Grocery shop fail

say_pocket

Any and all bread I buy goes moldy before I can eat all of it. They need to sell half loaves. Q_Q

I'm another vote for you to try Kale chips. I buy a package of that ranch powder stuff and add a tsp or two of that to my kale when I'm mixing in the oil. They don't taste ranch-y in the end, but they're nice and salty and perfect for when I'm craving salty chips or fries.

tcunbeliever

Actually, this happens to me with a lot of things unfortunately. It's mostly because I live alone. There are weeks when I can get through all the fresh stuff I've purchased, no problem. But then there are weeks where I for some reason had no desire to eat any of it it, so it inevitably goes bad & I have to throw it all out. It's the worst.

I would say my two 'most thrown out' are milk & bread. Which is kind of crazy since those are such staple foods. But I only drink milk with cereal, & I only eat bread if I make tuna salad or eat toast for breakfast. I'm someone who gets hooked on foods & eats them for weeks on end. I used to eat cereal every single day for breakfast & could easily get through a half-gallon of milk before it went bad, but then I switched to a banana & PB2 & it took me weeks to realize I kept buying milk that I no longer needed because I was no longer using it in my cereal, & that's why I kept having to throw it away! Ugh!


EDIT to say: WINE. It makes me so sad because I lovelovelove wine, but I only have like one glass of wine every few days at most. Wine goes bad pretty quickly, & since I live alone there's no one around to drink it up when I don't! :[ I've finally found a wine I love that comes in the baby bottles, so that's what I think I'll have to start doing from now on.

Milk in paper cartons will last longer than milk in plastic cartons - it can also be frozen, when it thaws it will tend to separate but a good shake will fix that...and bread can be frozen, just stick part of the loaf in a gallon ziploc, squeeze out the air, and then thaw a few pieces at a time by leaving at room temperature for about 4 hours.

mons2014

There are weeks when I can get through all the fresh stuff I've purchased, no problem. But then there are weeks where I for some reason had no desire to eat any of it it, so it inevitably goes bad & I have to throw it all out. It's the worst.

I do this too, it makes me feel bad because it is such a waste! I have made a commitment to myself to go to the store more often and buy less so I waste less.....Not sure how long that is going to last.

I purchased 2 cans of Progresso soup, I ate one and then watched the sodium on my fitness pal go so far into the red that i thought the thing was going to explode. Why do they need to put so much salt in stuff!!! Anyway, I have that second can that I refuse to eat. I definitely read the labels now.

LTKeegan

I'm thankful to have my garbage disposal (aka boyfriend) to eat all the food that is going bad. Yesterday he scrapped mold off cheese then ate it.


If it were me alone, cucumbers! I LOVE THEM but they go bad so fast!! (like less than a week)

autumnsquirrel

Do you guys have anything that you end up buying at the grocery store and always end up throwing it out?? Mine is kale! I always buy it, and then don't know what to do with it so I end up throwing it out

It was kale, but I stopped buying it because it was wasteful:/ Raw spinach, too. Oh, strawberries. I have to absolutely be in the mood for them, and lately with low carb living, I push them on the family or I end up tossing them out.

kennie2

courgettes cos some days i'll really be craving courgette noodles and some days i won't go near them.
also soy milk as i normally use 1/4 of the pack before it goes off

leahsays

It's always cucumbers for me. I ALWAYS forget they're in the bottom crisper until it's too late.

JLHNU212

I am bumping for the great ideas of what to do with the same stuff I usually buy and usually throw away! Thanks!!!

caroldavison332

I regularly sacrifice fresh fruit and veggies to the refrigerator god. So I started buying frozen.

Then I started freezing bread. I would pull it out when I wanted a sandwich and toast it. Yum. I little damp if not toasted.

Buy the smallest container of what milk, cheese, eggs, whatever you have. Use some and freeze the rest.

lesteidel

Try grocery shopping every couple days and only get what you need at that time instead of buying everything all at once,. Fruits and veggies don't last that long

JoRocka

I regularly sacrifice fresh fruit and veggies to the refrigerator god. So I started buying frozen.

Then I started freezing bread. I would pull it out when I wanted a sandwich and toast it. Yum. I little damp if not toasted.

Buy the smallest container of what milk, cheese, eggs, whatever you have. Use some and freeze the rest.

I always freeze my bread-
1.) insures I never waste it
2.) makes spreading butter on it for grilled cheese 10x easier.

Leopardfish1

Celery if I don't juice it up. however, now that I've invented my "Veggie Smoothie of Epic Proportions" using my Oster blender I rarely ‘juice’ anymore so I don't buy celery anymore. I throw a bunch of veggies of all kinds (kale, broccoli, garlic and other superfood veggies for sure), sharp cheddar, balsamic vinegar and a hand full of almonds into the blender, put in my ear plugs and throw it onto 'ludicrous speed' for about a minute and it’s just as smooth as butter (without all that dairy fat). It’s super healthy and tastes like the best salad you’ve ever had. I throw different things in it too depending on my whim de jur.

jasminecoco

prepacked lettuce/kale/chard/spinach/arugula

JeffBrown3

Oranges... I always throw the entire bag away so I stopped buying them.

