Did you know you can freeze onions? The self-proclaimed "hack queen" has made a TikTok showing how it's done.
The scoop
Suzie Durigon (@therealjustcrumbs) shares recipe tips and suggestions for reducing waste around your home. They even shared an inventive way to use old fruit cups. In one clip, Suzie explains how simple it is to freeze your excess onions.
@therealjustcrumbs Next time you want to throw away onions because you bought too many and you think they're going bad, use this tip to reduce food waste and keep within your food budget! #justcrumbs #onions #freezer #budget #unprocessyourfood #kitchentips #tipskitchen #fast #kitchenhack #tipsfromthekitchen ♬ S&M (Rihanna Tribute) - Super Bowl Music Makers
The process is easier than you might expect. Start by slicing your onions up in whatever shape you like. Add your cut onions to a ziplock bag, spreading them out so they lie flat. Next, press all of the air out of the bag. You can use a straw or a vacuum-sealer to get as much air out as possible.
You will be left with a flat, sealed bag of onions that you can slide into your freezer.
"Anybody, and I mean anybody, has room for this tiny little skinny package," adds Suzie.
When you are ready to use your onion, simply break off the amount you need, and you can use them for any of your favorite recipes. The creator sautés some up for topping a delicious scrambled egg.
How it's working
Preventing food waste is one of the best ways to save money and help keep organic material out of landfills. The USDA finds that in the U.S., around 40% of our food goes to waste, throwing away "approximately 133 billion pounds and $161 billion worth of food."
Reducing your food waste by just 10% can save you close to $100 a year. Hacks like freezing leftovers or drying herbs are all easy ways to cut down on how much food ends up in the trash. It's inevitable to waste a little food, but looking into compost programs or getting a bin in your yard is another way you can avoid tossing it.
It's important to keep organic material out of our landfills because when it breaks down, it releases a potent pollutant. Methane is a climate-warming gas that has about 80 times the warming power of carbon. According to the EPA, food waste creates more than half of the methane gas released from landfills.
🗣️ What's the most common reason you end up throwing away food?
🔘 Bought more than I could eat 🛒
🔘 Went bad sooner than I expected 👎
🔘 Forgot it was in the fridge 😞
🔘 Didn't want leftovers 🥡
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
What people are saying
TikTokers in the comments were excited to try out the hack, and some even said they had already been doing it.
One person wrote, "This is brilliant."
"I've been doing this for years. I do bags of sliced, chopped, and minced. Quick, and easy," added someone else.
Another home cook said, "Whenever we buy onions, we slice them in the food processor and freeze them. It makes meal prep even faster because they're already ready."
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