Thrifty Tips. What's Yours? Or maybe you're a spendthrift instead?

Milk works out cheaper if you buy 4 pints at a time so I keep 2 pints in the fridge and freeze the other half. I batch cook grains and freeze in portions. I do brown rice in the pressure cooker. I also pressure cook gammon joints, slice and freeze as it works out cheaper than buying ham. I’ve started making my own spreadable butter, it’s cheaper and reduces my dairy intake.

I’d like to collect the ends of soap bars and boil them up to make new cakes of soap but I don’t know how or what to add. Any one do that? Some of the soaps were pretty expensive gifts or hand made ones. I hate throwing the last bits out.
I try not to waste food and also if I have any wine left in the bottleI always add it to soups, casseroles etc. These days we only have one drink each at night, if that, so it happens quite often. A bottle lasts us 2 or 3 nights anyway but after that not so good to drink.

One idea I had would have involved judicious planning when I'm was first married. Why are all casseroles etc round? I worked out that you could save so much electricity by putting most of the week's dishes in the oven all at once, if you used square dishes. You should be able to get four on an oven tray.

One with a casserole, one with a pie or a quiche. One with a cake, one with rice and/or a bake (such as a lasagne or Mac and cheese). Etc etc. they would all need about the same temperature and just take slightly different times to cook. They would then keep in the fridge or freezer until needed later in the week, and the square dishes would make storage much more economical, too.

But I only have the standard round Pyrex dishes.

If I am doing a casserole or any other one pot meal. I always make sure at least two things are in the oven. Rice, for example, can go in the oven with water and a lid on, and can be forgotten about, saving on electricity because you aren't heating a hob as well. Heating up a baguette or baking potatoes to go with the meal would have the same effect. Less washing up, and less mess on the hob.

MerylStreep

MOnicas post reminded me of the waste we see in Spain.
When we take the motohome to Spain we take a short cut to a campsite through the poly tunnel farms
Outside all these tunnels are large skips filled with mis- shaped fruit and veg.

I regularly fly into Almeria, the site of all those poly tunnels always amazes me. It’s a huge sea of them.

I use a clothes peg on the end of cut tubes such as toothpaste to stop the contents from drying out. I get the dregs out of all bottles such as shower gel, shampoo, conditioner, washing up liquid etc by adding water. I’ve been doing it all my life. My mother did it so I just carried it on. Clothes pegs are also so useful in the freezer with bags of food to stop the contents tipping out.

MOnicas post reminded me of the waste we see in Spain.
When we take the motohome to Spain we take a short cut to a campsite through the poly tunnel farms
Outside all these tunnels are large skips filled with mis- shaped fruit and veg.

Tubes not tubs. Completely different containers.

Fairycakes

welbeck
OP, how do you saw through a rigid container ?

I admit that was too difficult for me to do. I asked my husband and he did it with a Stanley knife.

I use my heavy-duty kitchen scissors to cut through moisturiser tubs - like others, I was amazed at how long it took me to use up the remains before I had to open a new bottle.

It is worth remembering that half of the world's food waste happens before it even reaches the shop and comes from inefficiencies in the supply chain at every point from the bad roads and extreme weather conditions in many developing countries to supermarkets cutting quantities of specific fruit and vegetables from suppliers as retail purchases vary with weather conditions, salald sales drop in a winter freeze, leading to farmers having to compost or plough in crops that were fit for eating or processing.

When I do filter coffee I make a second lot by poring hot water on the used grains. Weaker but still good.
And my DB used his tea bags 3 or 4 times.

We were told by the volunteers who run the Community Fridge that they are not just for those in need who cannot afford to shop in the supermarket.

Anyone can use them and one of their objectives is to avoid food waste.

While there are many provisions in place to reduce food waste, the UK produces the highest amount of food waste in Europe. Over ⅓ of all food produced globally goes to waste. The UK throws away around 9.5 million tonnes of food waste in a single year – even though 8.4 million people in the UK are in food poverty.

I try to go to the supermarket in the early evening. So many fresh produce items are reduced by 50%, or even more sometimes, and are a real bargain. I freeze it immediately I get home. It's early closing day today and the 70% off sausages, chicken thighs and smoked trout fillets I picked up are already in the freezer. I'm always puzzled why more people don't take advantage of these bargains because on Christmas Eve fresh food was almost being given away there was so much of it.

