Buy smaller things

popshed

This may be of use to somebody so no flaming please

When buying loose fruit and veg like bananas, onions and courgettes, which are sold by weight, it's completely pointless picking out the largest and most impressive examples, go for the smaller ones.

You don't eat 40g of bananas, you eat 'a banana' whether it's large or small. You don't stop eating a large banana half way through and throw the rest away because you're full, and you're equally unlikely to eat a second banana if the first is a little smaller than usual, so why pay more for one banana?

You can always use two small onions instead of one large one. I know I've left the second half of a red onion chopped for a salad wrapped up in the fridge and then ultimately thrown it away on more than one occasion.

I don't mean to be pedantic so don't take it that way. I had this revelation for myself over a year ago, just thought I'd pass it on.

Paul_Herring

popshed wrote: »

You don't eat 40g of bananas, you eat 'a banana' whether it's large or small. You don't stop eating a large banana half way through and throw the rest away because you're full, and you're equally unlikely to eat a second banana if the first is a little smaller than usual, so why pay more for one banana?

Aren't you paying, also, for the weight of the bits you throw away?

To bring a bit of hyperbole, if you bought 3kg of small bananas and 3kg of large bananas, wouldn't the latter have more edible stuff?

Brings to mind previous topics of 'should you remove the bits of veg you won't eat before buying them.'

vixarooni

I love hyperbole! One of those words that you cant help read like a countdown conunderum! (sp)

I was just going to say, as paul herring did that why not eat the banana and then weigh the skin. Quids in!

saintscouple

Cutting the stalks off the loose broccoli

andyrules

saintscouple wrote: »

Cutting the stalks off the loose broccoli

Tsk, tsk

kirstle99

Well personally it never dawned on me to do what the OP said, especially with things like onions, so I thank them for their post.

dduk

If you don't use the whole onion can't you cut it up and freeze it to use another time in cooking? Some people pay a premium for ready frozen onion.

Greenqueen_2

I agree to a point. I work in a "healthy eating" childrens nursery and I have yet to meet a toddler who can manage a full apple or orange. We find there is much less waste with small apples and tangerines.

popshed

That's the thing though. They've trained us all, with the intensive production methods, to think that bigger and shinier is better, whereas the truth is that a lot of the time it just encourages waste as we purchase quantities that we simply don't need.

* If we all we all bought smaller fruit would we have to start consuming 7-a-day?

cwp500

popshed wrote: »

This may be of use to somebody so no flaming please

When buying loose fruit and veg like bananas, onions and courgettes, which are sold by weight, it's completely pointless picking out the largest and most impressive examples, go for the smaller ones..

Its a good piece of advice when applied to perishable goods and snacky foods like crisps or biscuits.

For weight conscious folk, it is an ideal way to train the brain into accepting smaller portions. Very much like eating a smaller portion off a smaller plate.

Thanks OP.

cwp500

dduk wrote: »

If you don't use the whole onion can't you cut it up and freeze it to use another time in cooking? Some people pay a premium for ready frozen onion.

Most veg, except spuds freeze well.

It is not economical to freeze a single onion. ~At 5 pm in markets, and even supermarkets at end of day, buy larger quantities and remember there are some rules about freezing.

Peel veg. Dunk it in a pan of boiling water for 60 seconds. Take it out and plunge it into cold water to "blanch" it. Pour off water. Dry as much as practical and then freeze.

It saves really well and the colour isnt faded like in the stuff you buy in supermarkets.

this works best for harder veg and not spuds, courgettes, cucumbers etc.

fruit rarely freezes well in my experience.