between two slices of bread, or eat as is.
• Using leftover rice to make rice pudding.

make soup

You can’t go wrong throwing together an impromptu soup. I like the idea of ‘use-it-up’ soup that cleans out leftover steamed, roasted or grilled vegetables. Throw it into a blender with 3 to 4 cups of vegetable broth, then add any extra seasonings. Serve hot!

add fresh food to canned soup

If you have some leftover spinach, swiss chard, or mushrooms sitting in your fridge, add them to some canned soup. Just empty your canned soup into a pot and add some greens you want to use up to it. Let it simmer and cook for a bit together until the greens wilt, then remove from heat and enjoy.

use food scraps strategically

Say it with me: Food scraps are not trash. Your potato peels, strawberry tops, and carrot tops all have a place at your table – if you’re crafty enough.

I had a scrappy recipe series on my socials where I made all kinds of things like glazes from empty jam jars and wilted spinach icing. Cooking with food scraps is both rewarding and a money saver. 

Here are several ways to use up food scraps:

• Use the odds, ends and peels of vegetables like carrot, celery, and onion to make veggie broth.

• Carrot, radish, and beet tops can actually be eaten (make pesto or salad).

• Strawberry tops can be used to make a delicious simple syrup for coffee, mocktails, or lemonades. Or add them right into smoothies for extra vitamins and fiber.

• Onion and garlic skins can be ground up into onion/garlic powder.

• Make citrus powder from leftover lemon and lime skin. Bake citrus peels for 2-3 hours until crispy and dry. Blend with salt, if desires. Then store in an airtight container for ~3 months.

• Save pumpkin seeds for roasting.

• Use herb stems – like basil, cilantro, and parsley – to blend into an herbal sauce by combining with mayo, salt, pepper, lemon and garlic. Or chop them up and add them to soups and stews.

• Add celery leaves to soup for extra flavor.

• Watermelon rinds can be added to smoothies or chopped up and used in stews to bulk them out. I’ve even made watermelon rind and apple jam before!

• Find ways to use up stale bread – like turning it into croutons.

I recently challenged myself to try saving and using every food scrap I had for a week. You can watch my journey below!

expiration dates decoded

Many products have a sticker labeled ‘sell-by, use-by, best-by’ on there. But you can pretty much ignore them, considering it’s impossible for the manufacture to know exactly when something goes bad.

The most ironic example of this is honey. Honey you find in stores typically has an expiration date on it – yet honey found from ancient Egypt, 1000s of years ago, is safe to eat.

Also, food is most sensitive to temperature, lighting, humidity, and proximity, which varies from home to home. Bananas may spoil faster in my house than in yours, simply based on one of these factors. No label can predict that! 

here’s what those labels actually mean:

• Sell-by: Tells the store how long to display the product for sale for inventory management. It is not a safety date.
• Use-by: Is the last date recommended for the use of the product while at peak quality. It is not a safety date except when used on infant formula.
• Best-by: Indicates when a product will be of best flavor or quality. It is not a purchase or safety date.

The only time you should avoid eating a food is if it’s spoiled. Spoiled foods will develop an off-putting odor, flavor or texture due to naturally occurring spoilage bacteria (more on this later). Don’t eat it if it develops such characteristics.  

utilize your freezer

The freezer is a powerful tool you’re probably underutilizing. Frozen foods last longer and are a great way to stop produce from going bad before you can get to it.

Consider blanching vegetables and some fruit before freezing them – Blanching stops destructive enzymes that can cause loss of flavor, color and texture during freezing. Blanching also loosens the skin on fruits like peaches and tomatoes, allowing you to peel them with ease.

Blanching is scalding produce in boiling water for a short time, then transferring them to an ice bath before freezing. Vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, string beans, brussels sprouts and root veggies benefit most from blanching.

Blanching times will vary based on which vegetable or fruit you’re focusing on, but here’s a good guide to keep in mind. Don’t forget to label whatever you freeze with the date you froze it and what it is.

You can also freeze several unconventional items like:

• Eggs (don’t freeze in their shells – instead, crack the eggs, whisk and pour into an ice cube tray, then freeze. Keeps for up to a year).

• Pasta (Make sure to cook al dente, otherwise it may be mushy after defrosting. Keeps for ~2 months).

• Hard cheeses (Best to grate first and store in an airtight container. Keeps ~6 months).

• Nuts (Can be frozen in their shells or shelled. Keeps ~1-2 years).

• Opened wine (Freeze in ice cube trays, then transfer to freezer bags like Stasher. Add to stews, sauces, or risottos. Keeps ~6 months).  

• Cake (Avoid freezing cakes with icing, filling or decoration. Freeze whole or in slices. Keeps ~6 months).

Upcycled glass jars are a great way to store frozen food. However, if freezing a liquid, always be sure to leave room at the top for expansion. And never try to stack jars.

You can cook most vegetables, meats and bread straight from frozen. But if your food does need to thaw, be mindful thawing at room temperature invites microbes that spoil good food. 

Instead, try thawing in the fridge for 24 hours, or place the item in a bowl of cold water, making sure to change every 30 minutes (use the excess water to feed houseplants!).

You can also use the microwave as well. However, if you’re defrosting in a mason jar, the safest way is to let it thaw in the fridge under a plate to catch excess water. This will prevent cracking and leaks.

And of course – don’t forget about your frozen goods! Many people “lose” items in the back of the freezer so try to plan a freezer night to eat your frozen food every week or two. 

one bad spot isn’t the end

If you see a brown spot on a banana or a potato, don’t toss the whole thing. I cut off the black spots and eat the rest!

However, if you notice multiple black spots or it starts to shrivel, you may need to cook it on high heat to help kill anything off. Always use your judgement – and certainly don’t chance anything if it smells rancid!

If your vegetables are a bit dry or limp, they can be rescued. But if they’re slimy, mushy, or discolored, they’re rotten.

Some veggies have tell-tale signs they’ve gone bad. For example, celery will become white and hollow, eggplants will toughen and asparagus tips will go soft and turn black.

For fruits, examine their skin. Fruits like grapes, plums and apricots should be smooth, not wrinkly. Melons shouldn’t have any squashy patches. And always avoid fruit that has mold or a bad odor.

To reduce waste, always try to compost what has gone rancid. Here’s how to compost in an apartment or backyard.

only buy what you’ll eat

Never go grocery shopping hungry – this leads to impulse buys. Instead, stick to your staples and don’t get too adventurous.

I’m not saying you can’t try new things or indulge in a treat every so often but let it be with reservation.

Some grocery stores will capitalize on trending items or seasonal products (pumpkin ice cream in the fall, anyone?). But I advise steering clear of these unless you know you like them.

Instead, allow yourself one or two snacks every week, and try to stick to things you already know you’ll enjoy (like chips and salsa or your favorite ice cream flavor).

Doing this will ensure everything gets eaten before the week is through.

For even more tips, be sure to check out my YouTube video below!

How are you saving food from going to waste? Let me know your tips in the comments!

The post How to Stop Wasting Food (And Save Money) appeared first on Going Zero Waste.

How to Stop Wasting Food (And Save Money)