Nine ways to use every part of your fruit and veg

Northern Beaches’ War on Waste

Since we’ve been social distancing, many of us have been getting more creative in the kitchen as well as trying to limit our trips to the supermarket. We’ve been writing shopping lists, pre-planning meals, using up what we already have at home, saving leftovers and cooking large quantities to freeze and eat later.

As restrictions begin to ease, these are all good habits we should try and continue post COVID-19, as they reduce food waste as well as save on weekly grocery bills.

But what if we told you, there is another way you can reduce food waste using your humble fruit and vegetables? A lot of what we throw into our compost or landfill bin can be used and adds something a bit different to your meals. 

Here are some ideas to use everything from root to stem:

Broccoli stems - peel and slice them before steaming or eat them as is. You can also chop them up and add to stir fry and salads. Citrus rinds - before juicing an orange or lemon, grate the rind and freeze in a sealable bag.  Add to cakes, muffins and dressings.Fennel leaves - these feathery leaves can be used like fresh herbs and added to pesto, vinaigrettes, salads, roasted veggies or pasta dishes. Cauliflower leaves and stems - these unsuspecting leaves can add some extra greenery to your stir fries. Chop up the stems and use them as you would cauliflower florets.Vegetable trimmings - add the ends of clean root veggies, asparagus, celery as well as the leaves of celery too with some herbs and turn them into a flavoursome broth. Beetroot stalks and leaves – make a creative side dish by heating some oil in a pan with garlic, ginger and chilli. Add some preserved lemon, orange zest and beetroot leaves until they wilt. Add ½ teaspoon of nutmeg, juice from 2 oranges, salt and pepper and some sliced beetroot stems for extra crunch. A tasty and unique side dish!Carrot tops – boil carrot tops to take the bitterness out of the leaves. You can use them to make pesto, veggie stock or add them to salads, stir-fries and smoothies. They make a lovely garnish too!Leek – Don’t forget you can use the entire leek, not just the white part.Coriander and parsley stems – if you’re making pesto, don’t just use the leaves, the stems have plenty of flavour as well.

We have a series of webinars to help you learn about other ways you can reduce your waste- learn how to preserving excess veggies and fruit, how to make tasty stocks, marinades and sauerkraut and how to feed your family healthy meals while reducing waste. 

Remember if you can’t find a use for it, throw it in your compost, not your red lidded landfill bin. If you don’t have a compost bin, check out Kimbriki’s webinar to help get you started.