Hi folks! Hope this is okay to post here. I also put it in r/povertykitchen but I thought slrpnk people would probably have a different perspective.
I recently got a very generous amount of groceries from the local food pantry, including a lot of fresh veggies that I wouldn’t normally buy for myself - I get frozen every time to make sure I don’t waste anything/let it go bad but honestly my diet is mostly carbs since it’s cheap. I have carrots, baby potatoes, cucumbers, a really shocking amount of onions, and some bell peppers. What’s the best way to stretch them as far as possible knowing I may not have access to more fresh veggies for a while (at least until I’m allowed to go back to the food pantry)?
My ideas so far -
- Carrot cake, slice and freeze
- Treat myself to a nice dinner with roast carrots, potatoes, and onions?
- Cucumber sandwiches
- Vegetable soup
As you can see I’m not really sure what to do with a fresh vegetable. Any ideas or should I just try to cook and eat it all as quickly as possible so it doesn’t go to waste?
Potatoes and onions have really long shelf life and can last for months if kept in cool, dry and dark places. However you should not store them together as potatoes go bad really fast if stored near high ethylene producing food like onion, and onions get leaky quite fast from the humidity they absorb(?) from potatoes. Let them breath, and don’t keep them in locked containers, I usually just hang them with mesh bags in different locations
For carrots, bell peppers and cucumbers, I usually add little bit of water into a sealed container and it is enough to last another 3-4 weeks in the fridge
Pickling is also an option for all of them if you like it
Frozen cucumbers and bell peppers won’t have a great texture, but it’s fine for me to chuck them into soups, pourées, etc