If you feel like you’re frequently throwing away produce you can’t use before it turns bad, or leftovers you’ve forgotten about in the back of the fridge or pantry, read on. These five gadgets will extend the lifespan of your food, help you avoid wastage, and save you money.
Cheese Keeper
A cheese saver allows both hard and soft cheeses to breathe without drying out, keeping it fresh and delicious for much longer than a resealable plastic bag or the original, torn wrapper after it’s been opened. They also have similar gadgets for limes, lemons, onions, tomatoes and more. Who knew?
Wine Saver
It’s not always (notice we don’t say never!) a good idea to drink an entire bottle of wine by yourself in one sitting, but stale wine isn’t pleasant and you hate to throw it away. Solution: A wine saver like this one with vacuum stoppers that extract the air from the bottle and seal it tight, so the wine is just as delicious several days later.
Brown Sugar Bear
This is for those of you who love to bake, but have had the annoying experience of reaching for the brown sugar needed in a recipe, only to find it’s somehow turned into an impenetrable, rock hard lump. Soak this magical little brown sugar-softening clay bear in water for 20 minutes. place it in your brown sugar container, and it will keep the sugar soft and easy to scoop for up to six months. If you have sugar that’s already turned to concrete, place the soaked bear in the container overnight, and the sugar will soften up enough for you to use by tomorrow. Voila!
Bread Keeper
Everyone’s reached for a slice of bread to make a sandwich or some toast, only to find it’s dry and stale, or worse yet, has spots of mold growing on it. Gross! A ventilated, expandable bread keeper lets you store a loaf (or other baked goods like bagels and croissants) much longer. The vent is adjustable to adapt to the humidity level wherever you live. It even comes with a handy little cutting board. Let’s limit furry to our cute kitties and pups, and not our bread, shall we? Glad we had this talk!
Produce Savers
These Rubbermaid produce-saving containers regulate the flow of carbon dioxide so your spinach, berries, lettuce, and other pricey produce will stay crisp-fresh in the refrigerator for 10 days or more. Huzzah! No more soggy salad or ruined raspberries. There are a number of different sizes available and they’re dishwasher safe.
Have fun deciding what to do with all that extra cash, now that you’re not spending it to replace spoiled food. For more handy life hacks, check out the Olympus Woodbridge blog.