Although your Thanksgiving most definitely looks different this year, it’s can and should still be a joyful holiday! Take your time off to make those comfort foods you love and crave at this time of year because YOU DESERVE IT.
Let’s talk Thanksgiving and food waste. While it’s a holiday that we usually eat about a day’s worth of calories at one sitting… that’s not actually what were’r focusing on today. You’re welcome and enjoy your meal(s) 🙂
Thanksgiving in BIG in terms of food waste. Experts estimate around 200 million pounds of turkey, 40 million pounds of mashed potatoes and 30 million pounds of stuffing will go to waste this Thanksgiving. It adds up, that’s for sure.
Here are some tips for you to do your part and reduce the wasting of delicious Thanksgiving food in your home!
- Make Less.
You know what you’re going to cook because it’s probably the same foods you cooked last year. If you have a great memory (great for you; I don’t), then think about what you had excess of last year. Calculate your portions and don’t give into the urge to make extras. Here is the Guest-Imator tool to help you estimate portions for the number of people you’re cooking for.
2. Check Your Freezer
Plan ahead and eat up the things you have stored in the freezer before you host Thanksgiving. This way you’ll have room in the freezer for any Thanksgiving leftovers. Instead of tossing them out, have a Thanksgiving round #2 with reheats! Trust me, this makes for an easy meal in the future since you’ve already done all the work in cooking the food! Just reheat and pat yourself on the back for not wasting your hard work.
3. In the Spirit of Leftovers…
Get out your creative side to utilize your leftovers in a different way to avoid flavor fatigue. Or, if you’re not super creative then check out some of the many Leftover Cookbooks out there. If you find yourself constantly collecting recipes and recipe books then Click Here to find a list of cookbooks for fighting food waste that was created by a fellow blogger.
4. What Research Says
You know I love research SO SO MUCH! So I, of course, had to consult research on this one and here’s what it tells us… the more organized your leftovers are, the more likely you are to eat them. Consider labeling your containers as you put them in the fridge or freezer. Or, what I do is only use clear containers so that I can see what’s in them without having to open the containers.
That’s all! There are more ways out there to minimize your food waste every day and for Thanksgiving but I’ve found that these four tips are the easiest and prove to be most effective.
Comment your Thanksgiving tips for reducing waste or getting the most out of your holiday foods!
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