Throwing away food means throwing away many resources and your hard-earned money. Instead, learn some valuable tips, get more connected to food, and enjoy the food that otherwise could have been thrown away. Or find out surprising parts of the vegetables you can cook with and enjoy later.
The gallery supports the article on how to save food at home. Please check it out here for more tips and resources.
The photos in the gallery are all from my own collection. All methods have been tried many times and I practice them often. Remember that pickling is another great way to preserve a surplus of onions, garlic, or jalapeños. The more you're able to use these fruits and veggies, the more you save money and resources. Happy food saving!
Here are the recipes and resources I mention in the gallery below:
Food that might be wasted and what you can make with it
Food that might be wasted and what you can make with it
Feel free to take your surplus food to a community pantry or fridge. You can find a useful website link for this before the start of the gallery.
Have couple of a bit dried up slices or ends of bread? Make a very popular Soviet Estonian snack called praesai. You can make the fancy kind with the recipe included in this article…
…or a savoury version, made by just frying the leftover slices on a pan with some oil. Add some fresh garlic or garlic powder on top. Enjoy with sliced tomatoes and cucumber or any vegetables you have available.
One way to use up the ends is to dry them, air dry on a counter or put them in the oven at a low temperature. Blend the pieces in a blender to make bread crumbs. Store them in a glass jar with a lid.
Are you making mashed potatoes, but feel bad throwing away the peels? If using organic potatoes, toss the peels in a bowl, add some oil, spices, and salt and air-fry or oven fry to enjoy a lovely crispy delicacy.
Don't throw away your broccoli stems. Slice it up for any meal that uses broccoli or blend it for a nice, creamy soup.
Have a bunch of tired root vegetables or other vegetables? Wash, chop and put them on a baking tray, add some spices, salt, and oil for a wonderful comforting winter evening meal.
Have some leafy greens, which need to be used up fast? Wash and chop, add a little bit of oil, spices, salt and warm the mix up on a pan to have a nice side for the oven baked veggies or any other meal.
Have a bunch of apples and oranges, which have some spots or are looking a bit sad? Wash and peel them, remove the seeds, and…
… you can make fresh juice in just a few minutes. You can get your juicer online from kijiji.ca
Have a bunch of random fruit, which needs to be used ASAP? Wash, chop, and add them to a blender to make an excellent healthy meal – a smoothie. Berries, fruits, apples, spinach, celery — it all goes in. You can even top it with a drizzle of peanut butter.
Do you have a dehydrator or are you thinking about getting one? It's a very handy kitchen appliance, which allows you to dehydrate and use preserved veggies later.
You can also make your own healthy snack by using parchment paper-covered trays. Mix bananas with chia seeds or sesame seeds, pour the mixture on the tray and dehydrate it.
Who wouldn't love dried strawberries or banana chips? The dehydrator is there to help you create these healthy snacks.
Have extra berries on hand and can't eat them fast enough? Freeze them or make some jam!
Home-made strawberry jam is always a hit!
Want to experiment with Napa cabbage, which usually comes in a huge head? Use some of it up and make home-made kimchi! This is a good recipe, as you can also use up your ginger, spring onions, onion, and an apple. Check out the recipe in the article.
Wilted potatoes are still okay to eat. Make baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, potato-leek soup, potato salad—as a side dish or a comforting main, potatoes fit neatly into nearly every meal of the day.
Feel free to take your surplus food to a community pantry or fridge. You can find a useful website link for this before the start of the gallery.
Have couple of a bit dried up slices or ends of bread? Make a very popular Soviet Estonian snack called praesai. You can make the fancy kind with the recipe included in this article…
…or a savoury version, made by just frying the leftover slices on a pan with some oil. Add some fresh garlic or garlic powder on top. Enjoy with sliced tomatoes and cucumber or any vegetables you have available.
One way to use up the ends is to dry them, air dry on a counter or put them in the oven at a low temperature. Blend the pieces in a blender to make bread crumbs. Store them in a glass jar with a lid.
Are you making mashed potatoes, but feel bad throwing away the peels? If using organic potatoes, toss the peels in a bowl, add some oil, spices, and salt and air-fry or oven fry to enjoy a lovely crispy delicacy.
Don't throw away your broccoli stems. Slice it up for any meal that uses broccoli or blend it for a nice, creamy soup.
Have a bunch of tired root vegetables or other vegetables? Wash, chop and put them on a baking tray, add some spices, salt, and oil for a wonderful comforting winter evening meal.
Have some leafy greens, which need to be used up fast? Wash and chop, add a little bit of oil, spices, salt and warm the mix up on a pan to have a nice side for the oven baked veggies or any other meal.
Have a bunch of apples and oranges, which have some spots or are looking a bit sad? Wash and peel them, remove the seeds, and…
… you can make fresh juice in just a few minutes. You can get your juicer online from kijiji.ca
Have a bunch of random fruit, which needs to be used ASAP? Wash, chop, and add them to a blender to make an excellent healthy meal – a smoothie. Berries, fruits, apples, spinach, celery — it all goes in. You can even top it with a drizzle of peanut butter.
Do you have a dehydrator or are you thinking about getting one? It's a very handy kitchen appliance, which allows you to dehydrate and use preserved veggies later.
You can also make your own healthy snack by using parchment paper-covered trays. Mix bananas with chia seeds or sesame seeds, pour the mixture on the tray and dehydrate it.
Who wouldn't love dried strawberries or banana chips? The dehydrator is there to help you create these healthy snacks.
Have extra berries on hand and can't eat them fast enough? Freeze them or make some jam!
Home-made strawberry jam is always a hit!
Want to experiment with Napa cabbage, which usually comes in a huge head? Use some of it up and make home-made kimchi! This is a good recipe, as you can also use up your ginger, spring onions, onion, and an apple. Check out the recipe in the article.
Wilted potatoes are still okay to eat. Make baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, potato-leek soup, potato salad—as a side dish or a comforting main, potatoes fit neatly into nearly every meal of the day.
Please feel free to share your own tips on using everyday food items and avoiding food waste.