Confuzzled4ever

I can't afford to throw food away so if I don't know what to do with something, I resort to google.. Although I did throw away 3 coconuts recently. Such a shame. They were an unexpected gift from a neighbor, who didn't know what to do with them, and I never got the the time to shred them. booo.

I would say if you always throw it away, stop buying it. Or google first, buy second.

Confuzzled4ever

Celery if I don't juice it up. however, now that I've invented my "Veggie Smoothie of Epic Proportions" using my Oster blender I rarely ‘juice’ anymore so I don't buy celery anymore. I throw a bunch of veggies of all kinds (kale, broccoli, garlic and other superfood veggies for sure), sharp cheddar, balsamic vinegar and a hand full of almonds into the blender, put in my ear plugs and throw it onto 'ludicrous speed' for about a minute and it’s just as smooth as butter (without all that dairy fat). It’s super healthy and tastes like the best salad you’ve ever had. I throw different things in it too depending on my whim de jur.

This is the weirdest smoothie recipe I have ever come across.. I'm not sure how I feel about this. LOL..

I do love the name of it though. :drinker:

canadjineh

We usually end up tossing at least half of the (dairy) milk if we buy a half gallon. We just don't drink it much and use it mainly for morning coffee or cooking, so we tend to get the littlest jug (quart? I'm not sure).

My husband is the only one who uses milk, but we still buy it in gallon/4 litre jugs because it's way cheaper. Just take half, put it in a tupper jug or glass jar with a bit of headspace, and stick it in the freezer. It takes about two days to defrost in the fridge, shake to mix the fats back in & good to go. Oh yeah, it looks funny very yellow when frozen, but just ignore that, as it's the fat separating out and once thawed & mixed looks & tastes normal.

brownbeauty2013

Try kale with some navy beans and diced tomatoes. Season and let it simmer and work the flavors it. Also add some onions and garlic and you are in business!

hananah89

I would say my two 'most thrown out' are milk & bread. Which is kind of crazy since those are such staple foods. But I only drink milk with cereal, & I only eat bread if I make tuna salad or eat toast for breakfast. I'm someone who gets hooked on foods & eats them for weeks on end. I used to eat cereal every single day for breakfast & could easily get through a half-gallon of milk before it went bad, but then I switched to a banana & PB2 & it took me weeks to realize I kept buying milk that I no longer needed because I was no longer using it in my cereal, & that's why I kept having to throw it away! Ugh!

freeze your bread! I have a roommate but we don't share food so I have to find ways to keep things longer. Then just microwave a little bit or put it in the toaster when you are ready to use!

ETA: I drink milk daily, but its just me so I can usually get through 3/4 gallon before the expiration date and then I rush to drink it before it starts smelling. I wish they made only 3/4 gallons...
If I buy deli meat from the counter and not pre packaged that tends to be the week I don't want it and it goes bad...
Apples go in the fridge to last longer. Bread in the freezer.
Eggs last a long time and I buy 2 dozen at a time.
Lettuce and produce I'm bad at buying, then ending up not eating it quickly enough.

Pirate_chick

Celery if I don't juice it up. however, now that I've invented my "Veggie Smoothie of Epic Proportions" using my Oster blender I rarely ‘juice’ anymore so I don't buy celery anymore. I throw a bunch of veggies of all kinds (kale, broccoli, garlic and other superfood veggies for sure), sharp cheddar, balsamic vinegar and a hand full of almonds into the blender, put in my ear plugs and throw it onto 'ludicrous speed' for about a minute and it’s just as smooth as butter (without all that dairy fat). It’s super healthy and tastes like the best salad you’ve ever had. I throw different things in it too depending on my whim de jur.

This is the weirdest smoothie recipe I have ever come across.. I'm not sure how I feel about this. LOL..

I do love the name of it though. :drinker:

ditto. I don't think I could drink a salad.

Pirate_chick

I'm thankful to have my garbage disposal (aka boyfriend) to eat all the food that is going bad. Yesterday he scrapped mold off cheese then ate it.


If it were me alone, cucumbers! I LOVE THEM but they go bad so fast!! (like less than a week)

oh my gosh, I found this out this pass week. I bought 2 cucumbers so I wouldn't have to go back to the store the following week. the second one was a soggy mess, it looked like it started to liquify. (grrrooosssss) . Now I know to only buy one at a time. lol

cuinboston2014

Ugh to the cucumbers. I love them! I was eating them every day but then even by the end of the week it seemed like one or two would be bad already. I have given my husband strict instructions on what to look for when purchasing these bad boys or I have him skip it and make a separate produce shopping trip.

