This Thrifty Cooking Trick Saves Me So Much Money on My Grocery Bill
I cook at home quite a lot. In addition to cooking a lot for my job, I also work from home and therefore eat the majority of meals from my own kitchen. I’m not stopping for a morning bagel on my way into the office or grabbing a to-go lunch — I prepare all of those meals myself. An inevitable consequence of all that cooking is an abundance of food waste. I’m not talking about edible food going to waste — I’m talking about the ends of onions, the tips of carrots, citrus peels, and chile stems.
I’m an aspirational composter. My city doesn’t have a dedicated program, and despite it being a goal of mine to get our household composting I’ve never quite been able to get it together and do the research required to find the right private compost service and bin for our kitchen. In lieu of true composting, I try to find clever ways to minimize the food waste coming out of our kitchen. One practice that has helped a ton is a super-simple one I learned as a catering cook: Saving food scraps in the freezer to make broth.
Why Saving Food Scraps in the Freezer Is Great
I know, a lot of people don’t have the inclination to make their own broth. Why would you when there are so many good options available at the grocery store? Well, for one thing, broth you make yourself is going to taste better than something you bought at the store. Making your own broth also gives you control over what goes into it. You can add only the flavors you prefer, and you can fine tune the salt content to your taste.
But the best argument to do it, in my opinion, is that you’re using everything your ingredients have to offer and you’re saving yourself money by not having to buy broth from the grocery store. While it’s certainly true that after you make the broth, the food scraps wind up in the trash anyway, I feel better knowing I’ve gotten the most out of them.
How to Make Broth with Food Scraps
Freeze food scraps. Ends of onions, chile stems, herb stems, radish greens, and citrus peels are all great examples of stuff you generally discard that are great for broth. Keep things that you wouldn’t want to eat, but can still offer flavor.
Boil. When you’re ready, toss the frozen scraps into a large pot (no need to defrost them) and cover them with water. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Simmer the broth until it’s fragrant and flavorful. Timing will depend on what ingredients you’ve used, how large your pot is, and personal preference. I typically let broth simmer for at least 1 hour.
Strain. Strain and discard the solids. Broth can be refrigerated for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
Tips for Making Homemade Broth with Food Scraps
Be strategic. I keep scraps that I know will add flavors I like to broth — the ends of onions, tips of carrots, fennel fronds, and herb stems.
Don’t forget poultry scraps. I keep the backs cut out of spatchcocked chickens, wings, and the roasted bones from poultry I’ve picked clean; they make a great addition to broth. The next time you pick the meat from a rotisserie chicken, keep the bones in the freezer for broth.
Keep everything in a freezer bag. I have a large zipper-top freezer bag in my freezer labelled “broth.” I throw scraps into it when cooking, and when it’s full I just dump it all into a pot, cover with water, and let it simmer. Presto! Homemade broth that’s perfect for soup season.
Further Reading
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