Planning and shopping tips
It sounds so obvious but it really does pay to plan your meals so that you don’t buy more than you need.
Always do a thorough check of your fridge and freezer before doing your main shop to avoid buying food stuffs that you don't really need yet.
Have a designated 'fridge freezer food' day when you have a meal from what's in the fridge or freezer to avoid things being forgotten about and later thrown away.
Plan meals for 6 days of the week and buy the ingredients. So if there's a day you fancy something in particular – perhaps a takeaway - you can go for it without disrupting the week's planning.
Have a look in your fridge at what needs using now and then search for a recipe with those ingredients on the internet.
Get things in order. Rotate stock in cupboards and fridges by putting the new items at the back and older items at the front.
Freezing tips
Freezing excess milk in ice cube trays is brilliant for when you've run out of milk but you really want a cup of tea. You can pop one cube out at a time for each cuppa rather than having to defrost the whole lot.
If you buy fresh herbs and don't use them all up you can freeze the rest. Then you can use them rather than dried herbs in homemade pasta sauces for example.
When bananas are on the turn freeze them and once frozen they can be used as lolly-pops. Even better if dipped in chocolate!
If you have too many berries then freeze them and use as ice cubes - strawberries work well if chopped in half.
Leftover ideas
Fruit that has started to go soft is still great as a smoothie rather than throwing it away.
Vegetables that are past their best can be blended to make great soups.
Slow cookers are great for vegetables that need using up. You can just throw it all in there in the morning, add water and gravy granules to thicken it and you have a ready-made stew in the evening. Or if you prefer, blend it and have fresh home-made soup.
If there's anything that's about to go off which is high in nutrients try making home-made face masks. It can be a great night in with friends! Avocado and overripe bananas are brilliant for this plus it saves money on buying the pre-packaged ones.
Make tasty soups out of leftover vegetables at the end of the week. Add lentils or porridge oats for a bit more substance – these soak up the flavours and add a healthy dose of fibre to your soup.
Blitz leftover stale bread and grate in cheese to freeze for topping fish or vegetable crumbles.
Use white leftover wine in a risotto and red wine in a pasta sauce.
Slow roast tomatoes that are past their best on a very low heat and use in a sauce or on their own on crusty bread or toasted bread (maybe with a poached egg) as a snack.
Portions
Measure out sensible portion sizes of rice, pasta and other grains so it doesn't get wasted.
Storage
If you only use half an onion in cooking, pop the rest in a jar in the fridge to be used later in the week without it making Tupperware or other food in the fridge absorb any odour.
Wash out any jars and plastic tubs your food came in like pesto jars, houmous tubs, and margarine tubs. These make excellent free storage for small amounts of leftovers such as grated cheese, excess pasta sauce or half an onion. They take up far less room than your standard Tupperware and let you fit more in your fridge or freezer.
Use good air-tight plastic containers in your fridge – food keeps much better.
Grow your own
Cut the tops off spring onions and regrow them in a jar of water. A never-ending supply of onions!
Create a herbs garden - rosemary, lavender, thyme, bay trees, sage, oregano, mint and parsley. It doesn't need looking after as they tend to themselves and you can just chop off a bit of whatever you need as and when.
Help your community
Batch cooking and distributing to neighbours is a great way help others and avoid wasting food. The neighbours will often help you in return with jobs like doing the hedges or mowing the lawn