Prevent Wasted Food

Eeek, it’s ethylene!! & other freshness tips for summer produce

Summer Greetings, Conscientious Food Consumers!

Don’t you love the colors, smells and, of course, the taste of fresh summertime produce? From berries to basil and beets, cherries to cherry tomatoes, chives to cucumbers, peaches and peppers to parsley, radishes, herbs, all kinds of leafy greens and so many others, we are blessed with a variety of lovely plant edibles here in the Willamette Valley. Whether you grow your own, buy from a store or farmers’ market, now’s the time to make the most of the abundant fruit and veggies in season!

Recent garden haul: strawberries, basil, radishes, lettuces, arugula — ready for PREP NOW EAT LATER & proper storage

That means wasting less, more “Prep Now/Eat Later” and proper storage of those products, and respecting the time and energy all the water, energy, human time and labor, soil amendment and transportation cost that went into their production and delivery. Not to mention all that $$ YOU SPENT on produce or on seeds, plant starts, garden supplies and water!

It helps to keep a little science in mind when handling produce fresh from the garden, market or grocery store. Did you know that certain fruits and veggies are best stored separately, due to a certain naturally-occurring ripening agent?

EEEK! IT’S ETHYLENE!

Ethylene gas is a plant hormone released by certain fruits and vegetables during their maturation process — think apples, avocados, tomatoes, bananas and peaches, to name just a few. We’ve all had our share of revolting experiences with the wrinkly, shriveled, spotty, mushy, moldy and rotting after-effects of ethylene vapors (like our Kitchen Confessions here)! Neighboring fruit or veggies, BEWARE!

Here’s a few things for Conscientious Consumers to know:

  • AN INTRO TO ETHYLENE — from a helpful gardening site we found during our blog research. Here’s another good summary, and a more academic treatment of the subject is here.
  • FRUITS RELEASE MORE ethylene than veggies (generally speaking), and unripe fruits — with skins and stems intact — tend to be lower emitters. A warm environment (such as indoors on your counter) encourages ethylene release, affecting both the fruit itself and any neighboring produce.
  • REFRIGERATION slows down the effects of ethylene and gives you more time to make use of those fresh and highly-perishable items.
  • KNOW YOUR CULPRITS. Which fruits and veggies are ethylene-emitters, and which aren’t? Which are ethylene-sensitive or not? (Not: blueberries.) Which ones are affected by ethylene off-gassing after harvest (think plums, peaches), and which are not? There’s lots of lists available from your favorite search engine. 
  • You can LEVERAGE ETHYLENE to speed up ripening for those rock-hard avocados or nectarines you just picked up. Stick ’em in a bag together and check in a day or two.
  • BRUISES or BROKEN SKIN on produce make it extra-vulnerable to both ethylene and spoilage, so prompt action is needed! In many cases, you can just trim off the damaged parts and prep the rest for juicing, smoothies, cooking, purees, and freezer meals or treats.
  • Ethylene isn’t all bad — riper fruit tastes better!

AVOID THE “EEEK!” FACTOR & KEEP IT FRESH!

  • SEGREGATE and STORE each produce item in its own bag, basket or container, on the counter or in the appropriate area of your fridge or freezer. CHECK DAILY for the ripeness status of tricky perishables like avocados, peaches and tomatoes.
  • After ripening on the counter and transferring to your fridge, label the ripest items to EAT FIRST!
  • HANDLE WITH CARE. Especially when picking produce yourself or transferring to baskets or containers, try to avoid damaging the skins or removing the tops/stems of fruits like strawberries and tomatoes, to prevent additional off-gassing or gas absorption.
  • Do take the time to PREP leafy greens and veggies like carrots and radishes, for quick salads, snacks and less waste! (photos below)
  • Ethylene-suppressed avo, almost-ripe & chill in its own little cubby in our fridge door!
    Prepped garden radishes w/tops

    LEAVE  THOSE CUTE LITTLE CAPS ON your strawberries to keep ’em fresher, longer! You can also go zero waste and make use of those strawberry tops in several ways –they’re highly nutritious.  Just DON’T wash berries until ready to serve and eat.

  • JUST FREEZE IT — especially with cut or past-prime fruit. Keep track of what’s in there with our ever-popular Freezer Inventory form (also in Spanish).
  • USE A PAPER BAG to separate and store ethylene-emitters like peaches, pears, plums and nectarines. It will contain the gas, ripen the fruit AND protect their produce neighbors from accelerated spoilage!
  • Try using an ETHYLENE ABSORBER product like BluApple in your produce drawers. (Note: not necessarily a product endorsement.)
  • REMEMBER FOOD SAFETY — wash and store produce carefully! Damp fruits or veggies in a plastic bag can encourage bacterial growth and mold — so make sure to dry them off first. Check the USDA’s FoodKeeper site for complete info.
Smart Prep w/greens: harvest, wash, spin, layer
Click photo for handy Fruit & Veggie Storage Guide!
  • GREENS CAN STAY FRESH up to a week when you do smart prep and storage! Rinse, spin and place between layered strips of recycled-content paper towels. Repurposed plastic clamshell containers work great for this! Revive wilted greens in a bath of cold water.
  • HELP KIDS learn about growing food, as well as food storage and handling, through OSU’s Food Hero program. There’s tons of colorful reference guides (like this one about strawberries), multicultural, kid- and elder-friendly recipes, and helpful gardening info.

