Make your food last longer with these hints and tips
Storing foods properly can help you cut down on waste and save money, too.
Particularly if you’re only cooking for yourself or one other person, getting smart about food storage is the simplest way to keep your supermarket shop affordable and can also save you time throughout the week.
Here are some of our best storage hints and tips to make your food last longer –
Freeze butter
You can save a block of butter from going off by cutting it into halves or quarters and then freezing the rest. This is a great tip for anyone who finds their butter is often more than one colour – dark on the outside and light when you scrape it away.
Revive hard honey
You can quickly revive a jar of honey that’s gone hard by placing it in a bowl of boiling water for a few minutes and stirring. Honey has an extremely long shelf life – and with this trick, it means you never need to waste a bottle.
Reuse large soda bottles
Large soda bottles are ideal for storing dry goods from your pantry – they are air-tight, can be sealed completely and even stored on their sides. Use a funnel to decant everything from rice to sugar into a water bottle; it also makes measuring out these ingredients much easier later on.
Store root vegetables in mesh bags
A mesh laundry bag is perfect for storing onions, potatoes, garlic and other root veggies, as it allows air to circulate and keep potatoes in the dark.
Wrap celery in foil
This old trick can help your celery to last for up to 4 weeks in your fridge. Wrap your stalks in foil and place in the crisper drawer until you need them.
Store lemons in water
Putting lemons in a jar filled with water and secured with a lid can help keep them fresh for up to a month.
Store asparagus in water
Store asparagus like you would a bouquet of flowers to keep them fresh. Fill a cup with water, place the stalks in, and if possible, cover with a plastic bag.
Freeze eggs
Yes, really. If you have extra eggs, instead of waiting until they go off, freeze them instead. Crack an egg into a muffin tin and freeze. You can separate egg whites and yolks this way too; two egg whites or two egg yolks can fit in one tin. Add a pinch of salt or sugar to the yolks, and use a toothpick to break them up slightly. Freeze overnight in the muffin tin – once frozen, remove eggs from the tin and put them into a sandwich bag or Tupperware container and return them to the freezer for more compact storage.
Freeze extra milk
Freezing leftover milk can help you prevent wasting it before it goes off and means you’ll always have an emergency stash if you run out.
Do you know any tips to make your food last longer? Share your wisdom in the comments below
Rachel - Silversurfers Assistant Editor
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