I’m sure I am not alone when I make this confession: I tend to go food shopping when I am hungry or impulse buy food (either in the store or take out) and end up with a ton of stuff I never use or eat, resulting in wasted food being thrown out. As someone who is on a budget, this is frustrating, because it means my hard-earned money is also being thrown away.
I decided to put an end to this vicious cycle. For the next month, I plan on using EVERYTHING in my house and not buy anything until I’m out of almost everything. (The exception will be my beloved coffee creamer because my coffee needs to be light and sweet.) I will also cut back on my takeout consumption, which will fatten my bank account and hopefully slim my waistline. (As a busy woman who lives alone, there are far too man ]y f**k it, I will get takeout nights.) It is going to be tough, but I know I can do it.
I began my challenge tonight with food I had in my fridge and/or already defrosted. I made my sister-in-law’s signature sushi bowls, which consisted of ahi tuna, sushi rice wasabi and avocado. I cooked the fish rare (similar to cooking steak–I just seared it on both sides using spices and a bit of olive oil), cooked the rice in my instant pot and just added the avocado and wasabi in a bowl. It took fifteen minutes and was delicious.
The challenge for the next few days is going to be planning meals with food I have in the house already. This includes leftovers, nonperishables and whatever is in my freezer. (I am one of those people who toss things in said freezer and then forget about it.) The plan is to do an inventory and go from there.
I will post my recipes and tips every day for the next month and let you know how it works out. Once I am done with this challenge, I plan to do a series on more mindful food shopping so I avoid overbuying and overspending.
Let me know if you’re up for joining me on this journey and if you have any tips of your own!
Thank you to Jenny and Maureen for this idea!
