KITCHEN TIPS

HOW TO CUT DOWN ON KITCHEN WASTE

Don’t waste food, cut back on waste. Image credit: NEWS CANADA.

From NEWS CANADA

With prices going up, it’s extra important that we don’t waste food. Here are ways to cut back on waste.

Schedule a regular pantry purge. No matter how big or small your kitchen is, you likely have a few dark corners of your pantry where items get pushed to the back and forgotten about. It’s a good idea to regularly sort through your cupboards to see what you have on hand.

When you stock up on pantry staples, move anything you already have on the shelves to the front, so you use up those items first.

Whip up a pot pourri meal. Take a look in the fridge to see what you already have. Maybe you can make a veggie stir fry with those loose carrots, celery stems and lonely zucchini. Or chop up that leftover chicken breast into a chicken salad sandwich or use it as a topping for a pita pizza.

Pack or freeze leftovers. Making big batches of food is a great way to save money, particularly if you buy large-sized packages of food for bulk-rate savings. Eat  what you can over the next day or two for easy, heat-and-eat meals. Freeze leftovers in individual containers for a quick homemade meal instead of making something new.

Understand food labels. Many people mistakenly believe that a best before date on a food package means that they should throw it out after that date has passed. Unlike an expiry date, which does mean you shouldn’t consume food after that day, best before dates refer to a product’s ideal freshness period. But, if stored properly, most food is perfectly edible beyond the best before date on the label.

In fact, you might be able to get deals at the store on products that are approaching their best before dates. There are also apps where retailers and restaurants sell off products that are about to hit their best before date for a steep discount. More about Canada’s food labelling system at inspection.canada.ca.