None of the things people mention seem exceptionally thrifty. Just what most people do as part of ordinary living.

I also cut off the ends of tubes and upend bottles. Always have. Still so much left.

I hate food waste therefore we have lots of soups and stews with left over vegetables. All containers get cut open and some of the plastic bottles get used by my husband in his garage.

Left over yogurts - Make a table jelly up to less than half a pint of boiling water. Once it has cooled then add the yogurts. Any flavours and mix together. I usually add 3 yogurts. Cool in a fridge and it makes a great pudding for after dinner or just eat.

My other little tip/hint which might already be used. When I make a casserole I cut down on the time it is in the oven by boiling all of the vegetable for 20 minutes in a pan with a stock cube. If it’s left over sausages then add to the vegetables and place in a casserole dish for 1 hour. No long cooking in the oven and you can add dumplings after 30 minutes.

I grow carrots in large pots and didn’t have to buy any this year (2023). The seeds are so cheap and as long as they are kept watered during the hot months they will grow well.

I must start doing the tube-cutting thing with tomato purée - I use quite a bit of that.

I've noticed that DD uses clean jam jars and old coffee storage jars etc (Douwe Egberts are good) to store leftovers, grated cheese etc in the fridge instead of plastic boxes.
Easy to see what is there and they can be thoroughly cleaned in the dishwasher.

Yes, I cut tubes of ointment etc open too, it's surprising how much can be left in there.

JackyB Our soil was very clay and poor when our son first built our raised beds I bought mushroom compost and fed the soil with my own compost it improved the soil over a short period.
I empty tubes of tomato paste or toothpaste by cutting the bottom. Turn all bottles upside down to use up all the contents. I don’t buy branded names. I re use jars and small bottles for homemade pickles chutney etc. I use egg carton and toilet rolls for plants in the spring. Recycle plastic tubs from spread cheese etc for anything seeds pins pegs etc.
Wax paper from breakfast packs is washed and used to store open packs of biscuits crackers etc. Not because I’m a skinflint but if stuff can be used again why not its what my mum always did.

welbeck
OP, how do you saw through a rigid container ?

I admit that was too difficult for me to do. I asked my husband and he did it with a Stanley knife.

I rarely buy clothes. I am fortunate enough to be comfortably off and not have to be too careful with money, but we don't do expensive holidays or have expensive furniture or electronics. Our electricity is produced most of the year by PV panels on the roof. We try to be careful with water.

I always plan menus and only buy what I need. If I do buy something not on the list, it often doesn't get used and has to be thrown out, so I have learned from that. Unfortunately in our small town the shops only have packed vegetables and fruit so I sometimes have to buy more than I need.. I aim to leave one or two gaps in the weekly plan to accommodate surplus food, and make a soup or a lasagne or a quiche to use things up, to prevent things going off as far as possible.

Next year we are going to grow more of our own vegetables, but we have very poor soil, so the choice is limited.

I upend all fairy liquid bottles, bleach containers, shampoo etc to really get them empty.

Use the whole breadloaf, including crusts.

Freeze any leftovers, including veg, potato, gravy etc to use again.

Switch off lights as we leave a room.

Keep wearing the same clothes year after year! Who’s looking at me?

Don’t buy extra tv channels e.g. Netflix. (But I grumble ‘there’s nothing to watch’!)

Use my local library instead of buying books, also borrow jigsaw puzzles for DH from there.

Don’t have a tumble drier, hang washing outside, even in wintertime.

yes i've done that for years with tubes of hand-cream etc.
but i wouldn't do it with toothpaste, for hygiene reasons.
OP, how do you saw through a rigid container ?

i always water down washing up liquid, usually have 2 containers by the sink so i can have different strengths.
use the weaker one for washing hands and plates with only crumbs.

Yes I add water to the last dregs of shampoo, washing up liquid, and anything else I can get the top off, and use it up.

Why put plastic bottles in the recycling which aren't clean and dry. And I get one or 2 more uses out of the product.

I have only recently started cutting open tubes of cream, I am amazed at the amount I have wasted over the years.

I do all that too. I hate waste, particularly when it comes to food. I don't see it as being a skinflint at all, just common sense.