4 Simple Pre-Festive Budgeting Tips
With summer, the festive season and school holidays around the corner, now is the perfect time to get serious about saving some extra cash.
Keep Fruits and Vegetables Fresh for Longer
Stretch your budget with these great hacks that will save your fruit and veg from the bin.
1. Chop and freeze
If you find that your onions and spring onions are going bad before you get the chance to use them, chop them up and freeze them inside an empty water bottle or resealable bag. Once they are frozen, simply shake or take out what you need and return the rest to the freezer. For other vegetables, place them in a pot of boiling water for 1-2 minutes and refresh in cold water before you freeze them.
2. No more floppy herbs
Soft herbs like parsley, coriander, dill, mint, and basil can be stored upright at room temperature in a glass with cool water. Chop any leftover herbs and store in an ice cube tray, fill with water and place them in the freezer. When you’re ready to use them, just pop as many cubes as you need into your cooking. Hard herbs, such as rosemary, thyme, sage, and chives, will last longer if stored in the fridge - wrap them in dry kitchen paper before putting into airtight containers or resealable bags.
3. Beautiful berries
Wash the berries in a diluted vinegar bath (1 part vinegar to 3 parts water) and leave them to dry completely on kitchen paper. Store them in a container lined with kitchen paper, leaving the lid slightly ajar to allow any moisture to escape. The vinegar lowers the pH level on the surface of the berries and helps keep bacteria and mould spores to a minimum.
4. Crunchy carrots
Once carrots have been harvested, they last for quite a while. However, they may not always look appealing or have the best flavour if kept in a plastic bag in your drawer. For sweet, tender, and crunchy carrots, cut off their leafy greens and keep them submerged in a small tub of water in the fridge. The hard flesh won’t get mushy, and you won’t have dried-out crusty-looking carrots. The flavour will stay sweeter for longer as well.
