the frugal in me won out and he got a meal of leftovers-pulled pork sandwiches with coleslaw and leftover pasta salad from one of my Bunco guests.
Past it's prime cabbage and the last remains of
mayonnaise in the jar add crunch to our pulled
pork sandwiches
The pork ribs were "falling off the bone" good.
A quick dice, some additional sauce and about
5 minutes of heat and we had a delicious dinner
The night was still romantic, just the menu changed. Now we have 2 steaks saved for the next romantic home date.
Anyway, back to the leftover issue.
A memorable quote I heard was "I don't make money off of what people buy, I make money off what they throw away". The author of that quote might have been addressing the considerable amount of food that we purchase, only to throw it away. Whether it's the jar of fresh salsa that turns before we've had a chance to finish it, or the restaurant leftovers that get thrown away days after you brought them home (probably in a nonbiodegradable container) and are no longer recognizable, American's throw out approximately 40% of the food that they purchase. That's a staggering amount of food and money for consumers, and a huge environmental footprint for the planet. Think about it:
- Growing food=water, fertilizer, herbicides, pesticides, farm machinery (if grown in a commercial facility)
- Harvesting food=farm machinery, fossil fuels
- Transporting food=fossil fuels
- Production of processed foods=energy (probably fossil fuel)
- Storing food=energy (probably fossil fuel)
- Cooking food=energy (probably fossil fuel)
- Storing leftovers=energy (probably fossil fuel)
- Take out container (when applicable)=environmental nightmare
- Transportation of waste to landfill=energy (probably fossil fuel)
- Landfill=food waste attracts rodents and other wildlife, decomposing food smells horrible for the residents living nearby, emits methane gas (an extremely potent green house gas)
Let's not forget the hard work it took to earn the money for the food in the first place...
It's important to recognize the footprint behind the food we purchase. If we throw that food away, we're trashing the planet as well as wasting our time and money.
Food waste can be found in lots of different places. The pantry, freezer and refrigerator door all hold the possibility of being future food waste. From expiration dates to weevils, food that sits too long turns to waste. Come on, who hasn't pulled an ice incrusted steak out of the freezer that was dated 5 years ago? Sadly, that was me when I cleaned out and got rid of a garage freezer. What a waste! Lets fight for using up leftovers!!
- Buy Less to encourage eating what's on hand.
- Take stock of what you have before you go to the market. You may not need to make that trip after all
- Have meatless Mondays (using pantry meats or beans) and freezer Fridays (cook up those veggies and meat before they get ice crystals)
- Reheat (or repurpose) your left overs the following day. If you don't eat it on day 2, you're even less likely to eat it on day 3.
- Repurposing (meatloaf=chili, roast chicken=chicken pot pie, etc.) is great for adding variety and using up other "on hand" ingredients.
- Freeze for future use
- Repurpose the last of your condiments. Mustard and mayonnaise can both make great salad dressings, right in the bottle. Ketchup can make barbeque sauce, etc.
- Have "buffet" night 2X a week, once on the night before trash day, once 3-4 days later. You'll start looking forward to all the time you'll save when you don't have to start everything from scratch.
- Have a seasonal or year end purge of your refrigerator and freezer to use up your older food and condiments. Let your New Year's resolution be to use up BEFORE it goes bad.
- Compost it (if possible)
- Picture yourself throwing away 40% of every dollar of food you purchase.
Be well, be sustainable and happy gardening
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