Does anyone have a system for keeping track of what they have in the fridge so it doesn't go bad before it gets used? I hate throwing away food, but I am always finding something wilted or moldy that can't be used anymore. Today I threw away moldy leftover taco meat, some chicken, and lettuce. :(
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Posted 2 years ago #
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I like to keep a food inventory list on my computer, but then again I'm a college student and only cook for one so it's a pretty short list. I keep perishable items at the top so they are the first thing I see when thinking about meal planning.
Posted 2 years ago # -
It might be helpful to use my system. I shop for meals on Sunday nights that will last through the week. On the door of the fridge I write the list of "meal sets" so I know what to use. I don't put the days of the week there, so I can be flexible as time allows. three day example: spaghetti/garlic bread/salad/peaches.
Boboli pizza/peppers/mushrooms/sauce. Chicken/potatoes/coleslawThis also helps my husband know what food I have plans for and what he can graze on.
Posted 2 years ago # -
We just have a fridge that's way too small for a family of four. I was not happy with this arrangement at first, but since it came with our soon-to-be-ex rental house, I didn't have much choice.
With a small fridge, not much can get lost. Also, I'm using baskets to sort things out. I have a basket for dairy products (yogurt/sour cream/cheese) and a condiment basket that holds all the itty bitty jars of mustard, pickled ginger and red pepper jelly.
Posted 2 years ago # -
(1) One thing that works for me is to eat leftovers at the next meal when at all possible. For example, if I have leftover rice from dinner, we have fried rice the next day for lunch or dinner (or even breakfast). Or, like right now I have some cheese spread left over from a party -- I've been using it in place of mayo on sandwiches, and I've been having a lot of cheese-and-cracker lunches this week. Sometimes this means I'm "stuck" eating something I don't necessarily feel like eating. Too bad for me! When I have to throw food away, it's like tossing dollar bills down the garbage disposal. So I visualize that, think about underfed people in other parts of the world (or, heck, in my own city), and remind myself to be thankful that I have good, nourishing food in my fridge.
(2) Prepare only enough food for the number of people at the table. That is, avoid having leftovers at all. This can take some practice, and sometimes I still miss. Also, this can be tricky because so many things are packaged for families of four or six.
(3) Consider downsizing your fridge.
(4) Consider using more foods that don't need to be refrigerated. For example, I've found that I cannot go through a carton of milk, even a small one, before it goes sour. So I keep powdered milk on hand instead, and it works fine in white sauces and as a coffee or tea whitener. If you can shift your diet to where you don't use a lot of stuff that needs to be kept cold, then you may find you're tossing less stuff that's gone bad.
(5) Look at what's going bad, and either quit buying it or buy a lot less of it. Shop for produce more often than once per week, and buy less of it. That way you'll finish it all up before it can turn. Myself, I almost never make salads because lettuce seems to turn so quickly. Instead, I tend to keep bananas, apples, oranges, tangerines, and carrots on hand.
(6) Is stuff going bad because you're eating out or bringing home take-out, and therefore not eating what you have on hand? That makes it doubly expensive when food goes bad. Maybe you could make a new house rule that you don't get a pizza delivery if there are leftovers in the fridge.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Wow, thanks everyone! It is nice of you to give your time to respond so thoughtfully to my question. I like the idea of a running food list. And I do think I need to divide up meat when I first buy it so that I simply have less for each meal. I think I'm going to designate a drawer or shelf for leftovers so they are in one place and I can see them. Hopefully that will prevent them from getting shoved to the back of the fridge and being forgotten about!
Posted 2 years ago # -
I do pretty much the same thing as Another Deb. I plan 6 dinners for the week and the list of options stays on the white board by the fridge. When I make the grocery list every week, I start by planning the meals. To do this, I sit down with a list I made of all our favorite dishes, my cookbook, and an inventory of the stuff we already have in stock that needs to be used up. For example, I have some shredded cheddar cheese leftover from earlier this week, so when I sit down to figure out next week, I'll plan to have tacos or something one night, to use up the rest of the cheddar. I basically only buy what goes into the meals for that week, and not much else. We both eat cereal for breakfast, and French bread, goat cheese, and fruit for lunch (unless there are leftovers) so those items are always in stock, and generally get used up before they go bad.
I guess that might sound kind of a complex system, but it really takes less time, because you're doing all the thinking and deciding for the whole week at once. (I know personally I am less likely to eat crap if I already have healthy meals planned out, too, so that's an added bonus.)Posted 2 years ago # -
My system is simply to only shop one week at a time. Fresh food purchased weekly, in only the amounts that we can eat that week, with menus in mind in advance. If we end up eating out one day and not using what I'd intended to, it gets moved to the top of the list for the next week. "Long term" items like bread and cheese have to fit in the appropriate drawers - I don't buy more until the drawer is close to empty.
If you have frequently found things going bad, you may also want to consider turning down the temperature in your fridge. Ours is set at 40, I believe - and I've kept root veggies, cheese, and bread for weeks without spoilage.
An overstuffed fridge won't keep things as well as one with lots of space for air to move around. If you keep a stock of canned/bottled drinks in there, you might want to consider getting a separate beverage fridge to keep in your garage/basement/rec room. Keep your kitchen space for actual food!
Posted 2 years ago # -
I only find I have waste when I impulse buy - if I plan ahead I have dry goods kept up to a good level, and then just take a list to get specific fresh items. I then get annoyed if I have to buy too much as the packaging isn't in a small enough size!
Posted 2 years ago #
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