I'm lucky to have a husband who does the shopping for us

I was buying a mixture of fruits and veggies every week. however, my husband doesn't eat many fruits and veggies and my daughter is picky about the ones she eats. So now instead of buying brocolli and carrots and cucumbers for the week I buy a lot of one and we eat that.

I'm still mad about cucumbers going bad so quick. Dumb things. Can't wait for summer to grow my own again

Hargismom

Collard Greens...I buy them for the smoothies but then I end up using spinach or Kale instead.

cuinboston2014

Actually, this happens to me with a lot of things unfortunately. It's mostly because I live alone. There are weeks when I can get through all the fresh stuff I've purchased, no problem. But then there are weeks where I for some reason had no desire to eat any of it it, so it inevitably goes bad & I have to throw it all out. It's the worst.

I would say my two 'most thrown out' are milk & bread. Which is kind of crazy since those are such staple foods. But I only drink milk with cereal, & I only eat bread if I make tuna salad or eat toast for breakfast. I'm someone who gets hooked on foods & eats them for weeks on end. I used to eat cereal every single day for breakfast & could easily get through a half-gallon of milk before it went bad, but then I switched to a banana & PB2 & it took me weeks to realize I kept buying milk that I no longer needed because I was no longer using it in my cereal, & that's why I kept having to throw it away! Ugh!


EDIT to say: WINE. It makes me so sad because I lovelovelove wine, but I only have like one glass of wine every few days at most. Wine goes bad pretty quickly, & since I live alone there's no one around to drink it up when I don't! :[ I've finally found a wine I love that comes in the baby bottles, so that's what I think I'll have to start doing from now on.

I'm not sure if I'm jealous that you have self control to not just finish the bottle off during the course of the week or I'm sad that you are wasting the wine.

I have started strategically considering when to open wine - like I won't open a bottle on Tuesday night because I won't finish it until the weekend, etc but before I started avoiding drinking my calories for the day I was totally drinking it multiple nights in a row because I "had" to finish the bottle.

I threw wine out once and it still hurts me now I am actually going to get those smaller containers of wine - I hear black box is pretty good - so I can enjoy just a glass or a glass and a half and not worry about it!

Diesel_Girl

Bananas!

Athijade

Cut it up and mix it through spagetti noodles with garlic and olive oil

Why didn't I think of that!?!

I buy Kale and use it in a meal (usually a baked omelet or on pizza) and then have NO idea what to do with the rest. I like it, I am just not very creative I think haha. So, thank you for this idea so now I won't waste as much of it!

blanphere

^^ this

Try grocery shopping every couple days and only get what you need at that time instead of buying everything all at once,. Fruits and veggies don't last that long

We shop pretty much by the meal, unless it's something frozen, like bags of chicken or a good deal on fish. Red meat is always fresh. I'm horrible with veggies going bad since I am the only one that eats them. I started getting pre-made salads at the grocery so everything is measured out for me and no waste. I only buy 2-3 apple/oranges at a time. I planned on making a raw brussel sprout salad with radishes, green onion, dried cranberries, and mandarin orange...guess what got eaten? The orange. Before the salad even had a chance to be made. So everything else went in the trash. My boyfriend and I both hate leftovers, so we only cook what we know we will/can eat in one sitting. That cuts down on cost and waste as well.

I'm bad with tofu too

ashleycde

Try freezing your kale if you don't finish it. Kale here comes in a big bundle, which is always too much for me as my boyfriend doesn't use much of it, so I freeze what's still fresh of it when it starts to wilt, which works well still in smoothies and spiced broth-based soups, which is mostly all I use it for anyway. I do the same with spinach as well.

My boyfriend makes fun of me about eggplant, because I've bought it 3 times in the past and every time the whole thing goes to waste. I love eggplant, but I never seem to remember to use it! Other than that, nothing really goes bad in our house because what ever we don't freeze, my boyfriend will use if it's on the verge of going bad, usually in a big soup that he'll use chicken discards in as well (I don't like these soups much, but he'll live on it for days!) or a very vegetable dense pasta sauce.

For anyone who mentioned fruit, I freeze half of my fruit for smoothies and keep the other half fresh for snacking. Once the fresh fruits have reached their optimum ripeness and are about to start going bad (usually strawberries and bananas for me), I'll cut them up and freeze them so I always have a constant stream of fruits frozen in the fridge for smoothies.


I call this my smoothie station.

Also a tip for someone who mentioned wine: salt it (so that it lasts) and save it for cooking!

zeal26

Sour cream
Fresh herbs
Courgette
Hummus

sjaplo

EDIT to say: WINE. It makes me so sad because I lovelovelove wine, but I only have like one glass of wine every few days at most. Wine goes bad pretty quickly, & since I live alone there's no one around to drink it up when I don't! :[ I've finally found a wine I love that comes in the baby bottles, so that's what I think I'll have to start doing from now on.

Oh the horror! Oh the humanity! Get yourself a vacuum wine saver - it takes the air out of the bottle so it doesn't oxidize. Never had a reason to buy one in our house...........:drinker: