You open up the fridge to find a slightly sad carrot, wrinkly pepper, or bananas that have gone a bit too spotty.
Before you bin them, think about all the uses that they still have.
Fruit and veg that’s past it’s prime is often still perfectly usable (and sometimes even better) for cooking. Here’s how to rescue those ingredients and turn them into something delicious, all while keeping things simple and UPF free.
First Things First, What’s Still Safe?
“Past it’s best” doesn’t mean unsafe.
Soft, wrinkled or slightly wilted veg is usually still fine to eat, along with overripe fruit (not moldy or rotten).
If food has gone moldy, rotten, slimy or smells off, you are better off binning it, or better yet composting it if you grow your own food!
A good rule of thumb is, when in doubt trust your senses.
Overripe Fruit
The softer the fruit, the sweeter it gets, which makes it perfect for cooking with.
Banana bread or muffins are a great way to use up bananas that are a little too black. We have a great banana bread recipe that you can find here.
Smoothies, milkshakes, stewed fruit and homemade compote are great ways to use up berries on the edge. You could add stewed fruit or compote to porridge or yogurt to level up your breakfast.
Top tip – prepare and freeze fruit before it turns bad to use in smoothies, jams, and even desserts.
Wilted Veg
Veg that’s gone a bit soft may not be great for salads, but it is still perfect for cooking.
Veg that’s on the edge is often best used in meals like curries, tray bakes, soups, stews and stir-fries.
You could also prepare and freeze them for later use. We make up soup and stew packs that we can just use straight from the freezer.
Leafy Greens
Don’t throw away limp greens, they can still be incredibly useful.
They can be blended into pesto or sauces, stirred into soups and curries, added to pasta dishes, or frozen for later use.
“Use It All” Recipes
Some meals are perfect for clearing out the fridge before your weekly shop.
You can create soups, stews, casseroles, omelettes, pies and one pot meals. If you have a lot to use up you could batch cook and freeze the meals for later, this works especially well with pies, sauces and soup packs.
Freezing
Your freezer is your friend when it comes to leftover/on the edge fruit and veg.
As mentioned above you can chop, portion and freeze your fruit and veg for later use in things such as soups and smoothies.
Freeze fresh herb portions in a little oil inside ice cube trays, then add to a freezer friendly bag or box. This will help to make your cooking easier later, as well as saving waste.
Freezing instead of throwing not only saves waste, but can also make cooking quicker and easier, and save money too.
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Reducing food waste doesn’t have to be complicated or difficult, but it can be an opportunity to save, time, money and get creative in the kitchen.
Some of the best meals we have created have come from using up what was on the edge in the fridge.
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