Two Tips to Save You Time and Money in the Kitchen
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I had a kitchen epiphany the other day. I was chopping up onions and green pepper for my Baked Ziti I was making that night. I didn’t need to use the entire onion for dinner and was going to put it in a ziploc bag in the fridge. Then I remember we were leaving for vacation in two days and wouldn’t get a chance to use up the rest before we left; and it would be spoiled by the time we got back.
Then it hit me.
For those of you who already can and freeze large quantities of food you probably already know this, but I’m kicking myself for not figuring it out YEARS ago.
I chopped up the remaining green pepper and onion and then placed them each in a freezer ziploc bag and stuck them in the freezer.
Next time I want to make pasta, fajitas or anything else that I will need onions or green pepper for I won’t have to worry about running to the store for fresh produce. And they are already chopped for me. The ziploc bags I got free with coupons so there is no extra cost and the onions and green pepper won’t go to waste just because I won’t be able to use them right away. Freezing extra veggies will save me time and money.
The next tip is more of a time-saver. Have you ever been to one of those “Make 12 meals in 2 hours kitchens”? The Dinner A’Faire and Simple Suppers are a few of the franchises where you can go assemble 6-12 meals in less then 2 hours; and the store the meals in your freezer. My idea is a bit of a spin-off of those kitchens.
When I made my Baked Ziti I simply doubled up the recipe, cooked half for dinner that night and placed the remaining amount in a gallon sized freezer Ziploc bag to eat at a later time. When we are ready to eat it I’ll stick it in the fridge to thaw 24 hours before we are going to eat it. This will be a big time saver for me when I know that I will be on the go our out of the house much of the day. Meals frozen this way should stay fresh in the freezer for about 3 months, if not longer.
So to recap:
1. Have extra veggies when you are preparing dinner? Chop up the remaining produce and store in freezer ziploc bags.
2. Double on ingredients when you make your favorite meals. Store and freeze half in a freezer ziploc bag to eat at a later date.
What tips do you have for saving money and time in the kitchen?
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You can also freeze extra tomato paste in 1-tsp blobs on a sheet of waxed paper; when frozen, transfer your blobs into a freezer bag. Then you can take out only what you need. 3-tsp = 1-tbsp.
Ever buy those large unsliced loaves of bread for a special dinner? We never eat the whole loaf, so I throw whatever is left into the freezer. Then occasionally I’ll take out a few and grate using the large holes on a box grated and make breadcrumbs. I store my breadcrumbs in a large freezer bag in the freezer and have them available any time I need them. (I sometimes season them with dried parsley, parmesan cheese, etc., for quick italian meals.)
[…] by subscribing to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!About a month or so ago I wrote about finally discovering how much time and money could be saved by freezing left-over diced onions and green peppers […]