With pollens, flowers and sunlight, the spring months represent a bountiful harvest and abundance of variety. But this abundance, unfortunately, brings waste along with it. Alas, about half of the fruits and vegetables produced goes to the trash in this season. You can help avoid this by choosing to buy vegetables that are in season. Also, buying in moderate quantities according to portions, even if it is a favourite, can help cut down on leftover veggie waste in your kitchen from the start.
So how can we keep the beautiful veggies that Spring brings fresh longer?
Cucumber
Fresh, light, tasty and 100% all edible. You can use the peels to make a mask, detox water, soup or even a delicious smoothie. Try to keep cucumbers as dry as possible, the more moisture they come into contact with the faster they go bad. If you washed them all after purchase, make sure they have dried thoroughly by letting them dry outside before placing in the refrigerator. Once all the excess moisture is gone, keep it in the FullFresh+ compartment of your Grundig fridge, separately from other fruits and vegetables. If you’re only going to use some of the cucumbers, chop up what you need and keep the rest whole in the fridge for longer freshness. You can use it for making breakfast, smoothie or even as a snack when looking for something to eat.
Carrot
An excellent root vegetable; hearty and nutritious: Carrots are very characteristic to where it’s grown in terms of its colour, texture and taste. It deserves proper treatment for all that it offers. Carrots are also an all-edible vegetable like cucumbers, yes even the small green tips! In addition to being nutritious, carrot greens are quite tasty. Swap out the green ingredients in your favourite pesto recipe for inspired use of carrot greens or add them to amplify the flavour. You can also use them in vegetable broths or soups for aroma and consistency. If you like grated veggie fries, the contender for your next favourite is here. If the recipe needs peeled carrots, you can use the peels in others such as broths or soups. Another great option is also roasting them in the oven to make a crunchy snack. Carrots are robust root plants that can stay fresh in the refrigerator for weeks under ideal humidity conditions. Do not forget to place it in the vegetable compartment of your refrigerator, if Grundig in the FullFresh+ section, separately from other fruits and vegetables.
Onion
Onions are the easiest to grow among vegetables! You can see them quickly sprout anywhere you plant them around the house. This way, you can grow and harvest onions straight from your garden. As easy it is to grow, it is even easier to store. When favourable conditions are provided, onions can remain fresh for months. All vegetables and fruit release gases as they ripen and this gas, in turn, ripens other produce around. Which means keeping all fruits and vegetables separate from each other can help prevent their untimely ripening and rapid deterioration. If we do not separate a banana that begins to darken from others, the remaining bananas begin to darken quickly. Onions secrete this gas the most. Although onions are mostly stored together with potatoes, this causes the potato to sprout faster, which means it’s going bad. We should store onions away from other fruits and vegetables and even keep different onions separately. You can use old fabric bits to create separation folds for onions to place them together but apart enough for longer shelf life.
Spinach
Spinach is a childhood icon and entirely edible from root to leaf. A powerhouse of iron and vitamin K. Here are a few ideas on how to make the best of it by using every bit. Just like carrot greens, spinach can also be an excellent base for pesto sauces. You can add it to your omelette for more nutrition and flavour. You can even add it to your smoothies. If you bought and washed more than you will be using, make sure to dry the rest properly. Allow time for washed items to dry completely, and then you can chop the excess and store it in the freezer for later use
Tomato
Like cucumbers, tomatoes are fast-growing vegetables that don’t take up much space and quickly grow in a pot or garden. After removing the seeds of tomatoes, sow it in the ground. After watering it regularly, in a few weeks, you will be able to see your tomatoes grow, and enjoy fresh tomatoes from your garden. As easy as they are to grow, there are plenty of ways to keep tomatoes fresh. By keeping them separate from other vegetables and fruits, such as in the FullFresh+ section of your fridge, you can extend their shelf life up to 3 times. If you bought more than you need, you could also use our oven’s Fast and Healthy option to quickly dry them out and enjoy homemade dried tomatoes later on. If you’d like to keep ultimate freshness, you can keep your tomatoes, as a whole, in the freezer to use when fresh tomatoes are needed. Keeping them intact will help them retain all their water and nutritional value.
Ways to help save water by saving food
When facing excess veggies, you can always count on pickling. You can almost pickle any vegetable and keep them delicious for months, as a healthy side in your pantry. Click here for the recipe!
When shopping for food, we need to be more aware and informed about our ingredients and buy according to our needs. Remember, even ugly looking ingredients can taste great if you know what to do with it! Let’s choose seasonal and locally produced products and prioritise food that’s nearing expiry in our kitchens to avoid waste. Check out our recipes to find out what you can do with leftover food and ingredients!
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