What sucks about eating healthy is...

JessicaLP643
JessicaLP643 Posts: 5 Member
edited November 17 in Food and Nutrition
...the food spoils faster than I anticipated. I way overbought Monday, starting my diet out, & now I have to throw over half of it out, because it's going bad. So disappointed! I'm going to have to grocery shop 2-3 times a week to keep stocked on things & with two kids that just sounds like total...fun! Any tips on keeping fruit & veggies fresh for longer periods of time?!
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Replies

  • yesimpson
    yesimpson Posts: 1,372 Member
    Buy frozen, or tinned. Some stuff will ripen and spoil slower in a fridge/cool dark cupboard than it will in a fruitbowl in a warm, humid kitchen. Make smoothies or sauces if things look like they're on the turn.
    At least you know now that the shelf life for some items can be quite short, so you won't get caught out again!
  • Jacleepin
    Jacleepin Posts: 48 Member
    What are you buying? I buy a 2 large bags of organic power greens at Costco, a week of peppers and cucumbers, apples, bananas (yes, I struggle with keeping those good), avocados, and melons. This all keeps good for a week except I may have to have a banana run.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    Some last longer than others. Apples, oranges, and greenish bananas will last longer than strawberries, for example. Try to buy some that keep longer and some to eat sooner.

    For veggies, I find that cucumbers and bell peppers go south sooner than radishes, celery, and broccoli. So I try to eat the former earlier in the week.
  • Amik07
    Amik07 Posts: 13 Member
    you can google any veggie or fruit for info. good luck.
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
    Google, as was suggested, and plan ahead. Use the vegetables and fruits that will go bad quickly first, then use the ones that hold up better (stuff like cabbage and cauliflower and broccoli, for example) later.

    Don't buy more than 3 or 4 days worth, though.

    I tend to make a quick run to the store just for veggies after I hit the gym twice a week. It only takes me 5 minutes, and I'm in and out.
  • kami3006
    kami3006 Posts: 4,979 Member
    Jacleepin wrote: »
    What are you buying? I buy a 2 large bags of organic power greens at Costco, a week of peppers and cucumbers, apples, bananas (yes, I struggle with keeping those good), avocados, and melons. This all keeps good for a week except I may have to have a banana run.
    Bananas freeze well. I chop them up and weigh them out for protein shakes but freezing them whole works too.

  • 23susu23
    23susu23 Posts: 68 Member
    I guess if it isn't greens (and maybe even if it is) throw veggies in the freezer to use in soup or sauces. I find that the power greens and spinach go very well in pasta sauce. squash and cucumbers keep a little longer if you take them out of plastic bags and wrap in paper towels, I discovered.

    I hardly buy bananas anymore because I can only keep so many in the freezer. They are not worth the calories to me right now. I used some raspberries that I put in the freezer in my oatmeal the other day. Frozen veggies were on sale the other day and I bought 10 bags. My freezer is too full. I'm going to have to work on eating out of the freezer for the next week (or two).
  • ChefSteveUrso
    ChefSteveUrso Posts: 84 Member
    Most fresh produce lasts a week in the fridge. Learn how much you will realistically use and just buy that amount. I used to buy to much and throw a lot away also. I tend to eat more veggies and fruit when I wash and cut up certain things ahead of time for omelets, salads, and cooking. Try slicing up small amounts of peppers, onions, cucumbers, mushrooms, zucchini, pineapple, mango, ect. wash your berries, lettuce and tomatoes. You'll be surprised how much quicker and easier it is to make a meal when your veggies are already washed and cut up. You'll start using more produce in everything, which is very healthy for you and your family.
  • JessicaLP643
    JessicaLP643 Posts: 5 Member
    Thanks for the tips guys! I think I just got overzealous with the first "healthy eating" shopping trip & went a little crazy. My salads & most of my fruit was bad within 2-3 days. Most of my veggies were bought frozen thankfully & then I bought a pack of 10 chicken breast that I grilled & had in Tupperware in the fridge. After weighing them I realized I was only allowed 1/2 of each chicken breast making it now 20 chicken breast I had to eat or throw away in 2-3 days! Lol. It's deff a learning experience! I've learned so much already in just a week. I won't go so crazy next time.
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
    Oh no... NEVER wash berries until right before you use them. Washing them ahead of time is a sure fire way for them to grow mold on you.
  • ChefSteveUrso
    ChefSteveUrso Posts: 84 Member
    mamapeach910 wrote: »
    Oh no... NEVER wash berries until right before you use them. Washing them ahead of time is a sure fire way for them to grow mold on you.
    If you're berries get moldy because you washed them it means you didn't eat them within a reasonable amount of time like a day or two, which goes back to the first advice I gave, Don't buy more produce than you will eat. If your berries are washed and drained you can grab them as a quick healthy snack and they will be gone way before they ever get moldy. Mama don't tell a Chef about food.
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  • Noelv1976
    Noelv1976 Posts: 18,948 Member
    It gets expensive
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  • Valtishia
    Valtishia Posts: 811 Member
    I tend to limit the stuff that spoils faster.. but I make it gets eaten first. I also have a machine that takes frozen fruit and turns it into a sorbet kind of thing. If I notice fruit is starting to go a little, I will stick it in the freezer and use it as a frozen treat later :)
  • Noelv1976
    Noelv1976 Posts: 18,948 Member
    I don't have diabetes
  • CipherZero
    CipherZero Posts: 1,418 Member
    Take berries. Wash, Dry. Freeze.
  • adamjackson213
    adamjackson213 Posts: 12 Member
    It takes more effort and a longer time to prepare food in general.
  • Justygirl77
    Justygirl77 Posts: 385 Member
    JessicaLP643 wrote: »
    ...the food spoils faster than I anticipated. I way overbought Monday, starting my diet out, & now I have to throw over half of it out, because it's going bad. So disappointed! I'm going to have to grocery shop 2-3 times a week to keep stocked on things & with two kids that just sounds like total...fun! Any tips on keeping fruit & veggies fresh for longer periods of time?!

