Don't Toss That Sour Milk! And Other Tips To Cut Kitchen Food Waste

One man's trash is another man's treasure. As we show in the video above, this is what chef Dan Barber demonstrated earlier this year, when he temporarily turned Blue Hill, his Michelin-starred restaurant in New York City, into an incubator for garbage-to-plate dining. Barber's intent was to raise awareness about the vast issue of food waste. As we've reported, an estimated 133 billion pounds of food is wasted in the U.S. 1,500 of food yearly.

All this wasted food is the largest component of solid waste in our landfills, and when it rots, it emits methane — a potent greenhouse gas linked to climate change. So, you may be wondering, what can I do in my own kitchen, I talked to Dana Gunders of the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Her new book, Waste-Free Kitchen Handbook, which is out this month, is full of tips for tackling food waste at home. An edited transcript of our conversation follows. I've got to start with my favorite tip in the book: eggs. There's actually a simple test to tell whether they're still good to eat,

Yes. I was really surprised to learn that eggs are good for three to five weeks after their expiration date. And a trick to know if they're still good is to put them in a bowl of water, and if the eggs sink, they're still good to eat. But if they float, they're not good to eat. The science is that the eggshells are somewhat air permeable, and so over time, they lose moisture and it gets replaced with air. Most fruits and vegetables — particularly after being cut — store better in an airtight container, Gunders says.

And it's best to store them in see-through containers so we don't forget about them. Most fruits and vegetables — particularly after being cut — store better in an airtight container, Gunders says. And it's best to store them in see-through containers so we don't forget about them. Decoding expiration dates: A lot of Americans toss food away once the date stamped on a food package passes. But, as we've reported, lots of food is still perfectly good to eat.

Yes. A lot of people misunderstand the dates on food packages. Those dates are actually a manufacturer's best guess as to when a product is at its freshest. Often products can be eaten days, weeks and months after those dates, depending on the product. To extend shelf life, there are a range of tips.

For instance, cheese is best stored in wax paper, because it lets it breathe and it's less likely to mold. Think Nobody Wants To Buy Ugly Fruits And Veggies, I know I'm guilty of letting farmers market produce sit in the back of a crisper drawer too long, and once I finally find, say, a head of greens, it's all wilted. I see that in the book, you say there may still be hope for these sorry-looking vegetables,

Yes, most vegetables that wilt in the fridge can be soaked in a bowl of ice water, and that will crisp them up. I've been amazed at how a droopy carrot can perk up in a bowl of ice water. It seems once lettuce goes a little brown and watery, it's too far gone to eat. We saute all our other greens.

When it gets a little brown or wilted, sauteing it is a way to use it up. You talk about the importance of using your freezer to its full potential. Can you give some examples, If I have a bit of a leftover ingredient — say, an onion — I'll chop it up and toss it in the freezer. Or, if I have a half-can of tomatoes, it's easy to pop it in the freezer. Bread is a great thing to stick in the freezer. If it's unsliced, it's best to slice it before freezing.



That way, you don't have to defrost the whole thing. You can just pop it in the toaster. And milk. It's easy to put your milk in the freezer when you go on vacation. Defrost it when you come back. Then you don't need to go to the store to get milk for your coffee on the first day back! I'm imagining that milk is one of the more common items that Americans toss out.

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