One of the pleasures of eating is enjoying a variety of foods and dishes. If you live alone like I do but love to cook and eat different foods, want to eat economically and minimise waste, follow these simple tips:
- Plan and shop to a list using the principles covered in the Let’s Talk About Reducing Food Waste article.
- Avoid places that sell fresh food in family sized packages – go to your butcher, fishmonger or farmers' market/greengrocer.
- Have a decent-sized freezer – you can portion larger packages of meat or bread or you can cook a meal for four, such as lasagne, and freeze some of the portions.
- Have your pantry well stocked with staples such as cans of beans, lentils, salmon and tuna. Consider buying smaller cans or use a portion from a larger can and freeze the rest. The Love Food Hate Waste blog advises on foods that are suitable for freezing.
- Know how to scale down recipes – sometimes, if a recipe is suitable, I will do a quarter quantity, but a half quantity is easier to work with.
- Look for ways of using leftovers intentionally.
- Have a small kitchen garden for herbs and salad greens.
- Surprise a friend with a home-cooked meal.
