Saving Money and Being Green in the Kitchen

Earlier, I discussed some of my own money saving tips and ideas. to help keep your bathroom clean, eco-friendly, and cheap. Let’s move on to the kitchen.

The first way to save money and become more eco-friendly in the kitchen is by using it to begin with. It’s so easy and seemingly inexpensive to go for the dollar menu, but eating at home can save you money in the long run because it is healthier. I have managed to come up with meals that cost as low as $1 per meal. I’ll talk recipes in a later blog. Growing your own vegetables and herbs may be an option that will help you green your kitchen window and your impact. Small gardens can be grown in a window, on a balcony, or even next to your doorstep. If you have a bigger “crop” than you expected, frestraweze some or give the rest to a friend. Growing your own vegetables when possible will help to save you money and reduce carbon emissions that are usually needed for shipping.

Cooking takes so much time, right? Only if you’re preparing a six-course meal! I make easy to prepare dishes such as pasta with vegetables, steamed potatoes, green bean casserole, and frozen lasagna. Instead of cooking every night, prepare 5 or 6 different meals one night per week and pack them up into containers for convenient lunching throughout the week. In addition to saving money, you’ll also be reducing your impact by not using the paper packaging fast food joints have to offer.

Now that you’ve been inspired to start cooking at home, you should go out and buy some Gladware, Tupperware, or some other sort of plasticy ware to store your food in.

PSYCHE!

Instead of reaching for the $2.00 storage containers that probably aren’t recyclable, save the plastic containers from your TV dinners, butter bowls, ice cream, and any other container suitable for food storage. The zippered bags from frozen vegetables, shredded cheese, and snack mixes are usually the perfect size for storing the TV dinner trays. After a few months of saving reusable containers, you’ll have more “real plastic” dishes than you need, and will be able to recycle the TV dinner trays.

At this point, we’ve grown our own food, cooked it, and stored it in recycled containers. I know you’re probably tired by now, but there’s still more work to be done. Now, we need to clean up the aftermath of all the money-saving action. Instead of piling everything into the dishwasher and hitting start, soak the dishes in the sink for a few minutes to make cleanup easier. If you really want to save money, you can suck it up and scrub the dishes with a soapy sponge. Wash all of the dishes at once, then rinse them all at the same time in order to minimize your water consumption. I sometimes save our dishwater for watering plants afterwards. The soapy residue is mild enough to be safe for plants, but strong enough to help repel insects and other pests. Instead of using several towels to dry, simply stack the dishes up and let them air dry. After the drying is complete, you can hang the towel outside to further extend its use before washing. In my experiences, drying towels outside results in less stiffness than drying indoors. Once you’re done, it’s time for a cup o’ coffee.

You’re probably already aware of the best way to minimize the impact of your caffeine rich drink of choice, which is to buy a reusable cup. A less popular way is to trade your paper coffee filters for a reusable metal filter. These filters can be found at stores such as Bed, Bath, and Beyond, Target, and your local health food store for under $10. After you’re done brewing, you can simply dump your grounds into a plant or compost bin and rinse out the filter for the next use. Wanting something more than plain coffee with cream? Try ordering your favorite add-ins online from EBay or elsewhere. Even after spending more for the syrup and shipping, it was still much cheaper to make frozen coffee at home. You can also find some really cute cups with reusable lids and straws for about $5.00 that you can take with you to work. I bought an insulated cup that also has a cap for a straw so that I can use it for both hot and cold drinks. I take it everywhere I go, and some places even give a discount for using it.

Finally, here are some random paper and trash bag saving tips that will help you further green your kitchen. Don’t use paper towels or napkins, use reusable cloth napkins. If you want something more absorbent, try white washcloths. Use your dirty cloth napkins to wipe up spills or clean floors before washing. Remember, doing laundry consumes time, resources, and money!
Don’t buy trash bags especially for smaller cans. Use small plastic bags from shopping trips, or from a friend’s shopping trip. I’ve found that I can’t convince everyone to carry canvas bags, but it is quite easy to convince them to give you their plastic bags instead of throwing them away. The plastic bags are also good for freezer storage, lunch sacks, and as padding in shipping containers. They can also be used for cleaning up pet waste, lining cat boxes, as a dust cover for shoes, and as an ice pack. I carry one with a giant can of pork and beans in it for use as a lethal weapon in case of attack.

Okay, so I made up the last part, but I know you either laughed or secretly wondered what I was smoking.

That’s all for now. As always, if you enjoyed reading this, please rate me. Thank you, and keep checking in for more money/planet saving tips. Here’s the link to the bathroom tips, just in case you missed them: here.

Be on the lookout for more money saving tips and strategies. If you liked this blog (or even if you didn’t), please rate it! I will do the same in return for you. If you liked it so much you jumped up and down, click here.

Thanks for reading!