Remember, Conscientious Food Consumers, the best way to avoid “Eeek! Ethylene!” encounters is to EAT IT UP!

Waste-less cooking for one can be fun!

Greetings, Conscientious Food Consumers!

Back in the pre-COVID era when we tabled regularly at the Corvallis winter and downtown Farmers’ Markets, I had interesting encounters with all kinds of folks who ventured over to our booth to pitch questions and comments, play our “Food Storage IQ” game, take the waste-less pledge (like our market patron below) or to share a favorite food memory or kitchen hack.

Many also shared their own “kitchen confessions,” including this one: “I live alone, and I can’t believe how much of my food gets wasted!” 

She was being a bit hard on herself. For years she’d prepared meals for several people, but now that she lived as both a widow and an empty-nester, our booth visitor was having trouble adjusting her food shopping and preparation habits.  And since many food products are packaged for family-sized meals, the leftovers tended to be more than she could handle.

On the other end of the spectrum, I also encountered singles establishing their first households as young adults. They too knew it was easy to let good food go bad — and they were eager to start out with good non-wasting habits in their own kitchens.

2019 Farmers’ Market patron (status: none of our business)

I was happy to provide these folks, and others to follow, with some of our Smart Strategies (in English and Spanish) and other tactics to try at home. (Keep scrolling!)

In recent years, online resources galore have sprung up to cater to the needs of small-batch and “cooking for one” audiences. A few examples: One Dish Kitchen: the simple pleasure of cooking for one (including meatless and many other recipes), the Kitchn’s meal plans, and 66 recipes from Tasty.co can get you started. You can also get help scaling down your recipes for one with this handy converter.

There’s also plenty of support through social media groups, recipes on Pinterest or Instagram, and a nearly-infinite variety of videos and cookbooks from celebrity chefs and everyday folks alike.

Whether single by circumstance or choice, people living alone in their own dwellings (no housemates or live-in companions) comprised 28% of all households in 2018, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Then came the pandemic and sheltering in place, magnifying the sense of isolation for many.

So let’s have fun with waste-less cooking for one! NOTE: Even if you’re living with family, a partner, housemates or other arrangement, there will still be times when you’re on your own for preparing a meal.

1. FIRST, THE FUN PART: it’s all your choice!  You know your own taste and appetite — so be as spontaneous, creative and adventuresome as you like. Browse some recipes from the links in this blog. Have an omelet for dinner! Dessert in a mug! Maybe your kids, your ex or late spouse didn’t like spicy food, but now you can wander freely through the wondrous world of herbs and spice. (I like cooking with and eating garlic almost every day, and no one complains.)

2. WASTE LESS, MEAL PLAN MORE. Build a week’s worth of menus after “shopping” your fridge, freezer and pantry first. (Here’s a more detailed example of a one-person meal plan.) Then make up your grocery shopping list. Keep in mind that many food products don’t come in single-serving packages, so you’ll need to find different ways to use those up to get your money’s worth. That’s pretty easy to do with a rotisserie chicken, but what about tortillas that only come in packages of 12? (Solution: freeze half of ’em!)

3. WASTE LESS, PREP MORE. You’re more likely to stick to your solo meal plan if substantial parts of it are ready to go. So just loop your favorite playlist and have fun cleaning, slicing, dicing, roasting/baking and packing some ready-to-use or freeze meal components like: proteins (meat/fish/poultry or grains), veggies (what’s not to like about easy sheet pan meals?) and fruits. It can take as little as a “power hour” or two over the weekend! 

“Eat First” Single Portion Meal #1 Salmon Scrambled Egg w/onion

4. NO-FAIL LEFTOVERS. Get creative with random food items (and keep them out of the compost bin) with apps like Big Oven! Example: My one baked salmon fillet (see photos) served as the anchor for two meals and a snack (salmon pate), using some cooked red rice, two types of onion, egg, fresh rosemary and packaged soup from my fridge’s “Eat First” shelf.

“Eat First” Single Portion Meal #2 Salmon Fried Rice w/curry soup

5. SHOP THE BULK and DELI SECTIONS at the grocery store or shop Farmers’ Markets to ensure you’re buying just what you can use. Try buying just one chicken breast instead of a package of four; a custom portion of cheese instead of a whole package; or maybe a couple ounces of those gourmet olives you’ve been secretly craving, instead of a whole can!

Example: Carrots from the bulk produce bin or a bag of pre-peeled minis?

