One really simple, rather obvious way to extend the shelf life of perishables is to cook them. If you have meat in the fridge that is approaching the Use By date, or vegetables that are starting to look a little not-so-fresh, and you don’t think you can eat them before they go bad: Cook them and stash them back in the fridge until you’re ready to eat them.
Seems pretty obvious, but lots of people just throw food away when it spoils. Instead, keep an eye on what’s in your fridge and when things are starting to turn, take action. Cooking the food will extend the shelf life by several days, which should give you time to eat them without anything going to waste.
Some tips:
- Cook it simply, so you have more options when you’re ready to eat it
- It’s not necessary to prepare a whole meal (though having precooked meals ready-to-eat in the fridge isn’t a bad idea)
- The less you season or process the food now, the more flexible it is as a dish later
- Fried chicken will always be fried chicken, but a plain, poached chicken breast can be shredded and seasoned for taco meat, or cubed and sauteed to add to pasta, or sliced and added to a stir fry, etc.
- You can “fake can” vegetables to help them last longer–you just need jars with lids and some stock
- Fill the jars with the vegetables, pack as tightly as you can
- Boil the stock and pour it into the jars (carefully!)
- When the jars are full, screw on the lids and let them sit until they reach room temperature
- Put them back in the fridge
- This is important. This is not a shelf-stable canning process and these vegetables will spoil if left at room temperature for extended periods of time. However, in the fridge, they should keep for several weeks. Don’t use if they smell funny or have started to sprout mold (which they shouldn’t, if the lids are on tight and the stock was boiling when you poured it in).
Save money. Prevent waste. Keep food out of landfills (or compost bins).