Prepare perishable foods soon after shopping. You’ll make it easier to whip up meals later in the week, saving time, effort and money.
Right away
- When you get home from the store, wash, dry, chop, dice, slice and place your fresh food items in clear storage containers for snacks and easy cooking.
- Befriend your freezer and visit it often. Freeze food such as bread, sliced fruit or meat that you know you won’t be able to eat in time.
Each week
- Cut your time spent preparing food each week by batch cooking entire meals ahead of time that can be stored in the fridge or freezer. For example, bake and freeze chicken breasts or fry and freeze taco meat.
- Keep a running list of meals that your household already enjoys. That way, you can easily choose a meal to prepare.
- Rely on your freezer – but remember what you froze. Keep labels and a marker handy to note what you are freezing and the date on each container. This will help you plan meals, save money and reduce waste.
A special thank you to King County, Washington for developing and sharing the content of "Food: Too Good To Waste” on the pages devoted to the topic.
