15 Simple Ways To Reduce Kitchen Waste and Save Money
Working with what you have to reduce kitchen waste saves money, feeds more, and increases diversity in your diet! Learning different ways to use what you might normally throw out is a very useful skill to have that will pay off in the long run.
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I love reducing kitchen waste and saving money wherever I can. Little daily habits add up to lifelong savings—and fewer trips to the grocery store. Not to mention, learning how to cook with whole foods (including the bits we often overlook) brings a deeper appreciation for the food we have and the effort it takes to produce it.
Getting creative with waste reduction can also be surprisingly fun and rewarding. Trying new tricks and hacks makes your ingredients go further and helps you build resourceful kitchen skills along the way. It’s not just about saving scraps—it’s about shifting your mindset, getting a little inventive, and bringing intention into the everyday routines of cooking and eating.
15 Ways To Reduce Kitchen Waste & Save Money
Save Bacon Fat
Whenever you make bacon in the oven, an abundance of bacon fat will be rendered. Pour this fat into jars and save for cooking like you would use butter. Use for frying eggs, sautéing veggies, or greasing pans.
Freeze Scrap Bags
Keep organic veggie scraps in a bag in the freezer until you have enough for homemade stock or use to flavour stock.
I recommend using only organic or thoroughly washed vegetable scraps as you don’t want to make a pesticide residue-infused stock.
Whey for Baking or Pets
If you don’t make your own cheese or yogurt, you can skip this one.
But if you do, you know that it comes with a lot of liquid whey. Don’t throw it out! Whey is high in protein, vitamins, and minerals. Use in bread-making and other baking, smoothies or pet food for added nutrition.
Eggshells for Pets or Garden
Eggshells are a great natural supplement for dogs and the garden. When I have enough saved, I simply bake them to dry out, grind in a food processor, and store in an airtight container.
Dehydrate Leftover Herbs
If you’ve often found yourself buying or growing herbs and using only a little bit and then the rest goes squishy in the fridge or dies, try drying them instead!
Preserve fresh herbs by air drying or using a dehydrator. Then grind and store in a container and use as you would any dried herb or spice!
Stale Bread to Breadcrumbs
If you do lots of bread-making and find you have lots of failed attempts or bread that isn’t getting eaten as fast as it should, don’t throw it away!
Cut 2-3 day old bread into cubes and store in a large vessel that has air flow. Keep adding until it’s full. Dry those cubes in the oven, grind down fine in a food processor, and store in an airtight jar for later use.
Save Lemon Zest
Zest lemons before juicing, then freeze or dry for later use. Lemon zest is something that often goes to waste but adds so much brightness to salads or baking, don’t let it go to waste.
Pickle Juice for Marinades or Dressings
I love this trick. Pickle juice is so tangy and flavourful, it always felt like a waste to throw out when the pickles were gone. Instead, save the juice and add to homemade dressings, vinaigrettes and marinades.
If you or someone you know enjoys Caesar’s, pickle juice is an essential addition.
Chicken Carcass to Stock
Buying whole chickens is the most economical way of eating chicken. You get all the bits plus a rich, nutrient-dense, gut-healing stock afterwards for a nourishing soup!
A staple of frugal cooking—deep flavour, zero waste.
Regrow Veggies in Water
Most things from the store that are bought with a stem or root system still intact can be regrown in water! Try it with celery, green onions, romaine, and bok choy!
Banana Bread from Brown Bananas
Sometimes the only reason I buy bananas – to wait for them to go brown. I’ll either make banana bread right away with brown bananas or freeze them and use them when ready.
Make Vinegar with Apple Scraps
Apple cores and peels make great apple scrap vinegar. All you need are apple scraps, sugar, apple cider vinegar mother, and water!
Freeze Tomato Paste in Portions
Ever open a can of tomato paste and only use a tiny bit and then put the rest in the fridge to get old and crusty? Me too. Until I started to freeze the portions!
Simple freeze 1 tbsp scoops between small sheets of parchment paper. Pull individually for quick sauces or soups.
Freeze Milk or Yogurt Cubes
Nothing worse than spoiled and wasted milk or yogurt. If you sense your milk or yogurt going off soon, simply freeze into cubes and store in the freezer. Blend into smoothies or use for baking to prevent waste!
Crush and Freeze Garlic Cloves
Don’t toss sprouting or aging garlic—peel, crush, freeze in olive oil or in its own oil. Pull from the freezer and use as you would crushed garlic normally.
BONUS: Plan Leftover Nights
Make it a habit to cook with what’s left in your fridge once a week or create meals based on what needs to be used up in your fridge.
Make it a game of how many aging items you can incorporate into each meal!
wow! that’s a very comprehensive list. I love all these tips and like you say a lifetime habit learn it now and it’ll carry you through a lot of years. one thing I like to do with herbs if I don’t have enough to dehydrate is to add a bit of olive oil and put them in ice cube trays. then I could just pull out a cube and add it to whatever I’m cooking. also my freezer bags I prefer to put them right back into the freezer rather than putting them through soap and water each time. so I keep a bag with my freezer bags in the freezer and then I can just take one out again without having to wash it. and crushed egg shells can be used to put around your plants if you have a problem with slugs. It can keep your produce growing in a healthy way. love love love this.!