    Maybe your refrigerator is not as cold as it should be.
    Also, are you storing things in the correct compartments? Greens and veggies in the high humidity drawer? A shoebox type plastic container really helps to keep produce fresh longer.

    My diet consists mainly of veggies (I eat a pound of vegetables every day, and 4 of my children started copying my diet lol!) So I got out our BIG cooler that keeps things cold for 6 days and started storing all the produce in there, so I don't have to stuff my fridge or keep opening up the fridge to sort through produce.

    I find it helpful to make up a pot of beans (black ), lentils to go with meals. It's pretty cheap, fun to eat and is satisfying.
  • tiffanybrooks530
    tiffanybrooks530 Posts: 140 Member
    Increased cost in some cases. We made zucchini spaghetti instead of using pasta and the zucchini was organic and 2.99 for 2, we used 8 zuccs which only ended up being two servings after cooking it so it cost = 8 zuccs X $2.99 = $23.92 just to substitute pasta which only cost 2 bucks for an 8 serving box. We decided not to do that again, we just cut back on eating pasta type dishes all together.
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    Of course it gets expensive if you let the food you buy go to waste. Stop that, eat the stuff you buy, and eating healthy is cheap. Difficult recepies will take time and skills. Make simple food, and it takes no more time or skill than convenience food.
  • Susieq_1994
    Susieq_1994 Posts: 5,361 Member
    I actually find it very surprising that so many people mention produce going bad so quickly! I'm not sure what the difference is between the produce I buy here (I'm in Saudi Arabia, I buy only local produce if I can possibly help it) and the produce available in other countries. Maybe the produce isn't picked as ripe or something? No idea.

    All of my produce lasts between two weeks to a month, depending on what it is. I can get two weeks out of tomatoes, cucumbers, cilantro, zucchini, bell peppers, eggplants, and spinach (The spinach only keeps if I strip the leaves from the stalks, put them in a tupperware container, add a paper towel under the lid, then cover it and keep in the fridge). I can get a month or more easily out of parsley, spring onions, onions, lemons/limes, iceberg lettuce, and cauliflower.

    I keep all my produce in the fridge (in the veggie drawer) and I don't wash them until I use them. If I do wash them, I carefully dry them before putting them in the veggie drawer so they won't get mouldy. I line the bottom of the drawer with parchment paper, just because it makes it easier to clean, but it also seems to absorb excessive moisture.
  • Noreenmarie1234
    Noreenmarie1234 Posts: 7,492 Member
    Yes, I go to the store at least 2 times a week.
  • Susieq_1994
    Susieq_1994 Posts: 5,361 Member
    kommodevaran wrote: »
    Of course it gets expensive if you let the food you buy go to waste. Stop that, eat the stuff you buy, and eating healthy is cheap. Difficult recepies will take time and skills. Make simple food, and it takes no more time or skill than convenience food.

    This :) And also, I find that when I make a rough plan for what I'm going to eat that week and buy what I need for that plan, nothing goes to waste. I don't make a very detailed one--I plan dinners only, since my husband and I have mostly the same breakfasts and lunches, then buy the "special" planned stuff for the dinners; then, I just pick up the general items that we tend to have for breakfast and lunch, like cereal, oats, peanut butter, bread, and eggs.
  • runningagainstmyself
    runningagainstmyself Posts: 616 Member
    Not being able to stuff my face full of poutine.
  • melimomTARDIS
    melimomTARDIS Posts: 1,941 Member
    cabbage (including the bags of preshredded coleslaw), kale, potatoes,onions, carrots,oranges (and OJ), Raisins, apples all last for quite a while, so I would start with those.

    I also buy frozen veggies (in steamer bags for maximum laziness) when on sale.

    I do a mid week run to the store for fresh lettuce, bread, milk, and tomatoes, because they dont keep, and we go through them quickly anyway.
  • rbee2015
    rbee2015 Posts: 50 Member
    Jacleepin wrote: »
    What are you buying? I buy a 2 large bags of organic power greens at Costco, a week of peppers and cucumbers, apples, bananas (yes, I struggle with keeping those good), avocados, and melons. This all keeps good for a week except I may have to have a banana run.

    You can freeze bananas for smoothies, just remember to peel them before freezing.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    What are you buying? I've never had an issue with things keeping for a week unless it was kind of on it's way out when I bought it. I occasionally have trouble with my greens, but everything else seems to last just fine.
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  • livingleanlivingclean
    livingleanlivingclean Posts: 11,751 Member
    Our produce can last 2-3 weeks if we don't eat it! We normally eat it within a week though. We buy seasonal, local, organic fruit and vegies.

    Cooked meat can be frozen in portions - no need to throw it out!
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