Recently I gambled on whether I could use up a one-pound bag. It was a safe bet: carrots are a versatile veggie that stores well in the fridge (check our A-Z Fruit and Vegetable Storage Guide for details). My plan called for carrots fresh, roasted and stewed — and I enjoyed every bit of them.

Kitchen Confession: In the past, I automatically purchased the bagged ones — and inevitably, two months later, they’d end up at the bottom of my crisper drawer as a partial-bag of dried-up or slimy baby carrots.

6. MAKE YOUR OWN FROZEN CONVENIENCE MEALS and save $$$ by investing a bit of freezer-prep time, creating ready-to-cook single meals and side dishes from the items you prepped in Tip #3 above (make sure to blanch the veggies first). Freeze small batches of bread, tortillas or baked goods before they get moldy on the counter. For a special treat, there’s frozen chocolate chip cookie dough in pre-portioned scoops (see tip #19 at Easy Single-Person Cooking Ideas)! Just don’t forget to keep track of what’s in there.

Finally — GO AHEAD, REWARD YOURSELF with some tasty takeout for wasting less during the week! (Restaurant portions can be generous, so you’ll probably get two meals out of it.)

Whether you’re stuck with it or thrilled to be your own chef, have fun cooking for one!

‘Chillin’ with those summertime fruits and veggies

Greetings, Conscientious Food Consumers!

It’s “chillin’ time” — mid-summer — here in the Mid-Willamette Valley. We endured a heat wave in late July with near-triple-digits, while our gardens and markets were bursting with colorful varieties of seasonal produce. Now the challenge is on: getting it all harvested, properly stored, processed, prepared and onto our plates before too much of it ends up in the compost!

Despite our best intentions, fruit and vegetables are still the most common foods that end up going to waste. We can be more proactive about waste prevention right after the produce enters our homes, by taking the time to

  • properly store it in the right places, and
  • do some prep and processing so it’s ready to be cooked and/or consumed.

You’ll be delighted by the convenience and cost savings these habits can deliver for you and your family!

To support this process, No Food Left Behind (NFLB) offers the A-Z Fruit & Vegetable Storage Guide. for preserving the “fresh factor” of your summer produce. For example: fresh basil leaves will turn black if subjected to refrigeration. Keep bunches of basil green and fragrant by storing them in a cup of water on the kitchen counter, with an optional plastic bag “tent” over the top to keep them moist.

Prep Now, Eat Later:  Clean and prepare your produce for upcoming meals and snacks before they go into the different “chill” areas of your fridge — and you’ll see how quickly they tend to get used up and eaten! A batch of carrot and celery sticks, stored in a tall glass of water on the fridge shelf, makes it very easy to grab a healthy snack throughout the week.

Blanch before freezing: Some fruits and most veggies will need more prep before going into the freezer, through a pre-cooking/cooling process known as “blanching.” This easy process helps preserve the flavor, vitamins and colors of your produce — though it requires some careful attention. You can get the details on this process from OSU’s Extension Service, a quick Web search, or a thumb-through of your favorite cookbook!

Don’t overload your freezer. The “chill” needs to have some space to circulate around your stored items. Be sure to check this Refrigerator and Freezer Storage Chart for recommended time limits.

Food safety questions? Just call OSU’s Extension Service’s Food Safety and Preservation toll-free hotline at 800-354-7319, staffed by certified Master Food Preserver volunteers, Monday – Friday between 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., through October 9, 2020.

What’s in your freezer? Don’t freeze it and forget it!

JEANETTE keeps track with NFLB’s  handy-dandy Freezer Inventory Guide. It works best when combined with NFLB’s other “Smart Strategies” to help you plan more, waste less and save more money.

This week’s Kitchen Confession:

KAREN CONFESSES:

With peak veggie/salad season underway, I picked up some cilantro-based salad dressing from the refrigerator case at my local store. After I got home, I left the bottle on the kitchen counter, anticipating using it on a salad with my evening meal. (Typically I use dressings that don’t need refrigerating until after the bottle has been opened.)

Tragically, I neglected to READ THE LABEL specifying that refrigeration was always required. The salad did not happen that evening after all, but the bottle remained on my kitchen counter. Two days later, the magic of organic compounds fermenting had burst the lid, and the dressing was ruined.

$$ WASTED: $3.49

LESSON LEARNED: Read product labels! Make a note on my “Smart Shopping List” next time I’m looking for a new salad dressing.

NATIONAL FARMER’S MARKET WEEK: AUGUST 2-8, 2020

Whether you do your own garden and harvesting or not, let’s not forget the valuable labor of the farm workers who bring the bounty of the fields and greenhouses to our grocery stores and markets. Hooray for the harvesters! You can celebrate these essential workers and Oregon’s direct-to-customer growers August 2-8, National Farmer’s Market Week.

We are now tabling at the Corvallis Southtown Farm Stand & Market from 5-7pm on Tuesdays through October. If you haven’t done so already, check out this charming neighborhood-style market at the dead end of SE Alexander Avenue, and stop by to say hello!