Money Saving gone TOO far?

Menolly_2

I used to get odd looks when I collected up Christmas Wrapping paper to be ironed and reused another year - I was told that I looked physically pained when the paper got ripped into unuseable sizes. I have decided to reinstate that bit of tightwaddery this year and let 'em snigger if they dare!
I can remember helping my mum to do this (ironing it on the reverse side helps to soften the sellotape so you can peel it off easily).

Beccatje

A lady we knew used to warm her little pot of milk on the radiator of the central heating until it was luke warm. She'd then pour in her porridge, let it soak and eat it out of the pot. (so she didn't have to use extra water to wash the extra dish)

The dear lady has passed on several years ago, but I'll never forget this. She was the master in being frugal! Although this milk warming thing is one bridge too far for me!
She'd scrape fusty bits off of yoghurts and jam and such. I used to think she was nuts! :rotfl:

Although... I think mould is a bridge too far for me too. (except for on hard cheese maybe)

Becca

Cornishpixie_2

I dropped a chicken once whilst taking it out of the oven, so fed it hubby anyway;) .I very rarely throw anything away, even if I have to eat yesterday's pasta cold or eat porridge and unwanted weetabix. Well done for braving the pots though:D I heard this old couple in supermarket today having a discussion. Hubby says "if there's no room in the freezer, then we'll just have to ditch all those "blooming green beans in there", But wifey wasn't having it, she stomped off! Wasting good food:rotfl:

FairyElephant_2

Glad I am not mad alone then!

I have been gradually retraining hubby to ignore 'sell by' and 'use by' and 'best before' dates, cut any mouldy bits off cheese etc. etc. I was brought up in a very frugal household - wasting food was just not done!

Re dried herbs - if you think they are a bit old and have lost some of their flavour, try gently crushing them (a pestle & mortar is ideal, but the back of a spoon in a bowl will do!) this helps release the flavour.

I dried my own chillis a couple of years ago and I keep them in a screwtop jar, then transfer them into a pepper-mill thingy and crush some over or into dishes as I want (delicious sprinkled over cheese on toast as it is cooking - yum!). They still have LOADS of flavour!!!!

Skint_Catt

foreversomeday - if it's not too late my mum throws out leftover cold chips to the birds (but they need to be cooked first!) she often aosks them in water too before thoring them out - the birds love them!

Olliebeak

Caterina wrote: »

Hi Ollie
I have since started putting them in plastic zip-bags (since an American friend of mine left one in my house after we ate the contents!) in the fridge and the herbs keep fresh for much longer.

HTH

Caterina

I've now started chopping my fresh herbs and freezing them in ordinary plastic sandwich bags with those twisty ties to keep them closed.

I'm now also peeling, blanching and freezing most of my veggies as soon as they're bought. Onions just get peeled, chopped and frozen and garlic is peeled and frozen as individual cloves. I usually do this on a Saturday or Sunday morning for some reason.

OH often gets up complaining about the smell of chopped onions or garlic - doesn't complain when he's eating them in something yummy that I've cooked though :rolleyes:!

EagerLearner

Olliebeak wrote: »

OH often gets up complaining about the smell of chopped onions or garlic - doesn't complain when he's eating them in something yummy that I've cooked though :rolleyes:!

If he complains I'd ask him if he'd like to volunteer to do the job instead - including cooking! Your OH would soon retreat into 'mmmm, yummy garlic smell!' :rotfl:

I have frozen garlic as a whole bulb and then just break off cloves as needed, works fine :T Plus the peel comes off so much easier that way than when raw.

I have a load of onions now, must chop and freeze!

[Deleted User]

I always wrap celery in tin foil and store in the fridge and it seems to keep for ages, as i live alone I can't always get through a whole celery in a week anyway.When it really starts to get too 'bendy' then it gets chopped up and chucked into soups or stews. I always chop onions up small (I love it when they are on the offer or reduced) and put them into three of those little plastic bags free from the veggie bit in Mr T's ,one inside the other that way my freezer doesn't smell too oniony. Managed to buy a big bunch of leeks at half price two weeks ago than got washed ,chopped and frozen in this way

rach

Not long ago I fed DH and his mate some custard made from powder best before 2000!!! Apart from being a bit tasteless nobody died...

moanymoany

I would not eat green potato - or melting slimy potatoes - but I do eat bendy and soft potatoes. In fact I don't bother with the dates on vegetables. No matter how bendy - they get cooked.