No matter whether you’re relying on old trusted recipes, sustaining mainly on pizza and chocolate or trying out new recipes like nobody’s business, we all need to limit time spent outside and the number of trips to the shops. Also, queues to online food deliveries ain’t always short...So, it’s in our (and the planet’s) best interest to really make the most out of the foods we have at home. We have an opportunity to discover new ways of using ingredients we might normally discard and get savvy in the kitchen, so let’s embrace it and make it delicious!
For this post we listed some simple tips to make the most out of the ingredients you find in your kitchen. Enjoy!
Simple stir-fries
Stir-fries are an excellent way to use up veggies that might have lost some of their firmness and are past their prime. Once you tuck into the steaming stir-fry on a bed of rice, you won’t remember that the bell peppers were a bit wrinkly, the carrots and celery stalks a tad soft and the tomato riper that ripe. Additionally, in case you’re somewhat dubious about broccoli stalks and don’t know what to do with them - into the stir-fry they go! After being chopped up into smaller pieces of course. (You can also munch on them raw, crunchy and delicious!) In order to make this savvy stir-fry more fulfilling and take it to the next level, we often add in some tempeh, too. What a surprise! What can we say, we love our plant-based protein.
Comforting soups
Wilted veggies or their frozen counterparts, all those cartons of (plant-based) milk, bags of pulses and tins of tomatoes (and a blender) make up a lovely, comforting soup a.k.a hug in a bowl. Many of us are currently experiencing a hug deficit and if we need to get our hugs from a bowl then so be it. We also love the tip we got from @poorlondonvegan who has been adding tempeh mince to her soups - what a delicious way to make soups a bit heartier!
Many ways to make a pasta sauce
Faced with big, scary cauliflower leaves when you open the fridge door? Fret not, just pop those bad boys in the oven with some oil, salt and pepper and you’ll be awarded with a delicious side dish. You can even chuck the roasted cauliflower leaves in a simple pasta sauce to bulk it up and to add some texture - why not! Go wild and experiment ;)
We like our pasta sauces to also have a meaty bite and tempeh mince is our favourite way to get that, as well as a punch of protein. Based on what the supermarket shelves looked like some time ago, bags of pasta or spaghetti can be found in basically everyone’s cupboards, so now is the time to get creative with the ingredients you have and find new ways of making pasta sauce. Who knows, you might just stumble upon a banging combination by accident!
Easy savoury porridge recipe
If you’ve ran out of rice and pasta but have a big bag of oats in your cupboard, could we tempt you to give savoury porridge a go? Our designer Ursa’s fiancé has come up with the following delicious recipe: cook the porridge separately (with water) and whilst the porridge is cooking, sauté some thinly sliced onions and mushrooms on a pan. Once the onions and mushrooms are slightly brown, add them in the porridge and cook for another 5-10 minutes. Finish off with your choice of seasoning (e.g. garlic, pepper, salt, parsley...). And there you have it, special porridge with just a few simple ingredients and no hassle!
Five reasons to use up the ingredients in your cupboards
It’s amazing what kind of delicious creations we can come up with when we go “shopping” in our own cupboard, deep dive into our fridge and freezer, let go of the need to follow recipes to the T, and let our inspiration run wild. This way, we’re not only reducing trips to the shops, saving money, stimulating our creativity and pleasing our taste buds but we’re also saving food from going to waste - and that’s something this planet will thank you for also after the lockdown. Happy cooking folks!
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